Fun and Games

[Wayne23]

5/1: #28 recruiting class. Pretty darn good! We buy the West Gold.

A guard who had absolutely no chance of ever being any meaningful part of the program, transferred out. He was a royal pain all last season and I’m glad he’s gone. I was thinking that if he didn’t transfer I’d need to … take action.

6/5: Looking at transfers.

6/12: We get a PF who looks like he will be able to help us.

6/26: 5 scholarships. We need 3 guards.

I have to say that I am not crazy about Southern California. I’ll go wherever I need to go to advance my career but I don’t like the traffic or the lifestyle or how crowded it is here. Hope to get out next season.

8/21: We offer to 2 PGs, an SG, 2 PFs.

9/11: We lose one.

9/18: We get a PF, #127. Lose 2.

Another weak pre-conf. schedule.

9/25: We get an SG, #578, but he’s better than that. We lose 2 more.

10/2: We get another PF, #160. Lost one. We need guards!

1st day of practice. We’re picked to finish 3rd in the Big West.

11/6: 8 man rotation:

Junior Rob Moby starts at PG, subs at SG. Senior Art Brad starts at SG, subs at PG. Juco junior Don Heay subs at SG.

Frosh Tree Tass is at SF with senior Owen Hays subbing.

Senior Cory Thon is at PF. Senior Clif Rhye subs at PF and C.

Senior Bill Howe is at C.

I’ve never killed anyone with any kind of a rifle or gun. They’re too noisy, and too easy to trace.

I like poison, drowning, knives, gas, blow gun… I only ever used a home made bomb a couple of times. Too dangerous. But I did use one my junior year in college. This bio teacher, Professor Smalley, was miserable. He loved to put people down. He’d throw a question at you and if you couldn’t answer he’d make you feel stupid. He did it to me twice during the fall semester. I was a pretty good student but the questions he asked were usually all but impossible to answer. Every day he’d catch a
few of us out and again, treat us like dirt.

I found out where he lived. He had a circular driveway and no garage. He parked his car in the circle, on the side of the house that really couldn’t be seen from the road. A car bomb is pretty easy. I wired it up so that when he hit the ignition it would blow up and blow him up. It worked.

Oh, I didn’t do it during fall semester. I waited until midway through the spring semester of my senior year, March 24, 1965.

There was a pretty big investigation. All of his students, including lots from past semesters, were questioned. It had to be obvious to the police that nearly everyone hated him. There were rumors that the other people in the bio department hated him too- other professors, grad students, pretty much everybody. Anyway, lots of questioning but the police really had nothing to go on. Another unsolved case.

Interestingly enough I almost got Smalley’s wife and kid by mistake. It came out during the investigation that Smalley’s wife was going to use his car to take their kid to school that morning. The kid woke up with a fever and didn’t go to school. It wouldn’t bother me a lot to get someone by mistake but I really wanted Smalley so I’m glad it worked out the way it did. I would have had to find another way to kill Smalley if I'd gotten his family by mistake and it would have been pretty tricky after his family had gotten blown up. So it worked out pretty well.

That was my last student murder. I graduated in May of 1965 and, as I said, was hired as an assistant at U. of Omaha.

[Wayne23]

11/20: 1-1 start in 2 road games. The loss was by only 2 points. First time I ever get beat by a prayer- a half court buzzer beater. Bill Howe is looking really good at C, and Cory Thon almost equally good at PF. Rob Moby is getting a lot of points at PG.

All 3 recruits sign but we really want to get 2 more guards.

12/6: 5-2, RPI #147. Our 2nd loss was by one point on another buzzer beater, a 23 foot three. So, except for 2 luck shots we’d be undefeated.

12/25: 8-3, RPI #144. +7.7 PPG (#129, #51), +4.9 RBs (#37), +3.0 TOs (#85). C Bill Howe leads us with 17.7 PPG. Guard Rob Moby gets 14.0. The other three starters get between 9.9 and 9.5. Cory Thon gets 9.5 RBs per game.

My first kill as an assistant coach happened on the road at Missouri-KC. I kind of knew Kansas City, at least the seamy side. There was a drug dealer on a side street who was selling to teenagers. I didn’t like that. I don’t care if adults want to get into that poison, but I think it’s wrong to make it available to kids. I had watched him on a few occasions in the past, and on this trip I was determined to get him. On 12/12/’66, I waited and watched, dressed as a derelict; I pretended to be sleeping on a park bench, across the street from where he did his business. When the street got quiet I moaned loudly. When he turned to see what the noise was about I got him with my blow gun. The dart hit him in the throat. He had time to raise his hand to the wound, and then down he went. I got up, shuffled off, and a few streets away I ducked into an alley and took off the derelict clothes and the disguise. I had my regular clothes on under the costume. I ditched the costume in a trash can near the alley where I changed, and just stuck the wig and fake beard in my pocket. No one saw me do any of it so I just walked back to the hotel where we were staying and went to bed. I fell asleep with a smile, knowing that there was one less drug dealer on the street.

[Wayne23]

1/1/1975: 10-3, 2-0. Good start! We beat Cal-Poly there and they were predicted to win the conf. Bill Howe had 27 and 12 that night. When Bill stays out of foul trouble he’s really a good player. But in our next game he only played 9 minutes, due to fouls. Fortunately, Cory Thon and sub Owen Hays stepped up.

1/15: 13-4, 5-1, RPI #68. We’re tied for 1st in the Big West. But starting SG Art Brad was hurt in our last game. He’ll miss our next 2. Don Heay will start for him and Kai Olza will sub.

1/29: 15-5, 7-2, RPI #60. We have a one game lead over 2 teams in the Big West. We split the 2 games when Brad was out but then beat predicted first place finisher Cal
Poly at home. We beat them both times we played this season.

+6.7 PPG (#89, #81), +5.0 RBs (#32), +2.1 TOs (#141). We’re causing a lot of TOs but we’re committing too many.

4 of our last 7 are on the road.

Seems like there’s always some pain in the ass around. An assistant coach for the women’s basketball team seems to be interested in me, you know, as a boyfriend. She visits my office a couple times a week and just wants to chat. Totally annoying. Well, I guess not totally annoying. She knows her stuff where basketball is concerned.

When we talk about hoops it’s interesting, and she has even made a suggestion or two that I’ve used. But it’s clear what she’s looking for. I’ve told her I don’t date. My entire focus is on coaching, but she keeps pushing the issue. She’s basically a nice person but I don’t need this and I don’t like it.

2/12: 18-6, 10-3, RPI #51. Up 1 ½ games in the conf. 2 of our last 3 are road games vs. solid teams so we may be up against it.

2/26: 20-7, 12-4, RPI #51. We win the Big West by 2 games. +6.2 PPG (#71, #117), +5.2 RBs (#37), +1.6 TOs (#119). Heading to the post season with high hopes, but winning the Big West tournament won’t be easy.

That assistant coach of the women’s hoop team is still bothering the hell out of me. She’s in my office several times a week- without an invitation. She stops by practice- just to watch, she knows better than to try to talk to me there. She did that a couple of times and I told her to stop because it was distracting me.

Her name is Katie Raye. I guess people who know about these things would say she’s attractive. I don’t know anything about that kind of thing. My assistants are making comments, not teasing me, just saying how it’s pretty obvious what she’s up to.

I can’t think of a way of killing her that would not draw suspicion to me. Who knows, I may move on to a different school in a couple of months. That would solve the problem. If I stay here I’ll give it more thought.

[Wayne23]

3/2: We play #8 seed Cal ST-Fullerton, 11-16, 6-10, in the quarters. They won by 13 at their place but then we won by 35 at home. The game is rated a toss up, probably because they are really good outside and if their threes are falling it could be tough for us.

3/3: 82-56. We played a lot of 3-2 and held them to 3 threes. It was an easy win. 22, 9 for C Bill Howe, 16 for SG Art Brad, 13 each for PF Cory Thon (13, 11, 5), and PG Rob Moby (13, 4, 6). +14 RBs, 12 TOs.

#5 seed UC-Davis, 15-13, 8-8, in the semis. Beat them by 10 and 16. We’re only favored by a ½ point though. They are strong at C and at SG, and their bench is probably a little better than ours. Still, this is a game we should win.

3/4: 58-71. The D was decent, not great. The O was awful. We shot 21-63; we took 12 more shots and still lost. That just shouldn’t happen and I’m not happy. 18 TOs.

The tourney was being held in Riverside, we rotate around the conference. I went out in the middle of the night, just to walk off my frustration, but I did bring my knife along. I found a derelict sleeping on a park bench, with an empty bottle of wine by his side. He was snoring like mad. I knew he was drunk as hell and an earthquake wouldn’t wake him up, so I cut his throat. It definitely eased mu frustration.

3/5: UC-Davis beat Cal Poly for the title.

21-8, RPI #62. NIT? We’ll go somewhere.

3/12: NIT, #4 Midwest. We play #5 New Mexico ST, 15-14. They’re favored by 1 ½. Great PG, good SF. But I think this is a team we could beat.

3/13: 102-89 in a real shootout. We led most of the way. 41, 13 for Howe, great game! 18 for Brad. 13 assists for PG Rob Moby. 13, 12 for Thon. +25 RBs.

#1 seed Fresno ST, 22-8, in the 2nd round. They’re favored by 1 ½. They are good inside and have a deep bench.

3/15: 73-95. It was close for almost 30 minutes. Then we just seemed to stop moving, on both O and D. Maybe Fresno ST stepped it up, I don’t know. 26, 10 for Howe.

Last game for starters Bill Howe, Cory Thon, and Art Brad, as well as a couple of subs. If I can go somewhere else it might be a good idea.
We’ll see what happens.

3/19: We pick up a PG, #185.

4/1: We get our last recruit, a PG, #118.

4/3: #4 Alabama wins it all.

4/4: Awards: Bill Howe is Big West Def. POY and 1st team along with fellow senior Cory Thon and junior guard Rob Moby. I get Conf. COY again.

4/9: Some interesting phone calls. Looks like I’ll be moving on. Not sure where yet.

Air Force would be a major rebuilding job, but I’m strongly considering them. I like the discipline that exists at this type of facility. I’m at least going to visit.

I’m going to the Air Force Academy. BIG step up in conference. The Mountain West has a CP of 52, the Big West was 23. There are some really good teams here.

This will be a challenge. The team was 7-21 this season, RPI #329. But there are resources here- decent budget, decent #1 and #2 assistants.

The A. D. seems kind of stiff but he says he’ll support me. He’s a Lt. Colonel, not a civilian.

I never served. After 4 years of high school and 4 years of college ball, I blew out my knee in a pickup game the day after graduation from Omaha. The service didn’t want me after that.

4/16: Money in the recruiting budget and I’m going after some guys.

4/23: I ask for a budget increase. Colonel Sanders (Really, that’s his name) said no, and he was snippy about it:

“We didn’t half fill the seats for most of our games. There’s no money for an increase.”

He might have said he’d try to make it happen next season. He didn’t. S.O.B.

I managed to snag three late recruits. Hopefully they will help.

Overall, I am 111-45, .712. That could take a hit next season but I’m hoping it won’t.

[Wayne23]

5/1: #52 recruiting class; my late recruiting helped a lot. We buy the National Basic.

It occurs to me that my second move saved another life. Katie Raye would have needed to go if I had stayed.

6/5: 2 spots for transfers.

6/12: We get a guard. Looks like a project. It’s not easy to transfer in to the Academy. This kid will almost certainly need to spend an extra year getting his Bachelor’s.

But he knew that and we made it clear. Hope he eventually helps us.

6/26: 6 scholarships. We need at least three inside players.

8/21: We offer to 2 SGs, an SF, a PF, and 2 Cs. All 6 have at least a little interest.

My A. D., Col. Sanders is a moody, annoying man. He really has no understanding of how to deal with people. Look, I know I’m not very good with people, but this guy is awful. He’s grumpy, never has a good word to say. The Assistant A. D., Major Helen Mize, is just the opposite. I wish she were in charge… Maybe she will be. I need to think about how…

9/11: We lose a C.

9/18: We lose 2.

We’re in an in season tournament. My first! Tip Off in Paradise. We’re probably there for only one round as we’re playing #20 Maryland and it’s during the first week of the season before I can get them to where I hope they'll get to, but the guys will get a trip to Hawaii at the very least.

Weak pre-conf. schedule as usual. If I get this team to where it’s decent, I’ll bump up the schedule but for now I want wins, and that means weak teams.

9/25: We get 2, lose 2. We get our #1, a C, #97, and an SF, #298. I feel like we’re close to a couple of guys.

10/2: We get a C, #124, but lose 2 more. 1st day of practice. We’re picked to finish 5th in the MT West. I think that may be difficult. Col. Sanders says we need to qualify for the NIT and I think that may be damn near impossible. He also wants us to finish above .500 and improve Team Prestige.

Sanders is a tea drinker and a man of VERY steady habits. He arrives at the office promptly at 7:30 a.m., and leaves promptly at 6:00 p.m.- every day. Sometimes he has duty on weekends, of course, that’s when a lot of athletic events happen. On weekends and holidays he just comes in for what he needs to come in for. But on Mon. through Friday it’s always the same unless he needs to stay late for a game.

Tea is a very simple drink to slip something into, and there are two or three of those “things” that will make it look like a heart attack got him. I’m thinking I’ll act sooner rather than later. Oh, he keeps a teapot on a hot plate and just refills his cup from that. He uses actual tea leaves. Couldn’t be easier. I’m in his office a lot. If he needs to use the john or leave for a minute to speak with someone, which happens often, I’ll get my chance. And as to the heart attack, he has to be at least 50 pounds overweight and he eats cookies, doughnuts, and other pastries throughout the day. No one will question the heart attack.

10/9: Got a PF, #575, but he’s better than that. Lost one.

We have yet to get a guard. I’m hoping to land two of them.

10/20: Laughing my ass off, and I don’t laugh very often. I arrived at work this morning. Assistant A. D., Major Helen Mize, called me into her office to tell me that Col. Sanders had died in his sleep- of an apparent heart attack. I barely managed to not burst out laughing in her office because, you see, I had absolutely nothing to do with it. Hilarious!

The other good news is that Major Mize is now the Acting A. D. Life is strange.

10/23: We get an SG, #140. One more guard to go. The Air Force Academy has pretty high academic standards so I suppose it is possible that one or two of my recruits won’t hit our SAT score but I’m hopeful they all will hit the score. Time will tell.

11/6: We looked better in our two exhibition games than I thought we would.

7 man rotation:

Senior Brad Beau is at PG. Senior Marq Wear starts at SG, subs at PG. Frosh Joe Hunt subs at SG.

Senior Ward Cory starts at SF, subs at PF. Junior Mike DUmc subs at SF.

Frosh Gab Trap starts at PF, subs at C.

Junior Mali Colu is at C.

We’re thin. Injuries will really give us problems.

It wasn’t until the spring of 1969, April 28, that I killed again. There was an assistant football coach at Omaha who was just a disgusting person. He was a bully and a braggart. He was a physical slob, didn’t bathe or wash his clothes nearly often enough. He was slovenly in his appearance and his habits were unsanitary and disgusting. He reeked. He made everything about how great he was and, frankly, he was a big nothing. I don’t know how he hung onto his job. I figured his family were big donors or something. Whenever we had Athletic Department meetings, he would drag them out with stupid questions and even more stupid comments. No one liked him and lots of people talked about how annoying he was.

It wasn’t long before I had had enough but it took me a long time to act, for some reason. But there was no doubt that I was going to act, and eventually I did.

I don’t like to let people know they’re about to die. I’ve said that the kick for me is about ending a human life. It gives me a huge sense of power. I don’t get high on suffering or on fear. But when I did this guy, I wanted him to know it was coming.

As always, I studied him and studied his habits. He was a fisherman and he had his own “secret spot.” It was in a very secluded area by a lake not all that far out of town. Perfect! Sometimes he fished from a rowboat and sometimes he just did casting from the shore. I waited until a time when he would be casting, at dusk when there wasn’t much visibility, so that even if someone was in the general area they would be unlikely to see anything. I snuck up behind him. When I was within a foot of him I spoke:

“No sudden moves, Rocky.” Yes, to make it even better, he went by “Rocky.”

“That thing you feel against your back is a gun. One move and I fire.” I didn’t have a gun but I had the end of a broomstick.

“I just wanted you to know that university policy has just changed. All the assholes have to die and you’re an asshole.”

“Hey! Hang on a minute.”

“Shut up, Rocky. I just wanted you to know that this is your last few seconds alive.”

“WAIT!”

I had a knife and I plunged it into his back, in that spot I always used. Rocky was a strong guy and I must have just missed the heart. He went down but he didn’t die right away. In falling he had turned so that he was on his back.

“YOU!”

“Oh, good. You can see who did this to you. I like that. Goodbye Rocky.”

With that I plunged the knife into his heart from the front and that was the end of Rocky.

It was one of my most satisfying kills.

As always, I cleaned off the knife thoroughly, and got rid of it. In this case I simply threw it into the water, throwing it as far as I could. I didn’t think they’d drag the lake since there wasn’t a body in it. They didn’t.

I took the long way around so that if I ran into anyone I wouldn’t be seen anywhere near the scene.

This was yet another murder that has, to this day, never been solved.

[Wayne23]

11/17: 1-0. We on our first, at home, by 13. Center Mali Colu had 28 and 11. SG Marq Wear had 16 and 6, and SF Ward Cory had 13 and 6. Only 10 TOs. I played my starters a lot except for PF Gab Trap, who was in foul trouble all night.

I’m writing this on a flight to the Tip Off in Hawaii. #20 Maryland, the #1 seed in the tourney looks like they’re going to be way too strong for us. I hope we work hard and learn some things. I wouldn’t tell the team this but I don’t think there’s mjuch chance we’ll win this game.

I have to say I am loving working with Major Mize. I hear she is soon to be LT. Col. Mize, and that she will get the A. D. job officially. I hope so. She’s really nice and very helpful, and she minds her own business. She needs to know a lot about what I do and how I do it but she never pries, and never tries to get information she doesn’t actually need. She knows I’m not a big talker and she doesn’t seem to have a problem with that. She’s on the trip with us, which is nice.

11/18: 64-74. They scored the first 11 points and that was about the margin for most of the game. We never got closer than 4, never farther away than 12. I was generally pretty happy with how well we played against a top flight team. 16, 10 for Trap but he got in foul trouble again. You’d think an air force cadet would be more disciplined. We’re working on it. 21 TOs hurt a lot but Maryland’s guards were a LOT quicker than ours. Really, the bench was the difference. Their bench got 30, 16, 5, and ours got 11, 6, and 5. We know that bench play will be a problem this year, so no surprise.

After the game I was able to say some nice things to the guys, and I think they see this the way I do, as a learning experience that will make us a better team.

11/20: 1-1. One recruit won’t hit our SAT score. Of course it’s the guard, so we’re back to looking for two guards. This guy was rated #129 overall, our best rated recruit, so it stinks that we won’t get him.

12/4: 3-3, RPI #126. Winning at home, losing on the road. #3 guard Joe Hunt badly sprained a finger. The doc says about two weeks. Mike Dumc will get his minutes so now we’re using a 6 man rotation. Not good. Tre Brad, an SF, has played well on O when I’ve used him but he’s the worst defender on the squad.

12/25: We end pre-conf. play at 6-5, RPI #185. +3.5 PPG (#180, #78), +3.4 RBs (#90), -0.2 TOs (#101). We need to score more points. C Mali Colu leads us with 18.6, but
#2 scorer SG Marq Wear gets only 12.1.

Let’s see how we do in the MT West.

My last murder as an assistant coach happened on 2/18/’70. There was this grocery store employee who worked at check out. She was chatty. When I checked out she talked and talked and talked. She talked to the people ahead of me, which made me have to wait a lot longer than necessary. When it was my turn it was the same thing. The conversations were always totally inane. I hate unnecessary talking. It bothered me more and more. It was a small store and she was usually the only check out person so I couldn’t avoid her, and this was the only grocery store near campus. My hope was always to get in and out quickly and just go home. Finally, after putting up with it for years, I decided to act.

As always, I followed her and learned her habits. Every Friday night she went to the movies, alone. The theater was in a busy part of town but when the movie got out, usually around 10:00 at night, everything except a bar was closed. She walked home. I found a quiet street on her route and waited. When she walked by I coughed, which got her to turn in my direction, and I used my trusty blow gun. The dart got her high on the cheek, and before long she fell. This was another satisfying kill.

Believe me, she was no loss to anybody or anything.

As I’ve said more than once I like quiet. When I’m home there’s no TV on unless I’m watching a game, which I do if there’s any chance we’ll play the team. I keep the volume low, just loud enough to hear, while I take notes.

I don’t watch the news or anything else. Weather? If the weather is bad enough to prevent getting to work, and it was at times in Omaha, and is at times in Colorado Springs, I’ll find out.

So no TV. No radio either. I don’t listen to music. Never did. I like a perfectly quiet atmosphere best.

At work I have to talk to people, of course. The secretary, my assistant coaches, the A. D., my players, recruits… I keep it all business and don’t extend the conversation any longer than absolutely necessary. My recruiting coach has a lot of personality, and he “charms” the recruits. I just tell them what I think their prospects are regarding starting, playing time, and all of that. My bench coach is the cheerleader for the players. I tell them when they do something well, briefly tell them, explain the offensive and defensive formations, correct their errors, and again, keep it as brief as possible.

I am happiest in total silence.

[Wayne23]

1/1/1976: 7-5, 1-0. It was a one game week and we beat the team picked #2 in the conf., by 14 at our place. Great start! 27, 6 for Colu, 15 for Trap. +12 RBs. We definitely won it inside.

1/15: 9-7, 3-2, RPI #146. We’re winning at home, losing on the road. My short bench has me worried. The chief worry is that I will wear out my starters by playing them for too many minutes. When the game is decided, pro or con, I pull my starters to rest them, but in basketball that’s usually late in the game. I mean, with 3 minutes left, down by 10, or even 12, it’s still possible to pull it out.

1/29: 11-9, 5-4, RPI #129. +2.4 PPG (#175, #95), +2.9 RBs (#95), +0.1 TOs (#135). The numbers show that we definitely need to score more points, and we could do better with RBs and TOs, but we’re in the middle of the pack in the MT West, and that’s probably about as much as I can expect.

After 2 road losses I put Joe Hunt in the starting lineup as PG. I think we’re stronger with him there than with Brad Beau. Well, we won our last two so…

As expected an SG recruit didn’t hit our SAT score. We offered to a PG.

I like to keep track of things. 18 murders so far- 10 in Omaha, 2 in Fort Wayne, IN, one each in Fargo, ND, Lincoln, NE, Kansas City, MO, Tulsa, OK, Santa Barbara, CA, Riverside, CA. So 8 cities in 6 states. Too many in and around Omaha, but only about 6 of the Omaha ones were ever considered to be murders. I doubt that I have anything to worry about.

Actually, I truly believe that if I’m caught, it will be at the scene. The more I study up about murder statistics, particularly related to serial killers, they’re only caught under one of two circumstances, (1) They’re “caught in the act,” at the scene of the crime. That’s usually just bad luck. (2) They’re sloppy- they do too many in the same general location, or they use the same method too many times, or they go after the same type of person- prostitute, waitress, young woman… I’m careful. Unless I get really unlucky I may never be caught.

I’m getting the “itch” again. There doesn’t seem to be a timetable or anything, but at a certain point I start to get this feeling that is only eased by finding another victim. I’m starting to get that feeling so it probably won’t be long.

Oh, and I do “relive the moment” with my favorite murders. It doesn’t feel as good when I’m reliving it but it is definitely pleasurable.

2/12: 13-11, 7-6, RPI #143. Tied for 6th in the tough MT West. Frankly, I’d be happy to finish at 8-8 for the conf.

Early in the morning on 2/8, in Las Cruces, NM, after the game with New Mexico ST, I “went for a walk.” We hadn’t played very well that night and, once again, I was frustrated. I felt no need to get creative but I DID feel the need to add to my murder total. At about 1:30 a.m., on a back street, a teenager came walking toward me.

As he got close he asked for a handout. He was obviously high as a zeppelin on something. I dug into my left rear pocket as if to get some money out of my wallet. I pretended to drop the wallet and “accidentally” kicked it behind him a few feet. As he turned to get it I took out my blow gun and shot a dart into his butt.

“Ow! What the heck was that?” He grabbed at his butt, then started to run away with my wallet. Within a half dozen steps or so he stopped, kind of staggered, and fell to the sidewalk.

I took my wallet out of his hand, turned, and as I started to walk away a cruiser pulled up.

“Oh good. I was looking for a pay phone.”

“Do you have any identification, sir?”

“Yes. I’m Wayne Tuthry, Head Coach of the Air Force Academy basketball team.”

“I thought I recognized you, Coach. I was at the game tonight. Let’s see the ID though, just to be sure.”

I showed my ID, my real one, and explained that I went for a walk because I couldn’t sleep. I told the officer that the kid had approached me and asked for a handout. When I took out my wallet he stole it and ran away. Then he stopped and collapsed. I hit heavily upon the fact that he was drugged up.

Before long more cops joined us, and eventually, a detective. They took me to the station for questioning but never searched me. Finally, at about 4:30 a.m., the detective spoke to me:

“Coach, it seems pretty obvious that this is a simple case of an attempted robbery by a kid high on drugs. Looks like he took too much of something and it kicked in when he started to run. I’m guessing the autopsy will show a heart attack or something like that. You’re free to go back to your hotel. I know you said you get insomnia, and that you go for late night walks when you do, but it would be a good idea to stay on well lit streets. We have your contact information, but we have your statement and we probably won’t need to follow up. If we do, we’ll be in touch.”

That was the closest I’ve ever come to being caught, and if they had searched me the blow gun would have probably done me in.

I went back to the hotel, showed up at breakfast at 8:00 in the hotel, and boarded the flight back home. Before that I called Major Mize and told her about the incident. She said that since it would go public I should tell the team members what had happened. I did that by gathering everyone into a private room at the airport.

It was well known that I went for late night walks and no one questioned anything. A few people said they were glad I hadn’t been hurt or even killed.

The press was waiting for me when I got back to Colorado Springs. I stuck to my story and no one really questioned it. Most of the press was favorable but one reporter wrote that it was a really bad idea for me to be walking around in strange cities in the middle of the night and I was being irresponsible and setting a bad example for my team. That was the most negative outcome of the whole incident, at least so far. We’ll see what the autopsy shows.

2/24: The autopsy on that kid I killed in Las Cruces showed that he died of heart failure brought on by a cocaine overdose. Case closed.

My next murder will be #20. I decided to do some thinking to see if I could make it special.

2/26: 15-12, 9-7, RPI #120. We finish tied for 4th, #4 seed. I’m pretty happy with that. I’d really like to win at least one in the MT West tourney.

Got called in to the Provost’s office- they don;t call it that here, but that's what it would be at a non-military college so that's what I'll call it. The Provost is a full Colonel. He told me to stay off of back streets when I take walks, and if the hotel has a gym, to walk on the treadmill or something. Around the AFA campus I should stay to well lit areas. He didn’t really dress me down. It was more like a protect yourself and us from any hint of scandal kind of thing. I agreed.

No ideas yet regarding murder #20 and how to make it special, but there’s no rush.

[Wayne23]

3/6: We play #5 seed New Mexico, 14-14, 9-7, in the quarter finals. We won by 17 at our place in our only meeting. They’re favored by 1 ½, probably because they have a really good PG and a deep bench.

3/7: 66-57. Our D won it for us. We shut down their very good PG, holding him to 5 points and turning him over 8 times. That was the key, at least in my eyes, and we put pressure on him all night long. 20, 11 for C Mali Colu, and the bench had a good night, 13, 3, 3, which is way more than usual! +10 TOs.

#1 seed, #25 ranked UNLV, 22-6, 12-4, in the semifinals. They won by 20 at their place. That was our last game before Joe Hunt took the Point. But they really solid and we’re a 5 ½ point underdog. We’ll need to play nearly perfectly to have a chance.

3/8: 58-72. They scored the first 9, built a 23 point lead, 17 at the half. We never got it closer than 5 in the 2nd half. Still, my guys never quit, and I’m proud of them and told them so after the game.

16-13, RPI #125. We’ve hit all of our goals except being invited to the NIT. I feel we’ll go somewhere, but not sure it will be the NIT.

3/12: CHI, #6 seed. We play #3 Albany, 18-12. We need to contain their back court; that’s where their strength is. I’d love it if we could make some noise in this tourney.

3/14: 54-68. Our lack of offense did us in, as it did so often this season.

Still, I’m happy with what we accomplished. Never thought we’d have a winning record, but we did. If we can land those two guards I think we’ll be a lot better next season.

3/19: We get a PG, #149. He’s a Greek American kid living in Athens. Looks good!

4/3: #3 Michigan ST wins the title.

4/4: Awards: Not sure that we’ll win much this season.

Junior C Mali Colu makes the MT West 1st team. That’s it. Glad he’s coming back!

I really like the atmosphere here. The discipline and no nonsense attitude at a military academy really suits my style and personality. And I’ve said how much I like my A.
D., LT. Col. Mize. She’s terrific to work for. I’m sure I won’t retire here but it will take a really good offer for me to leave and I truly hope I spend a few years here.

4/16: We get our last recruit, a PG, #123.

My #2, my scouting assistant, got a job as #1 assistant at Brigham Young so I’m hiring.

Got a guy who seems okay but not great. Our budget kind of restricted us.

4/23: I ask for money. We need it! We get $10,200. I’ll take it!

16-14, RPI #124. As I said I’m happy with this first season at AFA. Overall, I’m 127-59, .683 for 6 seasons.

We’re losing our starting SG and SF, and our #3 guard. I like the 2 guards who are coming in. The transfer guard is iffy. So I need 1 or 2 of the 4 big guys coming in to develop.

Still thinking about murder #20 and how I can make it special.

[Wayne23]

5/1: #42 recruiting class. Pretty good! We buy the national gold.

6/5: Two players transfer out. One was a guard who was never going to get playing time but the other was starting PF Gab Trap. That hurts. I knew Gab was having trouble with the rigorous program here but I didn’t know he was having that much trouble. I’m very disappointed but I wish him well. The AFA is a tough, tough place and it’s not for everyone.

We’re probably going to need to go with a three guard set up for at least part of the time. I don’t have a lot of decent big guys. We’ll see.

Looking at transfers.

6/9: We offer to a PG and a C.

6/12: We get both! The PG looks like he’ll start as soon as he’s eligible. The C looks like a project.

6/26: 2 scholarships. I want 2 inside players.

8/21: We offer to a PF and a C.

9/11: We lose one.

9/18: We lose one but we’re close to one.

Golden ST Classic vs. West VA. It’s in December. I like that because by then my team should be pretty well set.

9/25: We lose another one.

10/2: We get a PF, #132. We feel like we have a good shot at an SF.

1st day of practice. We’re picked to finish 5th in the MT West. It’s a tough conf. but I’m shooting for top 3. But we’re thin again, very thin up front.

11/6: 7 man rotation:

Frosh Quin Geer is at PG. Soph Mao Joes, a transfer from Washington ST, starts at SG, subs at PG. Soph Joe Hunt subs at SG but is pushing to start. He managed to work his way into the starting rotation last season.

Juco junior Will Mott starts at SF, subs at PF. Senior Mike Dumc subs at SF. Last season he started off in the rotation but couldn’t get it done. He wound up sitting for most of the season. He has looked determined in practice. We’ll see.

Senior Mali Colu starts at PF, subs at C. Frosh Jama Broz is at C.

Imagine a student at a U. S. military academy who’s first name is Mao. Times change, I guess.

I’ve never gone after anyone famous, or even well known, while pursuing my "hobby." There’s a reason for that. Those people are usually pretty well protected. There’s another reason. If there’s any suspicion of foul play the cops don’t rest until they’ve solved it or done more than anyone could reasonably expect. But it would be a huge feather in my cap. I’m examining possibilities.

11/13: We get an SF, #91. The PF wound up as #99. Good haul!

I just cut a junior who was never going to help us. No worries here. His education is paid for so he’ll be fine. He was missing practices and team meetings. Frankly, he couldn’t handle the pace here. This will probably help him. And it gives me either another scholarship for this season, or one in the bank.

[Wayne23]

11/20: 2-0. 2 home wins to start the season. Center Jama Broz is looking really good.

Both recruits sign.

12/4: 5-1. Broz leads us with 16.7, 9.0. PG Quin Geer gets 14.7, with 5.5 assists. . Sub guard Joe Hunt is playing well and getting some of Mike Dumc’s minutes. He may get most of them eventually.

I found my target. Elvira Coombs owns about half the state of Colorado. She inherited some of the money but made the rest. Her business enterprises go pretty much worldwide. She pays the lowest possible wages and salaries, makes cheap things that don’t last, but somehow people buy them- by the ton. She is full of hate and scorn. I’m no politician and no moralist, obviously, but she’s a living cancer. She treats everybody like dirt. People hate her but she's so powerful they have no choice about putting up with her crap.

And she should be a pretty easy target. At age 63 she remains quite active physically, and she loves to hike in the mountains- alone, at dawn.

All I’ll need to do is hide out around a corner along the route she takes. I’ll use a knife. She does something called bushwhacking. That means hiking off the trail, through dense undergrowth, whether grass, weeds, or whatever. That makes it ridiculously easy. I’m not sure how often she hikes in the cold weather but she boasts about how fit she is and how hardy, so I’m guessing unless the weather is really bad she’ll be out there.

12/8: 6-1 headed for the Golden ST classic. We play #2 seed West Virginia, 5-1. We’re #7. Hoping for an upset but it won’t be easy.

12/9: 61-90. We were pretty awful. Most points we’ve given up all season, by 12, and the fewest we’ve scored. W. VA. is a very good team, of course.

12/25: 8-3, RPI #133. +8.0 PPG (#129, #53), +6.3 RBs (#131), +1.6 TOs (#86).

Hunt has managed to grab most of Dumc’s minutes. Will Mott isn’t giving us much on O at SF, but he’s playing really good D and he gets his share of RBs.

Still loving it here at AFA. I’ve never been in a better situation. Students here are respectful- all of them, and they bust their backs to give all they have- all of them, all the time. That’s a pretty great thing.

But I’m ambitious. I want to contend for and win national titles. That won’t happen here. They’ll never provide the budget or the facilities for that. But that’s okay for now, and maybe for a few more years. I’m only 33 years old. I have time.

I’ve spent three chilly days in the woods and hills where Elvira Coombs bushwhacks, but I missed her every time. She doesn’t hike every day, of course so it’s going to be hit or miss. And I can only be out of the office so much. I make up excuses but that won't last long. I need to catch her out there.