I just wanted to pass along a memory I had of Ruffin McNeill while he was here at ASU. When he was in charge of defense at ASU it was the same time I was a sideline camera man for the Appalachian Sports Network, I was still in school and the school wanted some sideline highlights each week of our games. I would travel with the defense on their bus for each away trip. Now for those of you who do not know there is a different mindset between offensive and defensive teams. The offensive bus at the time was newer inside and had TV's mounted on the ceilings, in sharp contrast the defensive bus was older, not nice and didn't have TV's inside the bus. This is the way Coach McNeill wanted it, he wanted his defense to have a different mentality, a toughness about each and everything they did. And if anyone has ever been on the wrong side of a rant from Coach McNeill that was a very bad day for them.
I used to sit on the defensive bus across from Dexter Coakley, one of the finest line backers to ever come out of ASU. Dexter was quiet and reserved most of the time. A few seats towards the front of the bus was Coach McNeill. During these trips coach McNeill was boisterous and loud and hilarious during these trips. He loved Peter Frampton's song "Do you feel like I do" and he would have the bus driver play this song loud over the speakers of the bus and get up and play air guitar and sing this song to the top of his lungs all the while having his defense join in. These are the memories I will always have of Coach McNeill, a man full of life and getting high on life with Peter Frampton.
Good Luck Coach with the rest of your season AFTER ASU!!!
GO ASU!!!!!
