The Ultimate Homecoming

Sporting News, The, Feb 22, 1999 by Bill Minutaglio

Against Southern Miss, also at home, Drexler began with an aggressive man-to-man defense, then shifted to a halfcourt trap with telling results. In the Memphis game, he managed the clock at fragile moments. Everyone, from rival coaches to antsy alumni, agrees he has motivated his team to play hard. "He has the team playing with much greater enthusiasm and intensity," Cincinnati coach Bob Huggins says.

Drexler takes a gentle approach to generating that intensity. He never resorts to a Singapore caning when teaching his pedal-to-the-metal, NBA-style offense. He also avoids the obvious temptation of invoking pro names, including his own, during practice. Instead, he works one-on-one, teaching little things: moving without the ball, blocking out, disguising plays, getting off quick shots.

"He lets us run the floor, he gives us the freedom to score early in the offense, when most teams have to come down, take their time and set up," says Gee Gervin, puddles of sweat forming around him after an afternoon practice. "You have to be crazy not to like this system."

Like all the players set to return next year, Gervin is eager to see the recruits Drexler is able to bring to the program. Already, Drexler has had commitments from two of the top 50 high school players in the country. Both are

from the Houston area, and one of them is Antonio Falu, a point guard originally from Puerto Rico who has been forced to confront controversial allegations that his high school eligibility ended a year ago. Drexler also has a commitment from one of the top four junior college forwards in the nation.

Today, when Drexler is asked what he dislikes about his job, he says with a straight face: "The least fun, ummmm, hmmmmm ... probably recruiting." But people in Houston, where so many outstanding players have a history of going to other schools, say that Drexler's name alone will keep the recruiting wave coming. "I'm amazed at the impact that Clyde's hiring has had," says Sam Adamo, a fixture in AAU circles in Houston. "It would be like Michael Jordan coaching at DePaul."

Even though Drexler will have to wait until next year to start seeing his recruits, this year's team attracted walk-ons who wanted to play for a future NBA Hall of Famer. Freshman forward Jake Ballis of Houston had scholarship offers at Hawaii and other schools but walked on specifically to play for Drexler. So far, he says, Drexler hasn't done anything to make him regret his move--and that the defection of Moses Malone Jr. was the exception rather than the rule. "He is laid back," Ballis says. "He is not a screamer. But he doesn't have to be, because he already has your attention."

Like Ballis, Younger gushes that Drexler's NBA glow is why he is still at Houston: "I figured he could help me get my game together to the point where I can play at that level." One day, Drexler saw that Younger was dipping too low on his free throws. Drexler worked one-on-one with Younger, tweaking and adjusting. The next game, against Memphis, Younger went 9-of-10 at the line.