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SAN ANTONIO, Texas -- Bill Self has had worse road trips.
This one came in 1985 before the money and the pressure. On a whim, he and fellow Kansas assistant coach R.C. Buford decided to head from Lawrence over to Kansas City for Game 7 of the World Series.
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| Bill Self finally cut a net down in the NCAA tourney, and he would like to do it again. (Getty Images) |
"We were going to sit out in the parking lot," Buford said. "This was really a spur-of-the-moment thing."
Oh yeah, forgot one big thing. There was a keg involved, legal tender for a couple of happening guys in their 20s.
"I think we had a party and nobody showed up," Buford said. "We had a keg of beer left."
Self and Buford pulled up to Royals Stadium, beer in tow, and, amazingly, were able to buy face-value tickets along the third-base line to watch the Royals beat the Cardinals.
That, and they became the most popular guys in town when beer stopped flowing. Who else had cold Budweiser on tap after the seventh game of the World Series –- in their car?
"We were the only guys in Kansas City with beer," Buford said.
Not exactly, but you get the idea.
They're still happening guys, more best friends now -- with families and careers these days -- as the Final Four begins. In a quirk of fate, it is in Buford's town. He is the general manager of the San Antonio Spurs. For Self, it's a career achievement.
College basketball's Phil Mickelson doesn't seem to have an enemy in the world this weekend. The affection for him in this town is surpassed only by that for the frozen margaritas on the River Walk.
The 45-year-old Self is one of the most well-liked coaches in the profession. He hit six game-winning shots his senior year in college, married his cheerleader sweetheart at Oklahoma State, treats us media wretches with fawning respect, gets his players to go hard and has only cross words for officials.
