Life in the Minors: The Men's JV Hoops Team

THIS IS A STORY about a different kind of Harvard sports team.

Different because it rides a rusty old van to away games with a driver who doubles as the team's coach. Different because its practices often begin at 8:30 p.m. and last into the wee hours of the night. Different because it boasts members from such exotic locales as the Ivory Coast, Sweden, Wyoming, and, of course, Jersey.

The team is the JV men's basketball squad.

JV athletes are an interesting breed. They're willng to toil in obscurity while their varsity brethren grab headlines and glory. This team is no different. It plays for no publicity at all. "When the season started, I told these guys `We're not playing for the Boston Herald,''' coach Steve Bzomowski said.

Bzomowski was certainly right about that. When you play in front of 50 fans, and 40 of them are from the other school, you better not be looking for publicity.

These players have no illusions about their chances to get up into the big leagues of Ivy competition. "A couple of kids are potential varsity players," Bzomowsky said. "Some of these kids, though, didn't even play much in high school."

In addition to suffering perpetual anonymity, the team also endures low priority on the athletic department's budget. "We didn't get any sweats," one player said, "but we do get to eat at Burger King on road trips."

Hey boosters, forget the illegal cars and cash. We're talking Burger King here.

The team isn't, however, excluded from all of the benefits enjoyed by the varsity. "My philosophy is an extension of [Varsity] Coach [Pete] Roby's philosophy," Bzomowsky said. "We believe we're helping young people become better people through working hard and doing things the right way."

Keep in mind that this is coming from a man who spent nine years of his life as a teacher working with special needs kids and who, before this year, coached at Harvard for nothing.

But what about winning? "Winning is not the most important thing," Bzomowsky said. "But I'm very interested in winning."

Still, there are no illusions about the importance of the JV's won-loss record (which currently stands at 4-6). Because freshmen can now compete at the varsity level (they couldn't in the early '70s), the JV is no longer a one-year apprenticeship for incoming star recruits.

"Since freshmen have become eligible, JV teams have become the poor cousins of the varsity," Bzomowsky said a little wistfully.

But poor cousins have names and faces, too. And the team's roster isn't just a list of names; it turns out to be a veritable hodge-podge of individuals and personalities:

Adolfo Birch. Soph., Nashville, Tennessee. Very interested in improvement. Constantly requests progress reports. Also believes himself to be the only Houston Rockets fan at Harvard.

Ed Brown. Fr., The Ivory Coast. Good player, nifty inside moves.

Kevin Collins. Fr. Potential varsity material. Excellent athlete. Freshman football player. Team's high scorer and "designated dunker."

Brian Curtin. Fr., Cambridge native. Injured first half of seanson. Played on nationally-ranked Cambridge Rindge and Latin. Insists, "Harvard people just don't know what Cambridge is like."

Dan Gerstein. Fr. Sixth man. Part-time coach at Rindge and Latin. Admires Bill Walton because, "He doesn't have to score to be a good player. I try to be a role player, also."

Hermann Johansson. Soph., Sweden. Good shooter. Great skier. Loves travelling and playing "Jale." Known, of course, as "the Swede."

Dave Kulick. Sr. Team Captain. Excellent court savvy. Very efficient player. From Jersey. Models play after roommate, a former hockey team member. Admired by teammates for his leadership and yellow Cadillac.

Andy Morehead. Fr., Wyoming. Extremely hard worker. Has shown amazing progress. Claims to have a backboard-breaking brother.

Steve Mullery. Fr., New York City. Excellent knowledge of game. Second leading scorer. All-around ability makes him a coach's dream. Has played in N.Y.C. leagues with stars from the ACC (Olden Polynice) and the Big Eight (Derrick Chevious).

Stan Rodgers. Fr., South Carolina. Nice jump shot. Has great desire to play. Lives eight miles from William Perry's hometown.

Marc Rosenman. Jr., Chicago. Pefect team player. Last man on team last year, now a starter. The self-proclaimed Jim McMahon of the Crimson squad.

Jim Topitzes. Soph., Milwaukee. Starting point guard. Great improvement from last year. Excellent ball-handling and defense. Game high of eight assists on the year. Almost decapitated unnamed reporter after kicking anonymous basketball during anonymous practice.

Steve Bzomowsky. Head coach. Sample of players' comments: "You really want to work hard for him", "He's really cool and really wants to win", "He lets you play the game", "He never raises his voice". Triple threat as coach, bus-driver, and practice player. Coached team to a first-time-in-memory victory over the Harvard Classics baskeball club last month after suffering early season drubbing by the same. Widespread player praise for showing excellent "Boston driving" skills.

"It's a real commitment," the team's bus driver/coach was saying, "they practice 10 to 15 hours a week, sometimes at crazy hours.

"The other day," he continued, "a five-seven guard who played in high school said to me, `Coach, this is the most enjoyable basketball experience of my life.'''

To some people, "JV" may not be all that impressive. To these guys, though, it's their team.