Making Reservations, On and Off the Court

Ron Everhart has a basketball team to jazz up.


By Paul Perillo

Ron Everhart’s Cabot Center office is a work in progress, much like the program he took over in April when he became the new men’s basketball coach at Northeastern.

With the exception of a few books, trophies, and memorabilia, there isn’t much to distinguish the room right now. But Everhart doesn’t expect it to stay undistinguished for long—just as he doesn’t intend for his team to remain in the bottom half of the America East standings, where it’s consistently resided since 1995.

Soon, he hopes to fill the walls with photos recording the accomplishments of his Husky teams—most notably, he hopes, their NCAA Tournament appearances.

“It’s our intention to be in the finals every year,” Everhart says. “In the end, you have to prepare for February, because the only way you’re going to go to the [NCAA] Tournament is to win the conference tournament.”

First and foremost, Everhart wants a program that’s respected, on and off the court. He plans to implement an exciting brand of basketball that emphasizes running, trapping, pressing, and three-point shooting. He believes he has a roster with enough depth to play the frenetic style.

“What you want is to establish your identity as a program,” Everhart says. “I want to make sure that when we walk off the floor, win or lose, our opponents respect us. Even if we’re outclassed, people will still say, ‘Man, those guys really play hard.’

“I’m someone who believes in representing our program appropriately,” he says. “We represent an institution of higher learning, and I expect our players to represent themselves accordingly. We don’t allow crazy haircuts, braids, jewelry. And the guys have responded well to that.

“On the court, we create chaos,” Everhart continues. “On offense, we play what we call ‘intelligent aggressiveness.’ We’re not just going to run and pitch up shots. We’re going to be intelligent while being as aggressive as possible.”

Everhart arrived at Northeastern with a wealth of basketball knowledge at his disposal. The 39-year-old father of twins grew up in rural West Virginia and enjoyed a successful basketball career at Virginia Tech, where he captained the team his senior year. After graduating in 1985, he spent the next year at Georgia Tech as a graduate assistant under Bobby Cremins, then spent two seasons at Virginia Military Institute as recruiting coordinator.

From there, Everhart’s coaching career began to take flight. He moved to Tulane in 1988, helping to lead a basketball revival for the Green Wave. He first met NU athletic director Ian McCaw at Tulane, forging a friendship that would later help pave Everhart’s way to Boston.

After six successful seasons with Tulane, Everhart got his first job as head coach, at McNeese State in Lake Charles, Louisiana. During seven seasons as the Cowboys’ head man, he compiled a 92-104 record. Last season, he guided McNeese to a 22-9 record and a berth in the NIT. In recognition, Everhart was named District 8 Coach of the Year and became one of fifteen finalists for the National Coach of the Year award.

His decision to leave McNeese State was not an easy one, but it’s one he’s still excited about. “The biggest factor was that Northeastern is such a quality academic institution,” Everhart explains. “I’ve been affiliated my whole life with very good schools. It’s the type of environment I enjoy and the type of young men I like to work with. We’ve always put a premium on academics and character, so I decided Northeastern was a good fit for me.”

Everhart also says NU’s strong leadership—from President Freeland to McCaw—affected his decision to come to Boston. “This is an environment that is full of potential,” he says. “We have the ability to really grow athletically. It’s my goal to build the basketball program into the national prominence our academic areas have right now.”

Everhart will introduce a host of new names to the hoop fans who come out to Solomon Court this season. He’s excited about a recruiting class that includes a pair of impressive junior-college transfers: 6-foot-7 Sylbrin Robinson and 6-foot-6 Cornellius Wright. Also expected to make an impact are two players who sat out last season: Lunzaya Nlandu (with a broken wrist) and Quilninious Randall (as a transfer).

With the Everhart era officially beginning November 16—at the Pepsi Shootout at Marist College, in Poughkeepsie, New York—optimism around the program is as high as it’s been in years. The office walls may be empty for now, but don’t be surprised if the decor changes in a hurry.


A Wideout's Roundabout Route to the Goal

It’s not exactly how he expected his college football career to unfold.

In 1997, when Kito Delgado left Bishop Gibbons High School for Boston University, the Schenectady, New York, native had no idea how much his plans would change. Just eight games into his career with the Terriers, BU decided to drop its football program, allowing all players with eligibility remaining to transfer. So Delgado trekked across town to Northeastern.

“I’d made a lot of friends during my time [at BU], and I really didn’t want to relocate,” Delgado, now a 22-year-old senior, says. “I already knew a lot about the co-op program, and that was something I was interested in—so my decision to come was really pretty easy.”

He arrived with a world of potential. The 6-foot-3, 212-pound wide receiver possesses many skills that simply cannot be taught. He has great hands. He runs a sub-4.5 40-yard dash. And, for a wideout, he has tremendous size.

But Delgado failed to make the immediate impact both former coach Barry Gallup and current coach Don Brown expected. After red-shirting his first season at NU, he caught just one pass in 1999. Last year, in the Huskies’ first ten games, he had only fifteen catches for 230 yards and one touchdown.

That’s when Coach Brown decided he’d had enough of his talented but underachieving wideout. “I kind of challenged him a bit,” Brown says. “I told him if he didn’t put it together soon he could enjoy his last few weeks here.”

Though many players don’t respond well to such a blunt challenge, Delgado wasn’t afraid to look directly into the mirror. “Coach definitely lit a fire under my butt,” he says. “I called my brother [Antonio]. He said, ‘You know what your capabilities are on the field. Stay calm, and stay positive.’ I used that as motivation to prove myself to everyone.”

Did the motivation work? Try these numbers on for size. In the three games that followed Brown’s challenge, Delgado caught twenty-one passes for 335 yards and three touchdowns. In the Huskies’ season-ending win over James Madison, he grabbed a 34-yard touchdown pass with less than two minutes left, giving NU the lead.

And he opened the 2001 campaign right where he left off. He set a career high with eleven catches for 117 yards in the opener at Hofstra and added five for 100 yards at Villanova the next week. He also scored touchdowns in both games.

“What he did against James Madison was the type of performance I feel he’s capable of every week,” Brown says. “Usually receivers show their ability right away, but Kito’s been a little later than most. Now, he’s proving why I have NFL scouts around here asking me questions about him.”

Receivers with Delgado’s size, speed, and catching ability do indeed draw attention from NFL scouts. By the end of last month, the Huskies had racked up a 3-4 record, which included a 7-0 shutout against Richmond (Northeastern’s first shutout in 111 games), in which Delgado hauled in a 41-yarder. Against St. Mary’s, he caught four passes for 117 yards, including a 27-yard touchdown grab. Still, he knows, whatever happens, next year will be a win-win situation.

“I hope to at least get a shot at the NFL,” Delgado says. “Even if I don’t, I’m majoring in marketing, and I’ll finish this spring. I have a great education.

“Everything happens for a reason. Leaving BU and coming here has been a blessing for me.”