The Fashion Power Index - CollegeInsider

AMERICA'S BEST DRESSED
By Angela Lento

SAN ANTONIO, TX -- The celebration lasted well into the night. Everywhere you looked there were Connecticut fans were enjoying their team?s second national championship. But by Tuesday morning, cheers of ?we?re number one? were replaced by chants of ?let?s go Bruiser? and ?Kerry Keating.?

The season was over on the hardwood, but the college basketball season still had one event remaining and one question still to be answered. Who is America?s best-dressed coach?

Much of the talk still centered on the Kerry Keating-Ronny Thompson semi final. While it was confirmed that there was no violation, many believed that the timeout called by Tony Jones was unethical.

?That?s crazy,? said Jones. ?I was just helping a fellow competitor. If I wasn?t facing Kerry in the final, this would not have been a big deal.?

The Tony Jones (Wisconsin-Milwaukee) vs. Kerry Keating (UCLA) contest would be the first up.

?This will be a great matchup,? said Drexel?s Bruiser Flint. ?These two guys have been focused all season on getting back to this point. Last year it was tie so both guys want to settle this once and for all.?

Flint, who will face TCU?s Neil Dougherty in the head coach finale, was one of many on hand to see the under card.

Wisconsin?s Bo Ryan, who was gracious enough to preview the original field of sixty-five, and Ball State?s Tim Buckley had front row seats for the day?s events. And Willis Wilson (Rice) and Ricardo Patton (Colorado), who were both knocked off in the national semi-finals, were interested to see the final outcomes.

Wilson was disappointed that he had not advanced to the championship, but it was a great season for 2002 best-dressed coach. His Owls advanced to postseason for just the second time in fifty years. In addition, Wilson was named to College Basketball?s ?50 Sexiest? and he advanced to the Fashionable Four for the seventh consecutive season.

But there were more accolades for Wilson. On Tuesday he learned that he had advanced to the championship round of the ?Scene-It?? Dave Magarity Coaches Movie Challenge where he will face Mr. Magarity.

?That?s big time,? said Wilson. ?I am a big movie buff, but Dave is the John Wooden of movie trivia. It will be a lot of fun to go one on one with Dave.?

CI?s editor-in-chief, Joe Dwyer called Wilson on his cell phone to wish him luck in the movie challenge and to give him updates on the San Francisco Giants. According to Wilson, Dwyer said, ?Barry Bonds can do anything he wants at the plate.?

Dwyer and Sam Houston State?s Bob Marlin were in Houston to see the three-game series between the Astros and Giants.

Marquette assistant coach Trey Schwab, who is home and getting better every day, fired off an email to thank all of the coaches who had sent cards and well-wishes. It?s great to see that Trey is doing well and we all look forward to seeing him back on the sidelines next season.

As the first fashion showdown of the day approached, Kerry Keating came out to give his final thoughts.

?It will all be decided today,? he said. ?Like USC and LSU, Jones and I shared the championship last year, but today I think it will be decided. Jones is a tough matchup because you never know what he is going to get from Jalen Rose, but I have made some adjustments and will be ready.?

Keating, who looked dapper in his gray suit and blue tie, was asked about getting some fashion assistance from Jones and Rose, in the semi-finals.

?I appreciated the assist,? said Keating. ?We both wanted the opportunity to face off in the final and Jones just helped the process along. If the situation was reversed, I would have helped him out as well.?

As Keating headed off to his corner to await the opening tip, Mr. Jones checked in with some final words.

?I?m ready,? said Jones. ?Bruce Pearl (UW-Milwaukee head coach) and my entire crew is here to support me so I feel very good about my chances. I didn?t have to break out all my gear against Chris Goggins so I have some surprises for Keating.?

Let the action begin.

ASSISTANT COACH FASHION FINALE

It was clear early that the game plan for Jones was a wide array of colors. The three-time Fashionable Four participant sported some very high-end fabric in an attempt to confuse Keating.

But the first-year UCLA assistant was un-fazed.

Keating opted for the more classic look and the crowd approved. Keating, making his second straight championship appearance, had obviously taken full advantage of being just a tie?s length from Beverly Hills.

His attire was well pressed and very elegant, which kept him right on the heels of Jones. Keating easily defended the offensive approach, of Jones and the two headed off to their dressing rooms all even.

?Tony Jones looks like he is being cast for ?Night at the Roxbury,? said one heckler. ?Keating is a lock to win it all.?

On behalf of Jones, Jalen Rose had a few thoughts.

?We are not worried,? he said. ?Tony has a game plan and he is going to stick with it. Tony will make his fashion statement in the second half.?

The crowd picked up a cheer of ?Kerry Keating,? as the two hit the stage for the final twenty minutes. The home crowd-feel helped Keating jump to the early advantage, but Jones mixed it up and threw a few wrinkles at Keating to keep it close.

As the minutes ticked down, Keating still held the advantage and, surprisingly, Jones continued to unveil one color suit after another.

?It looks like Tony may have made a big mistake,? said Bruiser Flint. ?It?s starting to look like he should not have helped Kerry in the semi-finals. Like they say, be careful what you wish for.?

Still the Jones camp, led by Jalen Rose, seemed confident. There was no look of concern. And the Keating camp led by his dad, Larry wasn?t taking anything for granted. They knew that Jones still had a deep and talented closet.

And that was about to prove correct.

At the advice of Rose, Jones unleashed a barrage of three-point pocket squares, which were nicely tucked into Jones? most dependable player, ?Armani.?

Keating used an iron-pressing style to defend the Jones run. And Keating held onto to a slim lead with just seconds remaining.

Trailing by three with just five ticks left, Larry Keating reminded his son, not to foul Jones. It was clear that Jones would need another three-point pocket square to send the contest into overtime and with no fouls to give, they didn?t want to take any chances.

As the clock ticked down to four, Jones stepped into Keating. With three ticks, Jones elevated. With two to go, Jones released a pretty three-pointer and with one tick remaining it went down.

But as the crowd erupted, former East Tennessee State assistant Tommy Conrad pointed to a button on the floor. Jones had lost a button, a clear fashion foul, which would nullify the three-point pocket play.

The fashion panel gathered around the monitor to review the play. After further review, the announcement was made to the crowd.

?The button on the floor did come of the suit of Tony Jones,? said ravishing referee. And the Keating supporters exploded. But they were rudely interrupted, as the referee continued.

?However,? he said, ?It has been determined that the button was knocked off by contact initiated by the defender. The three-pointer is good and Tony Jones will have one fashionable free throw.?

The onlookers were stunned and Keating could now only watch as Jones stepped to the line for one shot.

For the past twelve months the debate had raged, who was the most fashionable? Was it Jones or was it Keating? All the talk and analysis may have come down to one final shot.

And a hush came over the capacity crowd as Jones unveiled his final shot. With no time remaining, Jones fired off a timepiece of his own. It was a Rolex.

Tony Jones had beaten Kerry Keating and claimed the crown of America?s best-dressed assistant coach.

?I don?t know about that call,? said Bruiser Flint. ?Tony should had stronger thread to hold those buttons in place. I think Kerry Keating has a valid argument. He may have been robbed. I think they may file a protest.?

But Keating was gracious in defeat and showed no indications of protest.

?It was a judgment call by the fashion panel,? said Keating. ?And I will never question the ruling of Angela Lento and her staff. I want to congratulate Tony Jones on his victory. Perhaps we will meet again on the 2005 Runway to the Fashionable Four.?

And Jones displayed a lot of class in victory.

?Kerry Keating was the toughest competitor I have faced in three trips to the Fashionable Four,? he said. ?Last season I couldn?t shake him and this year it came down to a tough call by Angela. I am happy to have won, but I know that Kerry and I will meet again on the runway.?

THE GRAND FINALE

While questions of whether or not Keating fouled Jones continued to swirl, Bruiser Flint and Neil Dougherty were making their way to center stage for the grand finale.

This was a matchup of opposites.

Flint had made it to the Fashionable Four for the fourth time in seven years and this was his third fashion finale, claiming the best-dressed crown in 2001. For Dougherty, 2004 was his first-ever appearance on the runway. His appearance in the championship marked the first time in fashion history that a runway rookie had advanced the finale.

And the former Kansas assistant was enjoying ever minute of his majestic run.

?I'm really proud of the way we've progressed in the last month,? said Dougherty. ?My fashion team has really gelled at the right time. It takes great teamwork to knock off a guy like Willis Wilson. I am truly humbled and also am excited to announce that since I out-styled Willis, I have been approached to do a pilot for a new show called 'Stylish Approach for the Hoops Coach.'?

TCU media relation?s director, Drew Harris had noted in his press release that Dougherty had knocked the two previous champions, en route to the title tilt. Dougherty surprised 2003 champion Gary Waters (Rutgers) in the Sensational Sixteen and then out-styled 2003 champ Willis Wilson (Rice) in the nifty national semi-finals.

And for the record, Dougherty?s opponent in the championship, Bruiser Flint, was named America?s best-dressed coach in 2001.

?He has proven that he can really sport some nice gear,? said Flint. ?This will be a great matchup. I got some nice attire from ?Boyd?s? in Philadelphia so I hope I have enough to take the title back home.?

Flint was attempting to become only the second coach to ever win two style titles. Villanova?s Jay Wright won back-to-back crowns in 1998 and 1999, while at Hofstra.

?I've had my eye on Bruiser for a long time,? said Dougherty. ?It's been a great ride to the finals already and I just hope it can go one more day. The team's strategy has been to dress just one day at a time and to take things as they come and so far that has worked. I'm going in by putting my best foot forward and hopefully I'll have a leg up on Bruiser. If I am able to take down my third No. 1 seed this tournament, I'll have a special place in history. But if not, the good thing is that my fashion consultants are all sophomores. As long as they don't go pro, we should have a strong showing next year too.?

And so it was time for all the talk to end and time for the final catwalk contest of 2004 to begin.

Dougherty, who had used quick starts in each of his previous five contests, once again used a pressing style to gain the early advantage.

Flint used a nice combination of colors, but nothing that was too flashy, to keep in step with the terrific TCU coach.

With the Eagles losing the NFC championship, the 76ers struggling to make the playoff and the Phillies losing on opening day, the city of brotherly love had turned its attention to Flint?s fashionable quest.

?There is no doubt that Bru is the most stylish coach in America,? said one fan. ?This one will be close for a half, but Bruiser will run him out of the building in the second half.?

Close was a good word to describe the first twenty minutes. At the halfway point it was Dougherty that held a slim advantage.

?He?s done everything right,? said Willis Wilson. ?Neil is smooth so this isn?t surprising at all. Bruiser is as sharp as they come, but he is in for a real battle today. Neil showed that he isn?t backing down from anyone.?

And that approach played out early in the second half for Dougherty has he used an early a variety of elegant ties to extend his lead. As the clock approached the ten-minute mark, it was clear that Flint was in a lot of trouble.

After a tidy timeout to confer with his mentor, Memphis coach John Calipari, Flint used great footwork to cut into the lead. The dapper Drexel coach used a fabulous combination of upscale footwear, which Dougherty couldn?t slow down.

The TCU coach was still in front, but Flint was closing fast.

?It?s over,? yelled a Drexel fan. ?Dougherty can?t hang with Flint?s style. It?s all about the shoes.?

The Drexel contingent was getting louder as Flint continued to close in. And when fashionable Flint broke out some nifty cuff links, the crowd went into a frenzy.

At the two-minute mark, Flint had grabbed his first lead.

?Let?s go Bruiser? chants were deafening, but the noise level didn?t seem to disrupt Dougherty who simply would not go away. And with a minute remaining, Dougherty closed to within one point.

?He withstood the run,? said Wilson. ?He showed a lot of composure and Bruiser has to be wondering why Neil didn?t fold. It?s right there for him to take now.?

And when Flint missed a loop with his belt, Dougherty had the final possession with the shot clocked turned off.

But Dougherty didn?t let much time run off the clock, as he immediately styled into the lane.

You could hear Drew Harris yelling from the TCU campus, ?It?s good!?

Dougherty had a one-point lead with twenty-seconds left. Flint styled his way across the timeline in no hurry. It was clear he was holding the final shot.

With seven ticks left, Flint went baseline and wowed the panel with his most elegant pair of shoes to date. It looked like it was all over.

But as the clocked hit zero, Dougherty smiled and showed everyone his cashmere socks. Now it was most certainly over. The cashmere defense sealed the deal.

He had done the improbable, beating the three previous runway champions. Neil Dougherty was America?s best dressed for 2004.

Dougherty?s classic approach to style made him the coaching professions most elegant. His suits fit him like a glove and the pocket square is the perfect exclamation to his sophisticated, yet hip and happening look.

So congratulations to Dougherty and UW-Milwaukee?s Tony Jones. For the next twelve months you can tell your fellow coaches that they might be stylish, but they aren?t as chic and debonair as you.

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