NEWPORT BEACH, Calif. -- He is walking past the hotel patio and the crowd is swelling -- first two reporters, then four, then the TV stations. Is it Stallone? Is it Elvis? "Bo," says the PR man, "these gentlemen are from ESPN. They want to follow you around today.""Um-hmm," says the husky, balding coach, without breaking stride. "Well, all right, men. But I'm late for a team meeting.""That's OK," blurts the cameraman, "we'll just follow you and shoot. We don't need to interrupt.""Um-hmm."
NEWPORT BEACH, Calif. -- Gary Moeller is wearing a tie these days. Pretty soon, the jacket will follow. He'll develop that special walk, the brisk pace that discourages autograph hounds. His eyes will focus straight ahead. His mind will work a mile a minute. He inevitably will have someone on his right or left, a PR guy, an assistant, and he'll turn and say, "How much time do I got?"
NEWPORT BEACH, Calif. -- You want to get Leroy Hoard's attention? Put a whistle around your neck, make your voice sound like Bo Schembechler's, then sneak up behind him and yell, "DAMN IT, LEROY! NOT AGAIN!"Chances are he will spin around and plead, "It wasn't me, Coach! I didn't do it!" Or maybe he will race down the street and block somebody.
Isn't life funny, Mark Messner thought. He held a spoonful of malted shake up to his father's lips, which were black and peeling, burned from the chemotherapy. "Here you go, Dad," he said. His father rolled his eyes and made a "mmm" sound, like a child. Mark smiled, pulled the spoon out and dug it back into the cup.
First of all, Barry Sanders doesn't mind dancing. As long as someone else is doing it. Sure, when he scores a touchdown, he hands the ball to the referee like a mailman delivering a phone bill. But he isn't bothered by those who prefer a wiggle or a shake. "Hey, I used to love Billy (White Shoes) Johnson, and the Washington Smurfs and all," he says, looking down at his hands. "It's just . . . not me."
Mitch Albom writes about running an orphanage in impoverished Port-au-Prince, Haiti, his kids, their hardships, laughs and challenges, and the life lessons he’s learned there every day.
