On the night before the final conference home game of 2014, Gus Malzahn wasn't just thinking about football.
He was thinking about basketball too.
First-year head coach Bruce Pearl and his team had their first exhibition game of the season, and the football coach wanted to make sure they knew he was supporting them.
"It was kind of fun sharing the weekend with the football program," Pearl said, following his team's 94-58 win over West Alabama. "Coach Malzahn reached out to me earlier today, and it meant a lot that he's getting ready to play Texas A&M, and he takes the time after his practice to call me and let me know that he knows tonight's a big night for me. It was really, really special. It was a good night from that standpoint."
Near the end of his post-game press conference, Pearl spoke again about what it was like to have Malzahn wish him good luck.
"I can't tell you how much it meant that Gus reached out," Pearl said. "As a coach, he knew it didn't matter what kind of game we were playing, he knew it was my first game back in a few years, so I can't tell you how much that meant to me."
Do you like this story? The Plainsman doesn't accept money from tuition or student fees, and we don't charge a subscription fee. But you can donate to support The Plainsman.
