01
Page 4-The Michigan Daily- Sports Monday- March 16, 1992
'So
many
good memories'
Former walk-on, Hunter wins over fans with enthusiasm
by John Niyo
Daily Basketball Writer
His name isn't scattered through-
out the record books. He was never
an All-American or even an All-Big
Ten selection. And his name proba-
bly will never be mentioned in the
same sentences with past Wolverine
hoops heroes like Cazzie Russell,
Phil Hubbard or Glen Rice.
But when Freddie Hunter walked
out of Crisler Arena after battling
Illinois in the final home game of
his brief career, he exited having left
an indelible mark on the folklore of
Michigan basketball. A little bit of
joy and a lot of pride in an emo-
tional day.
"I'm gonna miss it a lot," Hunter
said. "So many good memories in
such a short time. I've been really
blessed to have things happen the
way they have."
Blessed mostly with an amazing
determination to reach his goals.
Because that is what the story of
Freddie Hunter - which has all the
earmarks of a modern-day fairy tale
T is all about.
Hard work, pure and simple.
RPigs to riches. An example of what
can happen if you dare to dream,
then strive to achieve.
So goes the introduction to
Freddie's Story, one that has been
told many times before and will be
countless times more.
"It had been a goal of mine since
I started at the University," Hunter
begins when asked how he ended up
where he is now. "And I went
through a while where I had to focus
on my academics, first and foremost,
and get those things straightened
Hunter had applied to only one
school when he was a senior at
University of Detroit Jesuit High
School - Michigan. But his grades
faltered early on, and he had to attend
school at U-M Dearborn to work on
his academics, taking classes part-
time and working to pay for tuition.
The grades were eventually
righted - it was just a matter of ap-
plying himself to the work - and
Hunter returned to the University
ready to resume his quest to get his
degree and to earn a spot on the bas-
tetball team.
"It just came that summer, I
knew it was my chance," Hunter
says now as he reminisces. "I knew
it was my opportunity. My aca-
demics were straight and I felt confi-
dent with the way I could play."
And then came The Break.
"I was playing Gus Mackers, and
I was fortunate that one of the man-
agers on the team happened to be at
that Gus Macker. He saw me in the
dunk contest and he saw me playing
with my team (in intramurals) and
he gave the word back to Coach Jay
Smith."
But at the same time, Hunter had
also been calling Michigan assistant
Jay Smith, asking what he could do
over the summer to help his chances
of making the team.
Hunter wanted a shot, badly. He
had even refused to cash the $1,000
check he got for winning the slam
dunk contest at the Gus Macker
tournament ir. Pcrt lI'ren that
August, for fear of mining his eligi-
bility.
"I was just so fortunate that they
gave me the chance to come out,"
he says now, shaking his head a bit
in disbelief and gestuing with his
hands in an empty Crisler Arena.
"Because none of this would have
happened if they hadn't given me the
chance. I worked harder than I ever
have in my life."
U ..
Which is why this story has such
a happy ending. The hard work did
pay off, and it still brings a big
smile to his face.
"There was a time when they
printed out a phone list for the 1990-
91 team and I looked and I saw my
name and I was like 'Oh, it could be,
it could be," he laughs.
"Then we had the first day of
practice, Oct. 15, and I had been
wearing my Freddie and the Seven
Dwarves blue and white jersey all
the time, because I didn't have any
of the equipment, and I came in and
they had a bag for me, so I knew it
was official."
However, hampered by Big Ten
credit requirements, Hunter had to
appeal to play last season. He had to
prove to those making the upper-
level decisions that he was serious
about his grades, so took a heavy
course load (18 credits) in the fall,
15 in the winter and promise to take
classes in the spring and summer
terms. He did, and the Big Ten re-
lented.
It was against Iowa that Hunter
made his successful debut, then,
providing a spark that had been
missing. most of the year for the
Wolverines. Hunter, as everyone
now knows, plays smart - he's
only turned the ball over 11 times
this season.
Yet it became apparent to fans
very quickly that Hunter was more
than just a smart player. He hustled,
he scrapped and he could play tena-
cious defense.
"I really adjusted my game a lot,"
Hunter says. "Because I knew I
would be playing at a higher level of
competition and I wouldn't be able
to do a lot of things I could in IM.
"Because, I guess in IM and at
the CCRB I was probably a dunker,
first, and an outside shooter. If peo-
ple took away the outside shot I'd
get the dribble and go in and dunk. I
was the big gun on my team and all
that.
"But I shifted a little and I knew I
wasn't going to be the big scorer. I
just worked on my defense. I've al-
ways been a good defensive player,
so I just worked on getting better."
Hunter quickly became a crowd
favorite, and a Steve Fisher favorite.
His hard work paid off again, this
time in the form of a starting job -
he started in 12 of the final 19
games last year as the team went 14-
15, losing in the first round of the
NIT.
From intramurals to varsity, and
then to starter, the story kept adding
another chapter.
U ..
But then came the crowning
achievement to date. Freddie became
captain of the ship. Fisher gave the
word in the preseason that Hunter
was his captain for this year, the des-
ignated leader of a team that showed
much promise.
"You think a little bit about past
captains," he says when asked what
the honor means to him. "I guess
the main thing I thought about is
when to say things. At the begin-
ning I was saying things too much.
If you do that, the reaction or the re-
sponse is to kind of shut you off,
and not listen to anything.
"It's been a learning process for
me, too, learning how to be as effec-
tive as I can. I think I've done an ad-
equate job of it."
U ..
Michigan's season has had its
ups and downs. Criticism was fired
can spread throughout the team."
And then, with a big laugh, he
points out the problem with his
newest job.
"You know, I'm always looking
out for everybody else, and there are
times when I'm feeling down.
"I went through a stretch where I
didn't play in four games, and I did-
n't know what was going to happen,
or whether I was going to be able to
- or if I was going to be able to -
more of the same for Freddie Hunter.
Lending to others a little bit of his
determined will.
He graduates in May with a dou-
ble major in psychology and socio-
logy, and looks to put that to use.
"Whatever I do, I have to be
around people," Hunter says, "be-
cause I'm a people person. Psych-
ology and sociology help me do
that. Education has always been on
my mind. Ever since I was a child,
the primary focus has been ed-
ucation. My mother and father al-
ways had mc oing things to im-
prove my mi. 'p.a me in
U of D high school aeT me that
much more.
"I want to live and work in the
Black community and try and help
youngsters, because I love kids.
There's a great need for positive role
models. And I can be a role model
for people, you know, never give up
your hopes, never give up your
dreams.
Which is why he's still out there
plugging away.
"There are so many positive
forces that keep me going," he says.
"Whether it's the fans cheering me
on or just the knowledge that I'm in
a position where I'm not only help-
ing myself, but I can help others. I
can be an example of a person who
wasn't anybody, but through hard
work and determination made good
things happen.
That is why, Hunter says, he has
always been the fan favorite.
"I think the other players might
be a little jealous," he jokes. "But
being a walk-on, I'm just like ev-
erybody else: A lot of the people up
in the stands I've played basketball
with at the CCRB and the IM. They
just happened to take me as a repre-
sentative of the whole student body
to come out here and play with the
big fellas."
A bit modest in his assessment,
but an apt observation, nonetheless.
Hunter came out of nowhere, in a
basketball sense, to become a star in
his very own way. Which makes
these final pages of his story so
much more poignant.
"It'll be sad to leave this place,"
he said last week, thinking about the
Illinois game. "Leaving the chants
of "Freddie" I get, leaving the posi-
tive encouragement I get from ev-
erybody, I know I'm going to miss
all that.
"It seems really saort-lived. I
mean, it's been nothing but wonder-
ful. I couldn't have dreamed of all
the wonderful things that have hap-
pened to me."
But Freddie Hunter waved good-
bye to the Crisler crowd Saturday in
a ceremony before the game. His
older sister, Alicia, sang the national
anthem. The fans cheered, and Fred-
die and his parents stood at center
court, basking in the moment.
The "Freddie" chants now will be
no more. Soon Hunter will have
moved on to tackle other challenges,
and all too soon, Michigan will have
said farewell to another legend.
KENNETH SMOLLER/Daily
Michigan senior captain Freddie Hunter passes over Illini guard T.J. Wheeler Saturday. Hunter and fellow seniors
Chip Armer, Chris Seter and Kirk Taylor were honored before their final game in Crisler Arena.
what I needed to do to be a good cap-
tain. It's an added responsibility. I
had to think about what I had to do
not only to be a successful player
but a successful captain."
To Fisher and others, the logic in
the decision was simple. Who better
to lead this young Wolverine team,
it seemed then and still does - a
team that has had to continually
prove naysayers wrong - than
someone who has shown as much
character and come as far as Hunter.
And Hunter has taken this new
job as seriously as the coaches had
hoped and expected, working con-
stantly on being a better captain. At
times, it has been hard for him.
"I've never been a very talkative
person and I had to sometimes egg
my self on to talk a little bit more,"
Hunter says. "Lead not orIly by ex-
ample, but by saying thing;, and be-
ing a little more vocal in terms of
motivating players, during the
games and during practices."
But he is quick to point out what
he has learned as the season went on.
"There are different challenges
that come with a young team, espe-
cially with five freshman as capable
and as good as the five we have.
"I had to learn to pick my spots
in various directions during some of
the low points, especially at times
when the team seemed to be coasting
some during the Big Ten season.
'The freshmen aren't playing
enough,' some said. Others felt the
veterans had been lost in the shuffle,
and needed to stay in the lineup.
Amid all those conflicting views
was Hunter and the rest of the team,
trying to deal with the grueling con-
ference schedule.
"We have a good team, and we
have a deep team," Hunter says. "We
have so many capable players, it's
hard to get everybody, all fifteen
players, on the court. You only play
five at a time. Sometimes very good
players, very capable players are left
out for the game because of the flow
or just Coach's decisions."
That's where Hunter finds a role.
"I make myself aware of this and
do things to try to keep everybody
into it and positive. I've always tried
to keep my eye out for who's not
getting in a game, or who has a bad
two practices and try to keep them
positive to keep the team positive."
"You can't have any negativity,"
Hunter says, sounding like a veteran
coach. "You're only as strong as
your weakest link. Any negativity
contribute on the floor anymore, but
that's when I had to look deeper in-
side myself and appreciate what I had
done. And then to go about helping
the team in whatever way I could."
Whatever he did, it worked. Both
for himself, and for the team.
Hunter is back in the rotation,
getting his minutes as the game dic-
tates. The five first-year players have
all earned starting jobs, and filled
them admirably.
But the veterans have been able
to adjust as well. Michael Talley and
James Voskuil came off the bench to
thwart Indiana, Voskuil calmly
knocking down two clutch three-
pointers. Rob Pelinka answered the
call at Purdue, chipping in a career-
high 11 points.
And Hunter has had something to
do with all of that, make no mis-
take. Success breeds further success.
U ..
So what can he do for an encore.
More than likely, we'll just have
to wait and see. The NCAA tourna-
ment offers an immediate extension
to Hunter's basketball career. And he
says that he would like to play in
Europe for the next few years, if the
opportunity arises.
But beyond that, it will likely be
0I
Seniors honored in
BASKETBALL NOTEBOOK final Crisler game
by Jeni Durst
Daily Basketball Writer
It started as a low rumble, slowly gaining
volume, as the chant "Freddie, Freddie" became
legible from the student section and filled
Crisler Arena. As Freddie Hunter awaited the
National Anthem, which his sister, Alicia, per-
formed, fans paid tribute to the senior captain
Freddie Hunter, who participated in his last
contest at Crisler Saturday.
Hunter was not the only one honored by the
fans and the University yesterday before play-
ing in his last home game. Seniors Chip
Armer, Chris Seter, Kirk Taylor, and Hunter
all felt the appreciation of the crowd when
brought out to center court with their parents
prior to tip off.
But the crowd seemed to appreciate the se-
niors far more than the coaching staff. Hunter,
who has been a spark for both the team and the
crowd when coming off the bench all year,
posted just seven minutes in his final game.
Armer and Seter came onto the court with only
:51 left to play despite the fact that Michigan
was up by 17 with 3:31 remaining. Taylor
never entered the game.
A KINGLY AFTERNOON: First-year
guard Jimmy King proved Saturday he's ready
for his first appearance in the NCAA tourna-
PATERNAL PROBLEMS: With all the
talk that centers around the difficulty of being
both student and athlete, try adding to that the
roles of husband and father. Illinois starting
forward Tom Michael has to deal with each of
them everyday.
In addition to concentrating on making
three-point baskets and decent grades, the
sophomore must also worry about his wife and
two-and-a-half year-old son, Nick.
LET THEM EAT CAKE: It was apparent
Saturday why the Athletic Department runs in
the red every year. In celebration of Crisler
Arena's 25th Anniversary/Birthday, workers
distributed pieces of cake to everyone in atten-
dance. Additional cake was available at the door
to take home.
TURNING 20: With the victory over
Illinois, Michigan reached the 20-win plateau
for the regular season. The Wolverines have de-
feated every team they have competed against
this year at least once, with the exceptions of
Duke and Ohio State. They swept
Northwestern, Iowa, and Illinois. Michigan's
record sends it on to try its hand at postseason
action in the NCAA tourney, a first-time event
for a majority of the Wolverines.
"Normally young players don't do well in a
tournament situation," Illinois coach Lou
BASKETBALL
Continued from page 1
balls. In the second, we were getting
them and turning them into transition
baskets."
Those transition baskets allowed
Michigan to increase its shooting
percentage from 36 percent in the
first half to 60 percent in the second.
The Wolverines more than doubled
their point output from the initial to
the second stanza.
The Illini's record marks their
first losing record in the regular sea-
son in 14 years.
0I
ILLINOIS (59)
FG PT Rob.
Min. MA MA 0-T A FPist.
Michael 27 2-3 0-0 0-1 0 1 6
Bennett 36 6-12 34 0-8 0 1 18
Thomas 37 7.11 1-2 0-4 2 1 15
Wheeler 32 4-10 0-0 1.3 2 1 8
Clemons 34 6-11 0-0 0-1 5 3 13
Pierce 6 0-2 1-2 0-0 1 1 1
Tuttle 4 0.0 0-0 1-1 0 0 0
Taylor 19 0-4 0-0 1-1 7 1 0
Davidson 4 0-0 0-0 01 0 0 0
Roth 1 0-0 0-0 0-0 0 0 0
Totals 20025-53 5-8 4-2317 0 59
FG%- .472. FT%- .625. Three-point goals: 4-
8..500 (Michael 2-2. Bennett 1-1. Clemens 1.
Wheeler 0-3. Taylor 0-1). Team rebounds: 3.
Blocks: 1 (Thomas). Turnovers: 15 (Thomas 5,
Clemons S Bennett 2. Taylor 2, Who. l) Steals:
"5 (Clemons 2, Michael, Bennett, Thomas).
Technical fouls: none.
MICHIGAN (68
F PT Rob.
Min. M-A N-A O-T A F Pts.
Jackson 15 1-2 0-0 0-0 2 2 2
Webber 33 6-12 1-2 1-4 2 1 13
Howard 28 39 0-0 2-8 2 1 6
King 32 6-12 0.1 2.5 1 2 12
Rose 33 8-12 4-4 0-3 3 1 22
- ~ ' V4~W 2