Former Aggies Geiger, Verlin return to Spectrum
If carried out correctly, sequels can have a way of adding on to an original story.
Think “Empire Strikes Back” of Star Wars lore. Sure, Darth Vader was scary, but how much deeper did his character dig once we learned that he was Luke Skywalker’s father?
Maybe “Rocky II” to complement the original clash between the Philly-born antihero and his nemesis, Apollo Creed. Who wouldn’t have wanted to hear the homegrown underdog yell out “Adrian!” yet again?
However, when it comes to re-matches or part twos in the world of the Utah State Aggies, the Idaho Vandals, and those individuals who have crossed both lines, the story remains yet to be fully told if it will wind up legend or farce.
At the hinge of this continuing drama is Idaho coach Don Verlin, who was one of USU head coach Stew Morrill’s assistants until he left for the Vandal head job in March 2008, and Idaho guard and one-time Aggie Deremy Geiger, currently a starter for a team that sits in a tie with Boise State for fourth place in the WAC with a 7-6 conference record, a half-game behind Nevada.
While Verlin took his resume, which included 15 years under Morrill, who has taken his program to seven NCAA tournament and four NIT appearances in the past 11 seasons in Logan, to Moscow simply looking for a step up in his coaching profession, Geiger’s path took plenty of more turns and more severe consequences.
The Las Vegas, Nev., product had a successful freshman year for the Aggies on the court during a 2008-09 season that saw USU spend time in the national rankings and win 30 games, along with the WAC regular-season and conference tournament championship. That season, Geiger played in and out of the regular rotation while shooting over 35 percent from the three-point line.
However, while many fans suspected that his sudden transfer was due to the strain of playing behind all-conference guard Jared Quayle, Geiger struggled in the classroom. His grades did not meet the standard requirement to attend Utah State any longer.
The academic shortcomings forced Geiger to transfer to junior college play before moving to Idaho to play in a system and for a coach that he was already familiar with.
When asked what role academic struggles played into where he stands today, Geiger insisted that the resulting ordeal of transferring from a perennial WAC powerhouse and postseason regular was an overall positive.
“Last year (transferring to a junior college due to poor grades) was one of best things could have happened to me,” the junior said. “It gave me a chance to step back and re-evaluate myself, to get my grades and my life and priorities back in order. It gave me a new outlook on things, and new motivation for me.”
Current Aggie seniors were cautiously optimistic about Geiger’s brief time in Logan.
“I liked Deremy as a teammate,” swingman Tyler Newbold said. “I didn’t hang out with him much off the court, but on the court and on road trips he was all right. He had his troubles off the court a bit. But as a guy on the team, he was a good player. Too bad it didn’t work out.”
“He was a good guy, a hard worker,” big man Matt Formisano said. “Not super good or super bad.”
The Colorado native insisted that whatever in-class troubles Geiger made for himself, there were never any in-Spectrum problems.
“At practice, he was all ready to go,” Formisano said.
Aggie leading scorer Tai Wesley said that strictly basketball-wise, Geiger would have been a great fit for the following season.
“He was a good teammate,” said the four-year starter. “He was a good player for us. It was too bad it didn’t work out. He failed out (of school) and we lost him. As far as basketball goes, we wanted him back.”
Though Wesley said Geiger was a welcome cog to the program two years ago, things have changed since. All three seniors said that “extracurricular activity,” as Newbold described, took place from Geiger and other Vandal players when the Aggies suffered their lone WAC defeat of the season Feb. 9 in Moscow.
“He thought he was something special trying to run his mouth (Feb. 9),” Wesley said. “If I could really tell you what I thought of Deremy Geiger…”
Wesley’s words tailed off. But no Aggie or even Geiger’s own coach could deny how they expect Aggie fans to treat someone who used to be one of their own.
“I’m sure Deremy and our guys will get treatment just like USU fans will do to everybody there,” Verlin said. “I’m sure they’ll have few nice chants for them. But that’s college basketball. It’s what you’d expect.”
It’s an expected sentiment only compounded by the fact that the Aggies will be seeking revenge for the loss earlier in the month, along with an expected raucous crowd in the final home game of the season, which will be honoring six seniors – Wesley, Newbold and Formisano, along with three-year starter Pooh Williams, single-season 3-point percentage record-holder Brian Green and 2010 all-conference post Nate Bendall.
“We’re looking forward to payback,” Wesley said. “We hope to go out and put on a show for the fans, not have a close game, and put all the stops on (Geiger) – not just him, but the whole team. That’s our wish for Senior Night.”
Drama that rivals a certain evil space cyborg announcing his fatherhood, or a huge underdog outlasting a perennial boxing powerhouse, any day of the week.
– rhett.wilkinson@aggiemail.usu.edu