Madness under the magnolias
By Mike Scott
Assistant Sports Editor

The last time Midnight Madness was held here, the United States had had only one President impeached, and the only Bush anyone outside of Florida and Texas had heard of was the one that asked us to read his lips.

And, just as our country has changed a great deal since the last bout of late night lunacy, so too has our basketball program.

As has been rumored for weeks, this campus will be the scene of Midnight Madness for the first time since 1996. It will be held in Reynolds Gym, starting at 10:30 p.m. Friday, Oct. 12, and lasting into the morning hours of Oct. 13. Gone the way of weekly rug cleanings in the Oval Office is Former Head Coach Dave Odom, having bolted after last year for the scorching pastures of Columbia, S.C., and South Carolina University.

And, just as Republicans claim that dignity has been restored to the office of the Presidency, so too do many Deacon fans feel that competency has been restored to the position of Head Coach, in the form of New Head Honcho Skip Prosser, who has brought with him from Xavier University a new excitement, a new style, and a new student-friendly attitude.

“We didn’t really come in from day one and say, ‘Midnight Madness is something we’re going to do,’ said Director of Basketball Operations Pat Kelsey, one of those integral in planning the event.

“We were just going to kind of wait and see how the students felt about it, and that’s just how Coach (Prosser) is. If the students came to him and said, ‘We want to do Midnight Madness, we want to make this happen,’ then he was going to do everything in his power to make it happen.”

And, apparently, that’s exactly what happened.

“A lot of students really wanted to have it, for a couple of different reasons,” said Craig Keilitz, associate athletic director for marketing and promotions and another of those who have worked to make Midnight Madness happen.

“We’ve never really had this type of event because it didn’t fit into the previous coach’s agenda with his team.

“Skip Prosser was not opposed to having it — he had it at Xavier — but I think a lot of it came about because our students are really excited to see how Coach Prosser is going to formulate this team and hearing that he loves to run the ball and play pressure defense.

“I think they just wanted to see firsthand a real early run through to see what Coach Prosser has in store for us.”

There will be many pre-midnight activities, most notably a 3-point contest and a dunk contest between students. Anyone wishing to enter the 3-point contest may show up at Room 401 of Reynolds Gym at 7 p.m. Oct. 7 and try out, with the top four students from the preliminaries going on to compete during the event.

“We still have, obviously, some details to work out,” said Student Government Speaker of the House senior Sarah Milton, another member of the group putting Midnight Madness together.

“We are trying to plan the events of the night. The doors are going to open at (10 p.m.) and the events we’re guessing will start at about 10:30 or so.

“We’re planning on getting a deejay, the school band is going to be there, hopefully the cheerleaders and the dance team, hopefully the women’s basketball team.

“We’re hoping to get some students, some games and participation so all the students can get involved, have prizes, contests, the Intramural Office is working with us. Coach Prosser’s excited, but we still have to work out, obviously, the timing of everything.”

While Prosser has supported the event he has, logically, not been able to help with any of the planning, since he does, after all, have a basketball team to run. The work for this event has been done by students, by the basketball department and by the sports marketing department.
“I’d say it’s been a combined effort,” Kelsey said. “Sarah Milton has kind of helped spearhead the operation, she’s done a great job organizing and getting people together. I know Intramural Sports are getting ready to put on some of the preliminary events, sort of to narrow down the students in the dunk contest and 3-point contest.

“Craig Keilitz and Dan Hauser (in the marketing department) have done a good job, worked really hard to help make it happen from their end ... Everybody’s contributed, and I don’t think anybody more than anybody else.

“It’s really been a combined effort from everyone.”

So, that’s it, the students wanted to have Midnight Madness, so they’ve got it. Now all that’s left is for them to show up, and to make this event the beginning of the raucous environment Prosser has said he wants Deacon home games to be.

They’ll have their chance, starting at 10 p.m. on the night of Oct. 12 — and into the norning of Oct. 13.