THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1996, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Wednesday, March 13, 1996 TAG: 9603130643
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: C6 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY ROBIN BRINKLEY, STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: CHESAPEAKE LENGTH: Medium: 93 lines
Freddie Spellman knows there are people who think he's the luckiest man alive to coach the Indian River boys basketball team and there are moments when he wants to agree.
But those moments are fleeting and when he views his success as a coach against the backdrop of his life the idea that he was born with a lucky horse shoe is as cruel as it is misguided.
``I've gone through some personal things that make you realize that what you do out on the (basketball) court doesn't mean a lot in the big scope,'' Spellman said.
Spellman's initiation to life's hard knocks began early. A knee injury forced him to miss the last seven games of his senior football season at Indian River and prevented him from playing in college.
At about the same time, one of his closest brothers was killed in Vietnam at age 18. Spellman lost another brother a few years ago in a car accident and twice in the past three years he and his wife, Sharon, have endured the heartbreak of burying a child.
The first child died after 25 days. The second was stillborn.
The Spellmans learned there was a problem with the second pregnancy in December when the Braves were in Florida to play in a tournament. Spellman didn't miss any games or practices, but while he may have been there in body he wasn't always in spirit.
``We wondered what was wrong,'' senior guard Terry Rouse said. ``Finally before a game he told us he had been out of it for awhile, that they lost a baby. We were shocked.''
Said Spellman, ``There were plenty of times I felt like just sitting home and not getting involved in anything. It was my wife that energized me and kept me going.''
Keeping going is what Spellman does best. His three-year record is 65-17 and when Indian River (24-4) meets George Washington of Danville on Friday night in Lynchburg it will mark the second year in a row the Braves have reached the state semifinals.
Indian River has won one Southeastern District regular-season title and tied for another, won two district tournament titles and won one Eastern Region title in Spellman's three seasons.
Spellman, 40, spent 14 seasons as an understudy to Bill Lassiter before finally getting his chance to coach the Braves. His good luck, if that's the proper term, came only as result of Lassiter's ill fortune.
Spellman was ready to look elsewhere for a varsity basketball job when heart trouble forced Lassiter to resign. Spellman inherited a veteran team and guided the Braves to the region semifinals.
Spellman's one true lucky break occurred the next summer when new Old Dominion University coach Jeff Capel and his 6-7 son Jason relocated from Greensboro, N.C., to Chesapeake. Jason Capel was the most ballyhooed freshman in South Hampton Roads since Alonzo Mourning and his development has followed a similar curve.
Coaching a player as talented as Capel is every coach's dream. Coaching the son of the only Division I team in town, however, can be nerve-wracking.
``There have been no conflicts as far as Jason fitting in with what we're doing,'' Spellman said. ``His father has never said anything to me about where Jason should play or what he should be doing.
``We did talk last year before the region. He had some ideas about things we could be doing differently in our zone offense, but it was mostly to get Terry Rouse some open shots.''
Rouse has played three seasons under Spellman and has noticed a change in his relationship with the players this year.
``He jokes with us a lot,'' Rouse said. ``He wasn't that loose last year.''
Rouse says Spellman's greatest contribution has been in taking a team of individual standouts and molding them into a unit. All five of the Braves' starters - James Boyd, David Selby, Edward Seward, Capel and Rouse - should end up playing football or basketball in college.
``People keep saying we've got athletes, like you are just supposed to send them on the floor and let them play,'' Spellman said. ``That's not the case. Any team has to play together to be successful and this one does.
``These guys don't run to the scorebook when the game is over to see how many points they scored. They check the stat sheets for rebounds, assists and turnovers.''
Indian River principal Jimmy Frye expected as much when he promoted Spellman to the varsity.
``I've known Freddie for a long time,'' Frye said. ``We grew up together and I was friends with one of his brothers. He's a classy guy who doesn't raise his voice a lot, but he tries to do what's right.''
What's right to Spellman is working hard, respecting others and making the most of opportunities. Those are things a person can control. That's how you make your own luck. ILLUSTRATION: Photo
For the second year in a row Freddie Spellman has the Braves in the
state semifinals.
by CNB