Belmont’s Maddie Wright, right, gets a hug from teammate Hannah Harmeyer after the Bruins beat UT-Martin to win the Ohio Valley Conference women’s basketball tournament in March in Evansville, Ind.When first-year University of Tennessee at Chattanooga football coach Rusty Wright begins his annual celebration of Father’s Day, he’ll probably have to do so without his daughter Maddie, who’s busy working a Belmont University basketball camp this weekend in Nashville.
Not that Maddie – who’s been a three-year standout for the Bruins after starring in high school at Boyd Buchanan – won’t connect with her father by phone, greeting card or both.
“He’s always been there for (my mother Kelley and me),” she said Friday night during a brief break at camp. “He’s always uplifting us both. He’s at every one of my games, despite his busy schedule. I think of somebody who’s a role model when I think of my dad. It’s always about us instead of him.”
Until a few months ago, the only person Rusty consistently was viewed as being a father to was Maddie. But all that changed a bit when he became the Mocs’ head coach in late December. He’s now held responsible for the behavior, academic performance and athletic achievements of each of the 71 young men currently listed on the UTC football roster.
Mark Wiedmer“A father figure,” he said this past week. “I hope that’s what they see in me.”