Pitino beard

Reports of the return of the bearded approach for the University of Louisville basketball team are true, Coach Rick Pitino showing up with stubble at his pre-game press conference.

A rally beard, he called it, something to help the team get going again. Possibly an over-reaction to losing one game, that 11-point loss to Duke last weekend.

Not an original approach, something UofL did three seasons ago when that team made its way into a Final Four.

Pitino doesn’t speak very highly of this team, dissing the shooting, the defense, the lack of fast breaks and touches in the middle, and weak, inexperienced or distracted freshmen. He does everything for a reason, primarily to get his team motivated. And it usually winds up working.

One has to wonder, however, about going back to the beards. Some college baseball teams have opted for Mohawk haircuts or shaving their hair altogether, going for the bald look. Pitino is never going to do that, not with his own hair.

The coach doesn’t appear to be having much fun yet this season, and needs some extra motivation. He didn’t even make a big deal of growing beards at his press conference, and that’s not like him.

Seems a bit of a stretch the second time around.

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By Charlie Springer

Charlie Springer is a former Louisville editor and sportswriter, a public affairs consultant, a UofL grad and longtime fan.

4 thoughts on “Pitino resorts to the beard thing again”
  1. WARNING!!! Short rant to follow!

    I strongly disagree with the statement by Mr. “T” that there is no talent on this Louisville team. I believe T is mistaking “prodigy” with “talent”. The NBA is filled with talented players that were not prodigies in their early years. The NBA wannabe list is filled with the names of high school prodigy’s who just didn’t have as much talent as they did great PR.

    How many players think they are NBA quality only to find out the opposite? A lot more than you would imagine. FYI: I have met several and the disappointment can be seen in their eyes.

    Try to look at a “project” as a player with talent just not training/coaching. And never underestimate the value of heart and desire. All the talent in the world will get you nowhere unless you have the heart and desire.

    By the way, I think the Cards have a lot of RAW (aka “project”) talent, mixed with the heart and desire that CRP has, and that now Chris and Montrezl have bought into.

    The beard thing is cool. Embrace it (or grow one, if that’s your thing). After all it’s a remembrance of good times, a motivational tool, and it’s fun watching 17-19 year olds grow a beard…:)

    I’ll close by saying that this team is very hard to watch (kinda like watching ducks cross a highway) but they will make it and the end game WILL be fun.

    Go Cards.

  2. We fans were so enamored of the charms of Russ and Luke and Gorgui and Peyton that we built up an unrealistic expectation for a continuance of their styles. Not gonna happen with this bunch. The back-stories of those four alone endeared them to us. Where is the anecdote, the mystery, the charisma from this year’s team? Will we even care about those scraggly faces? Still, we watch and remind ourselves that this is about where we were, stats-wise, in 2012. Could still happen but…..Go Cards!

  3. For an incoming group that was ranked 10th not one of them has been of much help in spelling the four starters that can actually play. Then again Pitino has never been great with very young teams. Comparing this team to 2012 is hugely optimistic. That team didn’t have the number of projects on board and there was budding talent there. Talent I don’t see here.

  4. I have to admit that the look better reflects how it sounds he feels about this team, i.e., HAGGARD!!

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