Jim Deitrick, a Longhorn professor with a love for sports

Jim Deitrick played one year of D3 basketball ( freshman year..).., played baseball sophomore year…. then hit the books. His high school was small, so they just fielded baseball in the fall and basketball in the winter.  Then more baseball in summer. Such was life in the Allegheny National Forest… plus fishing and hunting 😂👏👏🙏🙏

Jim Deitrick is a member of the TLSN Longhorn Sports Historical Facebook Site.

After earning his PhD from Tennessee, he became an accounting professor at Texas, where he made a lasting impact on the Longhorn Nation by blending his passion for athletics with his leadership skills to shape the accounting curriculum.

Jim Deitrick wasn’t just a professor advancing accounting education; he was also a guardian of UT’s athletic traditions. He understood that sports are vital for developing leadership skills, both during college and long after graduation.

He taught for 39 years at the McCombs School of Business, becoming a beloved figure in accounting education. He received 21 teaching awards, including the MPA Council’s Outstanding Professor Award, which was renamed in his honor.

Deitrick once said: “I’ve always believed in supporting athletics. It has been an important part of my life, so I like giving back and helping out whenever I can.”

He was part of the Men’s and Women’s Athletic Councils, shaping policies and supporting student-athletes. He also chaired the selection committee for the Women’s Hall of Honor.

When Longhorn legend Chuck Harenstein passed away, he posted a heartfelt eulogy in remembrance. In his words, he expressed deep respect for Chuck not only as an athlete but also as a person.

Jim says, “Growing up in Western Pennsylvania, I was ( still am) a Pirate fan. I remember Twiggy working in relief roles with mixed results. One of my favorite players on the Pirate team was Richie Hebner, who was a real grave digger in the offseason back home in New England. One day, I mentioned in a UT accounting class I was teaching that I was a Pirate fan and that Richie Hebner took the 3rd baseman’s job I wanted as a kid. After class, a student named Chris Hartenstein came to me and said that his dad used to be a Pirate pitcher (the lightbulb went off in my brain… Chuck Hartenstein!!). He then reported that when his mom and dad had a date night in Pittsburgh, his babysitter was usually Richie Hebner, the only unattached player on the team.

Soon thereafter I met Chuck and his lovely wife at a basketball game. This was the first of many conversations we had at the Erwin Center. Funny, witty guy! Once, I saw him pushing a cart at HEB containing only a case of Bud and a bag of deer feed. I asked about the strange combination. He replied that he puts out deer feed to attract the deer for his grandchildren to see, and he puts the Budweiser in the birdbath for the deer to drink. Chuck then smiled and said, “ I have the happiest deer in Austin.

My sincere condolences to the entire Hartenstein family and all of his friends. Rest In Peace, Chuck! I’ll miss you, my friend! “

Weltlich coached Ole Miss to an SEC Tournament Championship and was the SEC Coach of the Year. On paper, his hire was sensible, but his style of play and personality were the polar opposite of Abe’s. He was a bad fit for Texas fans who didn’t grasp the intricacies and nuances of a different style of basketball. But give him credit for recruiting and signing BMW- Blanks, Mays, and Wright!

Below is a link to the Weltlich years.

https://texaslsn.org/weltlich1983-1988/

Bob Weltlich started the Classic.  Jim was a member of the Host Committee. We were assigned a team and a host or two attended practices, sat near the team’s bench, etc. This jacket below was for us volunteers. Obviously, the Classic and Bob didn’t last long. The Classic was played in December.

But overall, Weltlich’s years with the Longhorns were problematic, and to state it diplomatically, the media and fans were not fond of him.

Clearly, something had to be done. Tom Penders proved to be a wonderful hire. His up-tempo game and use of the 3-point line brought the fans back. Plus, his feud with Strollin’ Nolan Richardson caused must-see games. And you never knew when he would get a technical foul by slamming his feet of the floor or tossing his jacket onto the court to protest a bad call. In other words, he was entertaining plus had good players! He was an ideal fit to follow Weltlich.

Charlotta and Annika Sorenstam

My wife and I hosted golf teams participating in UT’s annual Betsy Rawls Golf Tournaments held at the Great Hills Golf Club, close to where we lived. The young lady in the first photo, who stayed with us, was Annika Sorenstam, and her sister, who is Charlotta Sorenstam, was the NCAA women’s golf champion for Texas.

Below is a story of how Texas met Ohio State in a football match-up in 2005

Jim says, I am currently watching Archie Griffin being interviewed on Game Day. Here is a tidbit for you. One of my former colleagues in the accounting department, Don Tidrick, earned his PhD at Ohio State. While at OSU, he tutored a running back named Archie Griffin. They became fast friends. He told me this story.  I don’t recall where this conversation took place, but he and Archie were talking. Don told Archie he couldn’t believe Texas and OSU had never played each other in football. Don thought it would be nice to have such a game. Archie agreed and said he would see what could be done. It wasn’t long before the home-and-home match was scheduled. The first was in Columbus…yes, the beginning of the National Championship drive led by VY. I believe it was Limas Swede who made that dramatic 4-quarter end zone catch.

Thanks for covering some UT basketball history! I’ll be brief for now. You know I played a little D3 basketball.. loved the game. I was a guard. I had three players I admired. Jerry West, Oscar Robertson, and Bill Bradley, Princeton star ( still has Final Four record for most points in a game, 55, but Princeton lost). In Texas, I used to get to my seats early to watch the shoot-around and warm-ups. In 1978, I am pretty much alone in the Drum, looking over toward the TV coverage gear… about five rows behind is a nicely dressed man with a rolled-up program in his hand… Oh My God…. It’s the Wizard of Westwood!!! So I ventured over and we had a great chat.. 5- 10 minutes! Our local scribes wrote nothing about Wooden or The Logo… It’s basketball, not football. Who cares!

Below is a photo of Jerry West’s autograph on my HEB giveaway basketball. We had a long chat… easy because my father was born in WVa, my first professor job was at a small school in WVa, and we talked hoops. He was then GM of the Lakers, sitting right behind the print media and in front of DKR. As for Oscar, I was standing in the breakfast buffet line at a Dallas hotel. A gray-haired man was in front of me. When he turned to the right, I knew immediately it was Oscar! What? We chatted easily ( he knew Steve Moeller as did I… one of Abe’s assistants). Next up, the photo of me with Senator Bradley at the Alumni Center. I read his book Life On The Run ( about being with the Knicks). Billy, coming from my small town, I keep thanking God for letting me live a dream! This is all surreal. And there is so much more! I have been blessed.

Jim says,

The Lady Longhorn basketball team was the talk of the town. Jody’s teams were winning big, including Texas’ only basketball National Champion… the first to go undefeated 34-0. Jody had the popular Fast Break Club that she and players attended after each home game. Bumper stickers read “Fast Breaking With the Lady Longhorns”. In fact, in one year, the Ladies’ average home attendance exceeded that of the men.

Billy Dale says;

“Back in 1914, a statement was drafted to outline the rules for athletics at U.T.—a well-intentioned but naive directive that was rarely enforced, as many colleges chose not to adopt it. Now, like most schools, Texas no longer attracts athletes who play to receive an education and out of love for the university; instead, it’s home to mercenaries backed by a fan base that sustains the new system. I admit I’m part of this reality now—a flawed system totally driven by money as the motive. A compromise that’s become widely accepted.
Player loyalty has all but disappeared from college sports. For me and many of my fellow Longhorn athletes up until 2020, it’s hard to grasp that devotion to our great university is no longer a reason to wear the jersey. The current system isn’t healthy, and I worry that unlimited money for athletes is just as damaging to college sports as the old NCAA system of infractions driven by the money motive. For the record, I am also not a supporter of the NCAA having the same level of power it had before NIL.

Jim Deitrick responds,

Well said, Billy. First and foremost, colleges and universities are academic institutions. But over the years, some athletic departments at the D1 level have become self- sufficient islands unto themselves which emphasize entertainment rather than education. However, they use the name of a reputable academic institution as “ cover”. But I will acknowledge that most college sports teams seem to have bonafide students, primarily because their sport is not a training ground for an anticipated professional career… think most women’s sports and some men’s sports. Now that colleges and universities can actually pay athletes and NIL dollars seem to be in abundance as well as donors providing resources for the next new shiny object or to keep up with or surpass the competition when “recruiting”

coaches and talent, I can’t foresee a workable solution. I sure wish athletes selected colleges or universities because they want to represent that institution as they satisfy their desires to continue playing sports while earning an academic degree. Some day I hope to hear that an athlete used the Portal to find a better accounting program. Oh well, as the song goes, “But that was yesterday, and yesterday’s gone”.

I can’t imagine being a head football or basketball coach these days. They have to recruit some of their own players each and every year, navigate the Portal, and still pursue high school athletes and deal with agents and parents. Building a roster can’t be easy, and developing an admirable, sustainable culture plus building team chemistry must be a nightmare. As a result, for me, I’ll gladly cut a coach a lot of slack. I might question a decision or two during a game as a fan, but I can’t imagine the pressure and difficulties they all have to deal with on a regular basis. Sure, they are paid a lot of money, but winning recently became much more difficult. It’s now entertainment, so root for your teams to give you an entertaining season…one with class and dignity.