In His Fifth Decade Of Coaching, Dick Booth Has Seen A Bit Of Everthing
Friday, February 11, 2011 | Men's Track and Field, Scott Carter
GAINESVILLE, Fla. – The event had more of a backyard barbecue feel to it than a major track meet.
There was beer, smoked ribs and plenty of laughs.
“We had a ball,'' Gators assistant track-and-field coach Dick Booth said.
Booth remembers the 1979 Southwest Conference Indoor Championships like the color of the car he now drives. Booth had recently joined Arkansas coach John McDonnell's staff as jumps coach.
The Razorbacks' track program had done little to distinguish itself over the years and as Booth and McDonnell watched the action at the Tarrant County Convention Center in Fort Worth, Texas, they didn't expect much.
Hopefully no one would get hurt on the “raggedy track,'' the one Booth recalls was pulled out of a storage unit and assembled by the local high school association that hosted the meet in front of a sparse gathering.
“As soon as it was over, I think they probably burned the track,'' Booth said. “It had a lot of substitute boards in it after we were done.''
Meanwhile, a coach named Lou Holtz was in the middle of a successful seven-year run as Arkansas' football coach, replacing legendary coach Frank Broyles on the sideline the year before Booth joined the athletic department.
But it was a different story around the Razorbacks' track program.
“They had never won anything,'' Booth said. “We weren't even keeping score. Coach McDonnell was the new head coach and I was the first full-time assistant they had ever had. That's how un-serious they took track and field at Arkansas.''
The fortunes of the Razorbacks changed directions that day when an Arkansas sports-information official informed McDonnell and Booth near the end of the meet that the Razorbacks actually had a chance to win the conference title depending on what they did in a final couple of relay events.
Suddenly, the score mattered.
The Razorbacks closed the deal, opening a dominating stretch that saw them win 11 of the next 12 SWC Indoor titles until the conference broke up and Arkansas moved to the Southeastern Conference in 1992. The Razorbacks took their dominance on the track with them, winning 17 of the last 19 SEC Indoor titles, including edging out the Gators the past two seasons.
Booth was still at Arkansas in 2009 when the Razorbacks clipped the Gators by 28 points for the SEC Indoor title. A year ago, he was in his first season on Gators coach Mike Holloway's staff when Florida closed the margin to four points.
Booth returns to Arkansas this weekend for the Tyson Invitational and later this month for the 2011 SEC Indoor Finals on Feb. 25-27. Whether the Gators can snap Arkansas' six-year grip on the league's indoor title will be determined, but the Gators at least feel better about their chances now that Booth is on their side.
*****
As far as track-and-field coaches go, there are few around more accomplished than Booth. In 27 years at Arkansas coaching jumpers and field-event athletes, the Razorbacks became the country's most dominant program.
Not only did the Razorbacks run away from the competition indoors, they won eight consecutive NCAA Outdoor national titles from 1992-99 and four in a row from 2003-06.
Booth's roster of jumpers was loaded with Olympians, including 1992 triple-jump gold medalist Mike Conley. When he was hired by Holloway in July 2009, several headlines referred to Booth as “renowned” in summarizing his career.
Booth, in what he calls “the twilight of his career,” looks back with fondness at that first meet and where his journey truly took off.
“We weren't planning to win it,'' he said. “And once we won, recruiting got a little better. Then we started winning conference championships pretty regularly from that point. Then in '84 we won a national championship, and then we started winning those.
“It's not hard to sell a winner.''
When McDonnell retired and Arkansas hired a new coach, the two split ways.
In a case of good timing, Holloway literally jumped at the opportunity when Booth showed interest in coming to Florida.
“He's a Hall of Fame coach. He is arguably the best collegiate jump coach in track-and-field history,'' Holloway said. “He obviously brings a lot – a lot of experience and focus. The things that he can see, most people with the naked eye can't see. But he's seen it so much, he knows what's going on just by watching them run down the runway.''
Booth has quickly fit in, relocating with wife Merry Lee to Gainesville after all those years in Fayetteville and six grandchildren later. Part of the reason why is that Booth has the kind of down-home personality that makes you feel like you've known him for years after just a few minutes in his office.
Holloway recognized that for several years while competing against Booth's Arkansas teams.
“Dick has always been a good friend. Even though we have some great battles, he was always the kind of guy you enjoyed talking to,'' Holloway said. “He's a great person. If we weren't a good person, I wouldn't want him working here.''
*****
Booth was a runner at Ottawa (Kan.) University in the 1960s and in between two stints at Arkansas – 1978-84 and 1988-2009 – Booth was head coach at Louisiana-Lafayette.
All those years around the track earns him instant respect from his athletes.
“His reputation is known in the track-and-field arena, not just in jumps,'' triple-jumper Christian Taylor said. “His name is a very respected name. I knew all about him [when I was in high school].''
Taylor is part of a trio of triple jumpers that has Booth as excited as ever about coaching. He sees the potential in practice and on training runs around town, often flashing back to some of the great athletes he coached at Arkansas.
Taylor, Will Claye and Omar Craddock are all considered favorites to win Indoor and Outdoor national titles. Taylor already has three national titles and Claye one during his freshman season at Oklahoma two years ago.
Booth recruited all three during at Arkansas, never expecting to coach the trio at Florida. Craddock changed direction and came to Florida primarily because of Booth.
“I knew everything about the man,'' Craddock said. “He tries to push us. He compares us to athletes that he has already had. I wanted to be coached by him.''
Now in his fifth decade as a college coach, Booth remains full of energy and optimism. When discussing the potential of Florida's triple jumpers, he compared himself to a gemologist handling a huge uncut diamond.
It's his job to try and mold them into something special.
“It's a pretty amazing thing,'' he said. “It's kind of intimidating in a way. With these guys, you've got to work them hard; you've got to give them a chance to develop. I expect perfect effort. Perfect execution will never happen.
“That's a coach's job. I've got to take them places they don't want to go.''
Holloway is confident if anyone can lead them there, Booth is the person. He's already been there many times and has pictures and trophies to prove it.
“He's a great coach. He had a great head coach in John McDonnell [at Arkansas],'' Holloway said. “When they were there, they were a great partnership. When we talked about him coming here, that was part of the talk. I wanted to have the kind of partnership with him also.''
