■ 15 October 2008 | 10:50 PM
"Meet the Monarchs"
… and your new beat writer.
OK, so maybe you noticed that wasn’t rehearsed, right? Yours truly was grilled at the annual “Meet the Monarchs” dinner Wednesday night at a packed Norfolk Yacht and Country Club ballroom.
It’s a shindig that lets Monarch fans chow down on some good food (how ’bout that apple pie?) and hear from ODU’s coaching staff and players.
And coach Blaine Taylor handed the mic to radio play-by-play guy Ted Alexander to interview the Monarchs’ new beat writer. Ted was kind: he lofted some softballs in there for me.
Anyway, onto a few highlights …
Assistant coach Jim Corrigan told the crowd that ODU will play in a South Padre Island, Texas, tournament on Thanksgiving weekend during the 2009-10 season. And the Monarchs are working on playing in a Virgin Islands tournament the following season.
****
ODU forward Frank Hassell came prepared. He had some of the best answers of the night
Asked what he’s been doing in the offseason, Hassell replied he’d been working on his jump shot. And he got some help: “I was at Wal-Mart and they said ‘Jump shot on sale’ and I had to buy that.”
Added Hassell, “One night I might even push that red button and try a 3 and look at (Taylor) and see how it goes.”
Hassell was the last of Old Dominion’s 13 players to pass the dreaded “20 in 20” drill. That’s 20 suicides in 20 minutes. Taylor runs the team through the grueling drill each week during the offseason.
Taylor asked Hassell what that last one was like. “Honestly, I don’t know because when I hit 17 I blacked out. He told me I had dove, and I just saw Gerald (Lee) patting me on the back.”
****
Don’t accept any dinner invites from guard Etoile Imama, who admitted to his, um, cooking skills.
“I’m not going to lie, I almost burned down the house three times last year,” Imama said.
Added Imama: “I’m not there yet, but I’m learning.”
****
ODU’s four freshmen - guards Marquel De Lancey and Trian Iliadis and forwards Chris Cooper and Nick Wright - had some time with the microphone. Iliadis, who is nursing a stress fracture in his right foot, said he expects to be off crutches by next week. Cooper, meanwhile, said he’s fully healthy after missing his senior season at Forest Park High in Woodbridge with a knee injury.
****
Won’t be long now: ODU’s first official practice is 5 p.m. Friday in the Monarchs’ practice gym. I’ll be there and I'll tell you how it goes.
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That's It???
Jami, that is the best you can come up with? I know you are new but my 6 yr old grandson could handle a better story then that. It is early and the season hasn't even started yet, but I hope it gets better.