Ed Era marred by good guy, bad situation

By Jared Trexler
The Phanatic Magazine

"I want to inflate kids' tires."

Those resonating words came straight from Ed DeChellis' mouth on a November afternoon 2003. He sat in front of young scribes, myself included, and spouted off candidly about the extensive work on his metaphorical desk -- spanning from the armchair in his office to the left block near the home bench.

And the armchair was getting more work.

DeChellis not only inherited a lack of collective talent when he came home after seven successful seasons at East Tennessee State, but also a glaring lack of morale and team unity.

Yes, as I sat through that practice, it was obvious the head man didn't have the big bodies to execute a flawless Big Ten bang-and-roll (called a pick-and-roll in the finesse of the SEC or ACC). He also couldn't put together the depth or speed to trap, push the ball, run a fundamentally-sound fast break.

But he promised, "We will run." And you knew from his body language there was an important unspoken word added to the end of that sentence.

EVENTUALLY.

He didn't have the time to worry about how fast his players were, how skilled they were around the basket. He was too busy counseling, patting players on the backside after a missed assignment, attempting to juggle tough love with soft praise.

He wasn't just their basketball coach, but also their life coach.

He was faced with tough decisions, dealing with players who weren't truly his, and as a matter of record, wouldn't have been his if recruiting was his responsibility for the two years prior.

The next statement may surprise a few in West Virginia's Appalachian Mountains, but it's a commonly held belief in Happy Valley.

Jerry Dunn ruined Penn State basketball, and because of it the task has been too tall, too arduous for a man of DeChellis' clout.

Dunn completely botched the Chevy Troutman recruitment. If you don't remember the tank in the middle, ask our friends to the immediate west about his impact on the Panthers. Rumors ran rampant, and were then validated through a conversation several years ago, that Dunn left Troutman standing alone at the Bryce Jordan Center after a game.

In today's recruiting process of frat parties and chauffeurs, I don't think "forgetting" to meet a kid was a solid tactic.

Then, Dunn brought players to Penn State with no business playing Division I basketball, including beloved Council Rock native and current senior Ben Luber.

Dunn lived off a run triggered by Joe Crispin and a victory over North Carolina in the NCAA Tournament for a few seasons, pulling the wool over athletic director Tim Curley's eyes until the damage was nearly permanent.

Then, instead of making a splash with Phil Martelli or Steve Lavin, Curley followed the Penn State family tree to DeChellis, a great guy with a solid knowledge of the game and success at a mid-major institution.

In fact, Easy Ed was just coming off a great campaign with electric point guard Tim Smith, almost upsetting Wake Forest in the NCAA Tournament's first round.

But he wasn't sexy. He didn't bring the instant "wow" factor, the credibility and stock to shift the mindset of a program at the bottom of the barrel.

Yet, he was a genuine individual, a caring, down-to-earth guy with an obvious love for the university and a strong work ethic to right the ship.

With those qualities brought time.

And it's slowly ticking to a close.

Inheriting a team that won seven games each of the previous two seasons, DeChellis won nine with barely a bench of scholarship players during 2003-04. During the practice I witnessed, youthful assistant coaches James Johnson and Hillary Scott suited up -- and schooled players almost half their age.

Then a slight tick backwards the following season, marred by the defection of Marlon Smith, Jamaal Tate's alcohol problem and team issues involving Aaron Johnson, who transferred after the campaign to New Mexico. The club won just seven games, but also found a hidden recruiting gem in Geary Claxton.

Claxton was recruited by Syracuse, but head coach Jim Boeheim reportedly wanted him to attend prep school.

Yet, DeChellis took a chance, and while it didn't pay dividends in '04-05, last year's Nittany Lions won exactly half of their games (15-15) while breaking Illinois' long-time home winning streak.

But the uptick quickly trended south. So much so, that the progress shown was no longer visible. Penn State radio announcer and Philadelphia Daily News college hoops writer Dick Jerardi even theorized that the Nittany Lions "overachieved" in 2005-06.

If so, combined with an 11-19 season that ended against the Illini in the first round of the Big Ten Tournament on Thursday, where is the progress?

There is no true answer. It's tough to gauge progress on the court when there was so much to rebuild off it. The talent is better now than it was four years ago, and DeChellis somehow pulled the rabbit out of his hat in landing Louisville prep star Jeff Brooks and Albany, New York star Talor Battle -- both three-star recruits according to Scout.com.

The morale and team unity is also better -- but anything is an improvement when team members are sitting down for dinner at an Eat 'N Park, not coming to blows in one.

Subtle, gradual improvements can only go so far. The Bryce Jordan Center is a top-notch facility, and the Big Ten is a storied basketball conference. Penn State sports also has a recruiting chip in its back pocket at all times with Joe Paterno.

DeChellis came home to "inflate kids' tires." Now that the healing is done and the tires are full, it's time to drive the car toward success.

Or else, give someone else a turn.
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Jared Trexler can be reached at jtrexler@phanaticmag.com