By Brad Rock
Deseret Morning News
LAS VEGAS — You don't spend 17 years in one area and not pick up a few things. BYU athletic director Tom Holmoe picked up this during his time in Northern California: "Go Bears." He discovered other stuff, too. He made friends, learned about coaching and life, and found the best way to get across the San Francisco Bay in a pinch. But he also realized that no matter where you go, if you're wearing a Cal hat or shirt, you have friends. And that all that rah-rah college stuff isn't all the same. With BYU facing Cal in Thursday's Las Vegas Bowl, the former Golden Bears coach is experiencing a homecoming of sorts. Holmoe has spent nearly half his life in the Bay Area. Consequently, this week he has more friends and/or former associates along the Las Vegas Strip this week than Wayne Newton. The area's No. 1 sidewalk greeting has gone from "Wanna party?" to "Hey, Tommy, how you been?" That happens when you get back with the old gang. Holmoe, who has been BYU's athletic director since March, is reconnecting, thanks to the BYU-Cal bowl pairing. He's shaking hands he hasn't shaken since he was on the State of California's payroll. Holmoe spent one year as an assistant coach and five as head coach of the Bears before resigning. There were also two years apiece as an assistant with Stanford and the San Francisco 49ers. Not to mention the seven years he played for the 49ers.
Like Karl Malden, the man had become a Bay Area fixture. Admittedly, Cal doesn't have the most illustrious football record or the largest crowds. But those who do attend are loyal. Want help or moral support and you're stuck somewhere? Don't call OnStar. Just put on your Cal cap. Someone will answer your distress call. Holmoe discovered this when he was first hired at Cal. He was jogging on Balboa Island, wearing a Bears' T-shirt. In half an hour, three people said "Go Bears" as he passed. When he mentioned it to some of the other coaches, they laughed. It's the Cal greeting, they said. "If you see someone with a Cal shirt or hat anywhere in the world, you just say, 'Go Bears' and they'll say 'Go Bears' and walk by. It's not like saying, 'Go Cougars.' It's more like saying hello," said Holmoe. "If I'm walking in an airport and see someone with a Cal thing on, I'm supposed to say, 'Go Bears' and they say, 'Go Bears' and keep going." In Ireland they say "Top 'o the morning." In Hawaii they say "Aloha." In the Cal world, they say "Go Bears."
Traditions aside, Holmoe's tenure as head coach was disappointing. His teams went 12-43, ending with his resignation. Afterward, there were NCAA sanctions, blamed on Holmoe. "I never thought I'd have to rehash this again, but I've done it 18 times in the last week," said Holmoe.
One violation had to do with academic fraud, which occurred when two players tried to get credit for a class they didn't attend. Although Holmoe reported the problem as soon as he found out, and the conference and school subsequently cleared the players for eligibility, a disgruntled parent complained to the NCAA 1 1/2 years after the fact. Another violation was improper benefits, which amounted to players making phone calls and watching movies at a team hotel. Holmoe says, in hindsight, he wasn't prepared to be a head coach at 37. Having worked with successful coaches such as Mike Shanahan, Bill Walsh, George Seifert, Steve Mariucci and LaVell Edwards, he figured he knew how to get things done. But he now hints that if he had it to do over, he'd delegate less and have more control. "I'd do it my way," he said. "I was pretty young and jumped up the ladder pretty fast. I got a little comfortable, thinking I was more prepared than I was," he continued. "But when the chance came, I wasn't going to turn it down." But Holmoe ran into problems. Some players weren't completely committed, which is strange, considering the loyalty the school seems to engender. Consequently, some of the methods that worked for Walsh and Edwards didn't work for Holmoe. "It doesn't work unless everyone is totally committed," he said. Maybe he should have called on some of those fans wearing Cal hats and shirts.
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