Baggot: Friendship, not hard feelings, for Waite and Sheffield
October 14, 2015 | Volleyball, Andy Baggot
Badgers benefit as gracious predecessor, welcoming successor come together
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BY ANDY BAGGOT
UWBadgers.com Insider
MADISON, Wis. -- Shortly after Kelly Sheffield was hired as the Wisconsin volleyball coach in 2013, a most unusual alliance came to life.
One of the first telephone calls Sheffield received after accepting the offer to leave Dayton and come to Madison came from his predecessor, Pete Waite.
Upon arriving at his new office at Kellner Hall, Sheffield found prospect files neatly arranged and a massive white board outlining the full scope of future recruiting.
That was followed by a slew of fact-filled emails from Waite to Sheffield that shed light on how the operation – the campus as well as the athletic department – functioned.
It was a series of gracious, unselfish gestures by Waite, whose 14-season tenure with the Badgers ended in November 2012 when he reluctantly stepped down.
Plenty of coaches in Waite's position have retreated into seclusion and begrudgingly let their replacement figure things out for themselves.
Waite, who led the Badgers to a pair of Big Ten Conference titles, the NCAA title match in 2000 and the most coaching wins in program history, had different instincts.
"You know you're dealing with a man of character," Sheffield said of his new friend and fellow Ball State alum. "It wasn't bitterness toward the new guy. It was the exact opposite. It was 'Let me help you out.'"
That helps explain why Waite will be courtside Wednesday night, serving as a radio analyst when the 15th-ranked Badgers host 11th-rated Minnesota in a Big Ten match at the UW Field House.
It will be the third time this season that Waite will join play-by-play man Jon Arias on The Mic 92.1, but the idea goes back more than a year. Sheffield wanted Waite to be involved in this manner, but for the sake of comfort he also wanted the players that Waite coached to filter through the program.
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| "You know you're dealing with a man of character," Sheffield said of Waite (above). "It wasn't bitterness toward the new guy. It was the exact opposite. It was 'Let me help you out.'" |
When Sheffield pitched the idea earlier this year, Waite demurred.
"I told him, 'You need to give me a while to think about this,'" Waite said. "A lot of thoughts do go through your mind.
"But it had been a little while – a couple seasons – and things changed a little bit as far as personnel in his lineup."
Juniors Tori Blake, Lauren Carlini and Haleigh Nelson were recruited by Waite, but stayed and played for Sheffield. Their freshman season saw the Badgers reach the NCAA championship match. Their sophomore seasons featured a Big Ten title.
Waite made his radio debut last month when Wisconsin hosted the Badger Classic. The meet coincided with a reunion of the 1990 club that won the first Big Ten title in program history as well as the induction of Lizzy Fitzgerald-Stemke into the Wisconsin Athletic Hall of Fame.
Sheffield noted that when the nearly 60 alums were introduced to the fans, Waite got the loudest ovation.
"That says everything about what people around here think of him," Sheffield said.
Waite said he had such an enjoyable experience at the reunion connecting with former and current players, their families and fans that he committed to the radio gig for all Big Ten home matches on Wednesdays, Fridays and Saturdays. He kept Sundays free to work as a local Realtor for Stark.
Waite said Arias has evolved into a "phenomenal" play-by-play man, which makes their collaboration a big benefit to fans.
Sheffield said Waite can not only explain strategy, he can take fans into practices and huddles to share his depth of knowledge.
"I just see this as a win, win, win," Sheffield said.
There's a bonus feature that Sheffield is happy to point out.
"Now I get a free coach," he said.
After Waite watched the Badgers dispatch with then-seventh-ranked Illinois on Sept. 30 he got a call from Sheffield.
"There aren't too many elite coaches that come into our building," Sheffield recounted, "so I'm going to pick your brain. What are you seeing?"
A friendship is in the works. Sheffield and Waite have met for dinner multiple times. Their backgrounds make for good conversation. Both started at mid-major schools – Waite worked at Northern Illinois – before coming to Madison.
"We respect each other for the path we took and for taking on the challenge of (coaching) Wisconsin," Waite said. "I know the challenge he's got and he knows what I went through."
Waite was raised in Monona and his family – parents and children – all live in the area, so he didn't leave after his departure from the Badgers. Sheffield, for one, is glad that didn't happen.
"Pete's always been a guy that I looked up to because he's done things the right way throughout his career," Sheffield said. "This program is better because of him."
