Thu 5/17X
Winston-Salem Journal
Getting a New Career in Gear
Getting a New Career in Gear
Source: Winston-Salem Journal by dcollins@wsjournal.com
Nate Bolling is going to try to win a swimming pool tonight, or at least money enough to buy one.
And if they’re good to their Daddy, and drink their milk, he might even let daughters Kiyah and Romie, ages five and three, splash around in it once in awhile.
Bolling is one of the three former Wake Forest football players I talked with recently for the piece that was in this morning’s Journal Former College Athletes Shine in NASCAR Sprint Cup, about the ever-growing number of ex-college athletes who are showing up on the Pit Crews of the top NASCAR teams.
Bolling, an immensely popular player at Wake during his days (1998-2001) as a defensive end for Jim Caldwell and Jim Grobe, slings the jack around for Denny Hamlin’s No. 11 team. Dion Williams, a Deacons’ linebacker from 2000 through 2003, is a Rainbow Warrior, in that he carries the front tires for Jeff Gordon’s No. 24 team. And Kevin Harris, a Wake running back best known for his 142 yards rushing against Navy in the 2008 EagleBank Bowl, hauls the front tires for none other than Dale Earnhardt, Jr, as a member of the No. 88 team.
Tonight, the three, along with ex-Wake pitcher Eric Maycroft and a whole slew of other former college football and baseball players, will show their stuff in the eighth annual NASCAR Sprint Cup Pit Crew Challenge in Charlotte. The winning team gets $80,675 and each member of the crew gets $10,000. Bolling figures that’s good for about $15,000 in his pocket if the Hamlin team can pull off the championship, plenty for a pool.
The story was endlessly fascinating to me, given that I’ve been a stock car racing guys since the days of Fearless Freddy Lorenzen and Fireball Roberts. Turns out, Bolling, Williams and Harris actually knew next to nothing about the sport until migrating from the football field to the pits, but all three are flourishing in their new endeavor—otherwise they wouldn’t be working for such highly-regarded teams. All are enjoying the competition and, as Bolling put it so well, what other job pays you for staying in tip-top shape?
I wasn’t the least bit surprised to hear that Bill Faircloth, Wake’s assistant director of athletics for football, had a hand in getting Harris started in the business. A recruiter for the sport named Keith Flynn had mentioned to Faircloth that he was looking for talent, and Coach Fair thought of Harris, who wasn’t interested at the time. But after a fling with the UFL, Harris called Flynn one day from the practice field and told him he was game.
Most of these guys have other duties when they’re not training or attending to the car, and in his first season with the No. 88 team Harris has already worked himself into the marketing department. One of his responsibilities is to write a blog, and you can see his use of his $225,000 Wake Forest education here Hendrick Motor Sports Blog Harris said he would eventually like to make the transition from the pits to the marketing department, but his main concern now is the season followed by his wedding, which is set for Nov. 24.
“There are a lot of November weddings in NASCAR,’’ Harris pointed out.
Williams’ story is actually the most involved, in that he is a pioneer in two respects—as one of the first ex-football players to land with a pit crew and one of the precious few of his African-American race in the sport. He has worked hard at recruiting other blacks, to the extent that he has helped entice three of the five pit crew members of color into the sport.
He has also picked up a wrench and learned his way around an engine. He figures everything he knows about a car will help achieve his real goal, which is to become a television analyst in the sport. Williams is already somewhat of a veteran of the small screen, having appeared in an episode of CBS’ “Undercover Boss’’ in 2009.
“I love the camera,’’ Williams said. “I know where they’re at.
“There’s no one like me. I’ll be the next Brad Daugherty on the TV screen.’‘
But before sitting down before the cameras, he’ll have to decide what he’s going by—his given name or “Rocko” which is what pretty much everybody calls him.
“I’m going by both and we’re going to see which is most advantageous,’’ Williams said.
Everyone knows everyone along pit row and Williams is happy to see others from his alma mater showing up. He may not always let on. It’s certainly not hard to imagine the kind of smack that will be exchanged should the No. 88 team win tonight’s challenge.
“Kevin Harris, they have a pretty strong crew,’’ Williams said. “But they’re a bunch of rookies, man. They’ve got Dale Junior as their driver. They’re a bunch of rookies over there.
“Harris can get pretty high on his horse, but every now and then I have to remind him who was first and who’s the man over here. I have to remind him a lot.’‘
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