University of North Carolina Athletics
The Most Dangerous Game
October 3, 2000 | Baseball
Oct. 3, 2000
By: Travis R. Everette, Carolina Baseball
A plague has swept across the baseball offices at the University of North Carolina.
It is seemingly more contagious than the flu, and most definitely more deadly. It has already claimed the likes of assistant coaches Chad Holbrook and Scott Forbes and UNC pitching coach Roger Williams has been infected. All concerned mourners may send condolences to Boshamer Stadium in Chapel Hill. The stadium is easily located by listening for the Marching Tar Heels who have encircled the place in special black uniforms and play a never-ending version of "Taps."
We also implore fans to drop by to lend support to Coach Williams in his time of great need as he has been given only about two months. This tragedy indeed has a name that we all know. I'm sure you have all guessed it by now, that most dangerous of games is none other than love and its unavoidable conclusion: marriage.
When in November of 1999, we found out that Coach Holbrook had proposed to his longtime sweetheart Jennifer, none was greatly surprised. Chad and Jennifer had been dating each other since I was in elementary school, so we all knew that he was long gone probably before he did.
Then in December, the collective eyebrow of Carolina Baseball was raised when Coach Forbes made his "Christmas in front of the fireplace" proposal to Mandy, his sweetheart from the Delaware cornfields. It even became comical as players walked into the offices after the Christmas break to laugh and kid Coach Williams about him being the only one left. "It's your turn now, Chief," they would say and walk off laughing. The laughter didn't last long though as Coach Williams, who we all thought would forever hold out, had wheels turning in the back of his mind all along. He would eventually drop the bomb and strike the deal to marry Stephanie as we all came to realize that the unthinkable had indeed happened. In just a few short weeks, the Heels' coaching staff had gone from a group of happy-go-lucky bachelors to men on death row, counting down the days to the end of their freedom.
The first poor soul to take to the chopping block was Coach Holbrook as he and Jennifer said their vows in Columbia, S.C., on August 26. It is no coincidence that this union took place about three blocks from Williams Brice Stadium as Jennifer and her entire family are huge Gamecock fans. I certainly intend on writing letters to South Carolina Head Coach Lou Holtz and our own Coach Torbush encouraging them to consult on their home football schedules from here on out so that this marriage can survive. A Saturday when there are games both in Columbia and Chapel Hill means instant separation.
To understand how devoted these two are to their schools, you only need look at the day they returned from their honeymoon in the Cayman Islands. As soon as their plane touched down in Charlotte, Jennifer high-tailed it south for the Gamecocks home-opener while Chad headed back to The Hill for the Tar Heels' date with Tulsa. We can only pray that the football gods plan no shared home dates for the Cocks and Heels in the near future, and God forbid they should ever play each other.
We had barely two weeks to come to terms with the loss of Coach Holbrook when the next blow took place in a little town called Bridgeville, Delaware. On September 9, Coach Scott Forbes married Mandy Passwaters in the Bridgeville Methodist Church. It is worth noting that Coach Holbrook and his new wife, Jennifer, were almost late because South Carolina was playing Georgia on television and she couldn't be pried from the hotel as the goal posts came down in Columbia.
ridgeville is one of those wonderful little towns where everyone knows everyone and the town hotel is just down the road in another town. (I didn't quite get the Bridgeville moniker since I didn't even see a body of water anywhere near the place, much less a bridge.) When I called Coach Forbes on his cell phone the day of the wedding to find out hotel arrangements and told him that we had been driving through a huge cornfield for about half an hour, his reply was, "Oh, you're close then, be careful about the 25 mph speed limit, they'll get ya."
The final chapter is set to unfold right here in Chapel Hill on December 2 when Coach Williams and Stephanie say their "I do's" at the Presbyterian Church on Franklin Street. You can rest assured that every single member of the current Tar Heel squad as well as many former players will be in attendance for this historic moment. Few ever thought the day would come when Chief would stand be wed, and fewer still thought there was a woman out there who could handle him. Any lady who could wrangle Coach Williams to the altar and keep him under control has my undying respect, and I truthfully stand in awe of her power.
All kidding aside, these are three great couples and these three beautiful young ladies will easily assume their roles as the new queens of the diamond in Chapel Hill. All of us lucky enough to be associated with the University of North Carolina and its baseball programs couldn't be happier for Chad and Jennifer, Scott and Mandy, and last but certainly not least Roger and Stephanie. The first two ceremonies have been entirely beautiful and given us all some great memories and two of the greatest parties I have ever attended. Hopefully, the finale will be as good as the first two acts, and somehow, I'm sure it will.
