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DeVries

MORGANTOWN — If, as they say, patience is everything, then West Virginia’s new basketball coach, Darian DeVries, may be the most virtuous man you’ll ever meet.

As he continues to prepare for his first season as a Power 4 basketball coach, you have to appreciate the path he took to reach the top.

His quest for accomplishment is reminiscent of Kevin Costner’s. “Field of Dreams” ability to listen to that voice inside him that kept repeating “Build it and they will come.”

Asked the other day how he had the patience to serve 20 years as an assistant coach at Creighton and then six incredibly successful seasons as head coach of a Drake program he built despite many questioning his sanity to take on the challenge, he offered this answer.

“In my 20 years at Creighton, there weren’t a lot of opportunities at first. But later, there were a few,” he admitted.

But he wasn’t looking for immediate gratification. “Field of Dreams”which happens to be located in Iowa, just like Drake, it’s not a basketball story, just like “Field of Dreams” It wasn’t a baseball story.

It is an allegory of man’s search for inner peace, not only for himself but for his family.

“My idea was that if I ever decided to quit my job, my family would be happy, I would be happy and it would be the right solution.” he said. “If you take the wrong job, not only will you and your family not be happy, but it will become a problem. You won’t be able to make it.”

Twenty years of waiting before Drake arrived.

“When I first got the opportunity to coach Drake, I thought it was a great opportunity for me and my family.” he remembered. “People didn’t understand why I wanted this project, because Drake hadn’t had much success at the time. But I knew the venue, the people and the support would be there if I ever managed to do it.”

When Wren Baker came knocking on his door looking for a successor to Bob Huggins, he had the same feeling.

And in many ways, the situation was similar. The program was in shambles, it had just suffered the biggest losses in its history, and he was replacing not only a Hall of Fame coach but a hometown school legend.

But at WVU, he saw further than that.

“It was the same with West Virginia. I felt like I could make an impact on the program. I loved everything about the program, I loved the potential it had.” he said.

It took vision and conviction, perhaps even voices floating in the air, to look beyond the recent damage.

“I think there is a great tradition here,” “I don’t always think that a program that has had a bad year here or there changes its nature. That’s part of the sport sometimes, where there are times when things don’t go well.”

“I felt the tradition here, the fan support. The resources and the commitment level are all in place. That hasn’t changed. (The fans) showed it by being there even when they weren’t winning. It hasn’t changed the way people perceive the program and want to support it.

“I think it says more about the program than supporting them when they win. If you continue to show up in a season when things aren’t going well, it says a lot about your fan base.”

There were probably people close to him who tried to dissuade him from taking the job.

“I think everyone has opinions” He replied: “There are opinions that you value and that you believe are valid. Whenever you take on a job like this, it’s good to ask other people’s opinions. But deep down, you have to know what’s best for you.”

“When you gather information and opinions about the city, the community, the basketball program, you take all of that into account, but it all comes down to what your gut tells you about the situation.”

His instincts were screaming at him that it was time to act, to cut down the cornstalks and prepare for his future.

“I don’t know, I felt like I had to do it now. I just felt like it was the right time to do it.” “I could have stayed at Drake as long as they wanted. I loved my time there. They were very supportive,” he said.

“I’m not one of those guys who only thinks about doing something new. To be honest, it’s not that important to me.”

In fact, DeVries had just signed a contract extension with Drake, which complicated the decision.

But in the end, he knew it was more than just a job offer.

“When this opportunity presented itself, the more I studied it, the more I felt it was the right thing to do.” he said.

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