a
SPORTS
The Michigan Daily Friday, October 3, 1980 Page 11l
NOW OPEN 18 E. WASHINGTON
(NEXT TO BIMBO'S)
Featuring
CcLIVEENTT l AdE-NOlCOVER
Cocktails, English Ale 663-9757
I
Rudy T.
. By BOB WOJNOWSKI
The numbers are impressive.
He is second on Michigan's all-time
scoring list with a 25.1 career average,
trailing only Cazzie Russell. He was All-
Ten in 1969 and 1970, and was a con-
sus All-American in 1970 when he
averaged 30.1.points a game. He even
has a Michigan most improved player
award named after him. But the road
has not been smooth for Rudy Tom-
Aanovich. He still looks for that elusive
championship, and he still feels the
pain from the after-effects of one of
basketball's most tragic moments.
NOW, AS A member of the Houston
Rockets for whom he has played all of
his ten yers in the NBA, the man they
@11 Rudy T. ponders his career, the
game, and where they both are headed.
plays through hard times
preparation as for college games. In
college, you usually play twice a week,
while here, we play three, sometimes
four games a week. You just go from
one city to the next."
Almost invariably, when one speaks
of Rudy Tomjanovich, the conversation
ultimately turns to "the punch."
IT WAS December 9, 1977, and the
Los Angeles Lakers were playing the
Rockets in Los Angeles. Midway
through the game, a fight broke out
between Kermit Washington of the
Lakers and Kevin Kunnert of the
Rockets. Tomjanovich attempted - to
break it up. Washington whirled and
threw what the then Lakers' assistant
coach and current Detroit Pistons'
general manager Jack McCloskey
would later call "the hardest punch in
the history of mankind." Washington
would only say, "Rudy was just a blur.
Why did he have to run at me?"
Tomjanovich suffered several frac-
tures of the face and skull, as well as a
broken nose, separated upper jaw,
cerebral concussion, and severe
lacerations around his mouth. In effect,
the bone structure of his face was
knocked loose from his skull. He lay in a
hospital bed for two weeks with towels
over the miror so he would not have to
look at his crushed face. Washington
was fined $10,000 and suspended for 60
days. A lawsuit later failed by Tom-
janovich against Washington and the
Lakers was successful. But the painful
memories of the punch still exist.
Today, Tomjanovich speaks softly
about his feelings toward Washington.
"That's a personal matter. I'm a
human being and I react to things the
same way other people do."
He also talks defensively when asked
about the effect the incident has had on
his performance on the court.
"I can only go out and play the game
like I always have. People say they can
see a difference, but I haven't noticed
it."
TOMJANOVICH now enters his 11th
See more sports, pages 12, 13 and 14
year of pro ball at the age of 34 with a
new three-year contract which he ad-
mits he is "very happy about." And he
looks forward to playing for a team
which has treated him well in a city that
he loves.
"I feel honored that I've never been
traded. All Yof the great
players-Chamberlain, Russell, Jab-
bar-have been traded. I'm glad the
Rockets think highly enough of me to
have kept me for ten years.
"I've been living in Houston since I
first started playing here and I love it. I
expected it to be all tumbleweeds, but
it's really a beautiful, growing city."
TOMJANOVICH is also optimistic
about this year's Rockets. "We're in a
new division now and we'll be playing
teams that we only faced twice last
year, about six times this year. I think
we'll have as good a team or better than
last year. We've kept the basic nucleus
together, although we did lost Rick
Barry to retirement."
When asked about his own
retirement, he cites his new contract as
proof that it is not imminent. But when
it does come, he's undecided as to what.
will follow.
"I've been working on basketball
camlps, which have been going really
well, and I've thought a little about
coaching. But coaching is such a
stressful job. I want something with
very little stress involved."
Tomjanovich looks back on his
college years with mixed emotions. He
recalls fondly his all-time record 48-
point game versus Indiana and his all-
time record 30 rebound effort against
Loyola. But he regrets never, having
been on a contending te4m and never
having made it to the NCAA's.
He cites an upset win over National
Championship finalist Marquette as a
big thrill, but his biggest thrill of all
came in the pros. It was the day he
stepped onto the court for the first time
following recovery from his massive in-
juries. Most said he would never play
the game again, but he has. And that,
more than anything, exemplifies the
type of man we are talking about. The
man, like the numbers, is impressive.
Fan-Fare
Beginning this Friday and continuing
each week thereafter, you'll be able to
submit letters to our Fan-Fare column.
But first, a few ground rules. (1) Let-
ters should not exceed 250 words, (2)
Include your name, address, and phone
number, in case we need to contact you.
(3) Address your letters to The
Michigan Daily-Sports, 420 Maynard,
Ann Arbor, Michigan, 48109. Remem-
ber, this column can only be a success
with YOUR support, so we hope to hear
from you soon.
GRADUATE STUDY IN PUBLIC POLICY
The LBJ School of Public Affairs at The University of
Texas at Austin emphasizes public policy analysis, inter-
disciplinary research and summer internships in govern-
ment agencies in its graduate programs:
- Master's Degree in Public Affairs
- Joint Degrees Program with the UT Law School
- Joint Degrees Program with the UT College of En-
gineering
- Joint Degrees Program with the UT Graduate
School of Business
Financial aid and fellowships are available based on merit
or need.
MEET WITH A REPRESENTATIVE AT:
Career Planning and Placement
University of Michigan
OCTOBER 8,1980
9:00 am - 12 noon
THE
POPULi
AR S
LL.
S
,, t
I
... comeback stuns critics
"The game is getting better and bet-
ter. With great players such as Magic
Johnson and Larry Bird coming into the
league, I think the NBA has a great
future."
nd Tomjanovich stresses that
cent reports of widespread drug
abuse in the NBA are in error.
"The numbers are exaggerated. You
can't see into a guy's private life, but I
don't think our team has any
problems."
Tomjanovich also feels that the basic
differences between the college and pro
game today are much the same as they
were ten years ago.
"You play so many games in a -pro
season you don't have as much
San Francisco Bay Area company developing state of
the art computer software and hardware for integrated
voice and data office communications systems seeks
talented individuals interested in:
SOFTWARE
" Operating Systems
" Real Time Distributed Computing
" Data Communications
" Office Automation Applications
" Office of the Future Applications
" Diagnostics
Software Tools
HARDWARE
" Microprocessor Applications
* Digital and Analog Design
" Telephony
" Data Communications
ROLM Corporation, founded in 1969 has grown
50%-100% each year and currently has 3700
employees. ROLM's Telecommunications
Division is the leading independent supplier of
computer controlled voice and data business
communications systems.
Included in ROLM's outstanding benefits
package is a three month paid sabbatical after
six years (and every seven years thereafter),
company paid tuition and time off for graduate
study at Stanford University. Employees can take
advantage of flexible working hours to use
ROLM's million dollar recreational facility which
includes tennis courts, racquetball courts,
basketball, exercise room, volleyball, swimming
pools, par course, sauna, steam room and
jacuzzi.
On Campus Interviews
Monday, October 6
Meet with working software and hardware engineers
from ROLM in the Placement Center. See our Company
literature in the Placement Center.
I
IITC DEED EDAKI Diii I ED
'N
%k% umm - o
r
r