Attention Free Agents: Jim Mora Will Hold Your Watch
Sager Bombs
Not sure how I missed this fantastic LA Times piece on the recruiting of TJ Houshmandzadeh, but it really shows how badass the Seahawks are when it comes to selling the franchise to free agents. Read it. See what the prize package entails:
- -Paul Allen’s private jet picked up TJ and flew him and the family to Seattle. Side note: the Bengals once notoriously tried to woo Tony Siragusa by flying his fat ass to Cincy on a coach ticket.
- -”Once the family arrived, they hopped on Allen’s seaplane for a tour of the city, including a pass over Qwest Field, where the scoreboard was lighted with a shot of the receiver and his career stats”
- -”[O]ne of the Seahawks’ equipment men used to work in Cincinnati, and knew the kind of shoes and gloves that Houshmandzadeh prefers. [In Kirkland] there they were, the same brand of shoes and gloves, complete with the lime-green Seahawks detail”
Inside information, flaunting of cash, wooing the family, blatant use of seaplanes… it’s fantastic stuff. It’s like what Neuheisal always wanted to do but couldn’t because of those pesky NCAA recruiting rules. But my favorite tidbit is this:
Mora felt very good about the visit, though, and he trusted that Houshmandzadeh did too. So, when they sat down for the last time, the coach pointed to the player’s wristwatch — a diamond-encrusted Breitling worth more than most cars. Mora asked to take custody of it, just more incentive for Houshmandzadeh to come back.
Clearly it worked, but I’m starting to think that maybe the Huskies dodged a bullet not having this guy as their coach. America is better off letting this guy run his full court press.
Loading ...
Noted…the last thing we need is another Slick Rick approach. Stick to the fog machines at Husky Stadium.
Slick Rick brought me a Rose Bowl victory. Hard to argue with that. The Don James era brought major sanctions for violations, but also unprecedented success. Does anyone really doubt the connection? NCAA coaches who “do it the right way” are doomed to mediocrity, or worse Gilbertsowillinghamity. I regret that we weren’t able to bring Mora to the Huskies. Hopefully Sark will employ the same tactics. Am I advocating breaking NCAA rules? No. But yes.
This is why pro ball is awesome. We got to celebrate this shmoozy shit. Neuheisel was a scum bag… but most collegiate coaches and programs are by necessity. Until the dirty, money hungry NCAA gets cracked down on, U-Dub has to play the game like every other school. Them’s the facts.