Truth be told, Mr. Pomele wasn’t this week’s first choice for the “Five.” It was supposed to be Brad Underwood, but we’ll do that next week. If you have questions, submit them in the comments below.
Anyway, this is a refreshingly candid yet sort of disturbing “Five” with Pomele, the 6-foot-1, 235-pound linebacker from Santa Rosa (Calif.) Junior College who is one of the 19 junior college transfers Kansas State is bringing in or has brought in. Pomele, who is already on campus, is a pleasant, affable kid who, according to his bio, is married. He was a little nervous with so many recorders stuck in his face, but he was honest. Makes you wonder what they sold him on during the recruiting process - besides immediate playing time.
1. What impressed you about Coach Prince and Kansas State?
Just his character, the way he lives his life. Man, just to meet a guy like him, especially him coming from a JC experience as well, it’s encouraging for me to come out here. Man, there’s a lot of great things about him, a lot of great things. He really stresses to the players is being in a positive environment, which is great and that’s where I come from and where I like to be in — a positive environment. … I’m not used to this. I’m kind of the guy who likes to stay under the radar. All of this, right here, is new to me.
2. How does it feel to be at K-State?
So much of a great blessing to be out here. I’m very humbled. For me, with my family, I’m the first to be out in college. It’s a really big step and I’m just very grateful.
3. What did you know about K-State?
I didn’t watch a lot of college football, didn’t pay attention to the Big 12 — I didn’t even know they were the Big 8. I just learned that. My thoughts, my first visit was fun. I think I came Nov. 30. Definitely before the snow. The people out here were very welcoming. Out here, cause I’m from California, it’s a lot laid back, a lot slower, which is cool… The people out here were encouraging, especially the coaches. The players as well.
4. What did you learn about K-State you didn’t know before?
Fort Riley, the military place. Just learning the history about Kansas State. A lot of the bowl games they won, the legendary coach (Bill) Snyder — I never knew about him, either…
5. Have you met Coach Snyder?
I haven’t, but I’ve met his son.
(BONUS) 6. Ever heard of ‘The Miracle in Manhattan’?
Nope, not at all. I’ve seen it on YouTube… They talked to me about it, but it’s my first time experiencing it. I’m still feeling it out.
11 Comments
Still feeling out the “Miracle in Manhattan?” Wow. Did Prince go to Juco?
Can he run? Can he tackle? Is he assignment sound? If the answers are all Yes, then I don’t care what he knows or doesn’t know about K-State tradition.
Welcome aboard, Ulla. Your new nickname is “Ulla the Butcher.”
He doesn’t know about the “Miracle in Manhattan”? That sucks! We need to be living in the past and not moving on past that period of time, which was a full decade ago! 1998 4EVER! Maybe we can all borrow Uncle Rico’s time machine.
JMart…
While it might be of note that Coach Prince and staff did not lean heavily on the Bill Snyder era to sell KState to Ulla Pomele, if you step back a moment and look at the entirety of things, it’s actually an encouraging thing.
Yes, we are all extremely proud of our program under Coach Snyder and that success is what we’re working to get back to. However, I think it speaks volumes about how Coach Prince and his staff are going about recruiting to know these kids well enough to understand what to focus on with each individual recruit. Take, for example, Wade Weibert. Now there’s a kid who grew up with Coach Snyder’s teams and has commented on wanting to help return the program to that level. So, with him you lean hard on the success and history of the Snyder years. With someone like Pomele…or perhaps a Bubba Brown…who probably don’t know much about KState history, it’s simply not going to have the same effect on them. There will be other, more vital aspects of the current team situation (like playing time) that will have far greater appeal.
I say kudos to Coach Prince and his band of merry travelers for their tireless efforts to secure what could be a VERY special class for Kansas State Football.
Barn, O.G.
JMart-
What exactly about this interview is disturbing?
Ron Prince character, that’s rich! Ask Joe Caprioglo and that Wichita kid what they think of RP’s “character?”
Felix Rex, I just figured at some point the current coaching staff would have taken the time to inform a recruit about the heights to which the program soared before the current coaching staff arrived. That’s how I felt when I wrote it, obviously. Truth is, after reading some of the comments, maybe I’m wrong - and that’s OK, too.
I can see your point, because I found it a bit curious, too. But what kind of shelf-life does past success have with recruits? How impressed are they with a 2003 title that happened under a different coach, especially given our downward spiral since then?
I also think that Prince (right or wrong) may be a little reluctant to cite Snyder’s accomplishments while simultaneously trying to escape his shadow.
Oh well, at least that “immediate playing time” pitch worked.
Jmart - You’re killin me man, you and your buddy Brian Butler are really getting that dis-information train rolling where K-State football is concerned. How you could pull out an angle in that interview of negetive context is amazing, truly amazing. I got your disturbing right here.
Yep, me and Brian Butler are steering the disinformation train. I haven’t mentioned him on this blog because he has nothing to do with anyone at K-State. Why would you bring him up? I found it amazing he had no context of what K-State had accomplished. Call me crazy, but if I’m going to spend my next two years somewhere, I’d like to have some idea of past success - if there was some. That was my point. There was nothing sinister. I found it disturbing at the time. Not so much now. But I stand by what I wrote.
Good on Prince for not leaning on the ancient past to sell the present.
And, sorry to say…the Miracle in Manhattan is now yesterday’s news.