2026 UH Coaches Caravan Event in San Antonio

 

Prologue…How I became a Houston Cougar Fan

I graduated from Lutcher Stark High School in 1970.  While at Stark High, my primary sports interest was golf, since I played on the team all four years.  I don’t remember going to many football games, since I worked every Friday, Saturday, and Sunday night at the Burger Chef.  I did go to a number of basketball games, since my good friend Brady Miller was the star of the team —  I enjoyed watching him play and cheering for him.  After graduating, I attended Austin College in Sherman, Texas, for two years.  I don’t recall ever going to a sporting event while I was attending school there.  It was pretty much just work (I worked in the school cafeteria — what fun that was [NOT!]) and studying.

After realizing how much debt I would be in if I stayed at Austin College for four years I decided to transfer to the University of Houston.  It was much cheaper, much closer to home, more opportunities to work, and my good friend Brady Miller was there, playing golf for the Cougars.  I don’t recall ever going to any athletic events during my two years at UH.  Again, it was pretty much work and study for me.  I did know a few of the members of the basketball team.  My first year I lived on campus in Moody Towers and it was also the “jock dorm”.  During Christmas break of my first year (December/January 1972/1973) I got permission to stay in the dorm so I could work over the holidays.  The only other people in the dorm were members of the Cougar Basketball team, and I got to know several of them.  I new Ed Riska best — he was a sophmore reserve guard from Chicago and a very nice fellow.  Through him I met Louis Dunbar and Steve Newsome, also very nice fellows who were very kind and friendly.  I ran into a number of other players, but didn’t know them personally.  It was quite the feeling to share an elevator with 6′ 10″ Dwight Jones!  Of course Dunbar was 6′ 9″ (he later played many years for the Harlem Globetrotters and was known as “Sweet Lou”) and Newsome was 6′ 8″ and massive, so it was a little intimidating to be with them, as I was one evening when Ed Riska invited me to go to dinner the three of them.  Anyway, other than occasionally playing golf with my friend Brady Miller, that was the extent of my experience with Houston Athletics while I was a student at UH.

In the Fall of 1976 Dorothy and I bought our first real home in Kingwood, and we lived there until Spring of 1978 when we moved back into Houston proper.  We had the good fortune of living on the same cul-de-sac as Charlie and Lynn Pollard and we have been friends ever since — almost 50 years by my count.  The Pollards were both graduates of the University of Houston, and invited us to a number of UH football games, including three Cotton Bowls (1977 vs. Maryland, 1979 vs. Notre Dame, and 1980 vs. Nebraska).  The long of the short of it was that the Pollards turned us into UH fans.  Charlie especially loved UH basketball, having attended the 1968 “Game of the Century” versus UCLA in the Astrodome (he still has the program and the ticket to this day!).  It has been fun to watch Cougar Basketball over the years, especially during the Phi Slama Jama era.  Charlie and I have spent countless hours over the years discussing Cougar Athletics and hoping for a national championship some day.  Our friendship and our Cougar connection has been a blessing for this old man!

Our basketball and football teams have been up and down in the 21st century, but in 2014 Kelvin Sampson was hired as our head basketball coach and the program has been on the rise ever since.  And two years ago we hired Willie Fritz from Tulane and has turned our football fortunes around in short order.  Bottom line, 2026 is an exciting time to be a UH basketball and football fan!

The 2026 UH Coaches Caravan Event in San Antonio…

A few months back I read something about the 2026 UH Coaches Caravan and made a mental note that the Caravan would begin in early May and start with an event in San Antonio.   At that time I thought perhaps our lake would have water again and I would have another boat so that we could invite Charlie and Lynn to the lake for a few days and Charlie and I could attend the Coaches Caravan.  Charlie and I discussed on a number of occasions how neat it would be to meet Coach Sampson in person —  we both admire him so much.  It was not to be because the lake did not fill up in time for me to get a new boat on the water.  In fact, I took delivery of my new (to me) boat on the day of the Caravan and considered skipping the event since I was so tired out from working feverishly for a couple of weeks modifying my dock and boat lift to accomodate the new boat, and cleaning up my waterfront from floating debris. 

So late on the afternoon of Wednesday, May 6, 2026 I showered, shaved, dressed and hopped in the car  to drive to the Tower of Americas Plaza in San Antonio where the Coaches Caravan was to take place.  I arrived right on time (6:30 p.m.), just as the event was starting.  I am glad I decided to go.  I had a wonderful time and was able to meet both Coach Sampson and Willie Fritz, our head football coach.  In fact, I was able to talk to Coach Sampson for almost 20 minutes, since the crowd was not that large.  Below are a few photos and videos of that enjoyable and memorable get together.  Go Coogs!

Kelvin Sampson Entertains and Informs at The Caravan…

Kelvin Sampson is no stranger to the microphone and when he began to talk to the small crowd at the Coaches Caravan they were all ears.  His folksy manner was direct and to the point, with liberal doses of his understated wit.  Below are a couple of videos I made during his remarks that evening.

Sidenote — A Future Cougar, NBA Star and His Biggest Fan…

Starting in 2023 I began following the high school basketball career of a young man named Kingston Flemings.  I was beyond excited when he signed a letter of committment with UH on November 14, 2024.  My grandson J.D. Gerth, four years old at the time and a basketball fanatic, soon became Kingston’s biggest little fan.  I took J.D. to several of Kingston’s games, and bought him some UH gear to wear as he cheered for Kingston at his high school games.  After he got to UH and had a tremendous year, J.D. and I followed him closely by television and were delighted with his stellar play during his one and only year at UH.  He will be a NBA lottery pick and J.D. predicts he is going to be a big star in the NBA!