An Open Letter to Roy Williams

Dear Coach Williams,

I have watched and enjoyed the Kansas Jayhawks play basketball since the 1972-1973 season. I have seen many great players take the court in Allen Field House over the years. I watched young men like Rick Suttle, Darnell Valentine, Paul Mokeski and Greg Dreiling play. I saw Danny Manning, Kevin Pritchard and Mark Randall represent the Jayhawks with class and dignity. I cheered for Jacque Vaughn, Paul Pierce and Raef LaFrentz. I rooted for Drew Gooden, Nick Collison, Kirk Hinrich and Wayne Simien. Today, I look with pride on the efforts of Cole Aldrich and Sherron Collins.

I was disappointed when Ted Owens was fired, but rejoiced when Larry Brown replaced him. I was skeptical when Dr. Frederick hired you, but you quickly won the hearts of Jayhawk fans everywhere with your hard work and tremendous success. When you left Lawrence for North Carolina, I was extremely upset. I hoped Bill Self would be able to continue the successful tradition you added so much to during your time as head coach. (Coach Self has exceeded our expectations.)

I was bitter and resentful when you led North Carolina to an NCAA title in your second season back at Chapel Hill. Your swift ascent to the top of the basketball world in 2005 made Jayhawk fans shake their heads and wonder why this was something you couldn’t do for Kansas. What were those wonderful Jayhawks teams lacking that you discovered so quickly in the squad you inherited from Matt Doherty?

I was even more amazed when the Tar Heels won 23 games in 2006 after losing virtually every key player from the previous year’s title team. Your coaching wizardry was never more evident than during that season. In 2007, you were back on top, and only an overtime loss to Georgetown prevented a return to the Final Four.

In 2008, you fielded a wonderfully talented club with Tyler Hansbrough, Ty Lawson, Wayne Ellington and the rest. You faced an equally great Kansas team in the Final Four and lost, despite a valiant comeback after being down 40-12 in the first half. Was there an extra incentive for the Hawks to play well that would not have existed if the opponent was someone else? (It has been suggested Brandon Rush was motivated because of issues concerning your recruitment of his brother JaRon, ten years earlier, but no other motivating factor makes sense.) Every KU fan wanted to see the Hawks play for the title, but the players and coaches had no vested interest in beating you. The Jayhawk faithful felt relief with the victory—it meant we could win without you.

The next season, your key players said no to the NBA and returned to complete their quest for a title. The Carolina team separated itself from every other team in the country and won your second championship in five years. KU fans couldn’t help but again feel a little jealous—the demons we thought exorcised the year before returned. Why couldn’t you perform these miracles for us? Why couldn’t you write two best-selling books chronicling your tenure at Kansas? Why does coaching seem easier for you now than when you were in Lawrence?

The question no longer needs to be answered.

Flash forward to the next year. At the time these words are being written, your team is 13-10 and at risk of missing the NCAA Tournament entirely. KU fans aren’t happy to see you lose, but there is some comfort in your team’s swoon. This is probably difficult to understand, but tanking a season allows us to fully embrace you again. You needed to become human in our eyes instead of continuing a string of successful seasons that would make Dean Smith envious. I realize you would prefer a 23-0 record and our enmity to your current situation, but we aren’t rooting against you. Not really. We just needed to see you fail in order to fully understand how much you accomplished at KU. You never brought an NCAA championship to Kansas, but you never served up a13-10 record, either. You have become mortal in our eyes again, and now we can fully enjoy your success.

I am aware that you’ve moved on mentally as well as physically, and the feelings of Jayhawk fans aren’t really that important to you any longer. That’s okay. Jayhawk fans have moved on, also—even if this very letter appears to be evidence to the contrary. We can point to your accomplishments with pride and claim you as one of our own. We can root for you against any opponent except the Hawks. We can allow you to enhance KU’s reputation from Chapel Hill. We can be a family again.

Welcome back, Coach!

Mike