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A Hall Of Fame Neighbor

Brian Gjurgevich/Highlands Today

Jack Rhine is going to be inducted into the Palm Beach County Sports Hall of Fame on Sunday.

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By BRIAN GJURGEVICH

Highlands Today

Published: March 27, 2009

SEBRING - Jack Rhine can only smile and shake his head as he looks over the names he'll soon be joining in the Palm Beach County Sports Hall of Fame.

An invitation to the 33rd annual induction in hand, Rhine slides his finger across the names of luminaries he'll soon share a fraternity with; Jack Nicklaus. Chris Evert. Curt Gowdy. Felipe Alou. Bucky Dent. Even Burt Reynolds.

"I'm pretty taken by all of it," said Rhine, a former University of Florida head baseball coach while sitting at the desk of his Sebring insurance office. "I feel like I'm kind of being put in there because they need to fill that last spot or something."

Already a Florida Southern baseball Hall of Famer for his standout years as a player for the Mocs, Rhine was a two-time D-II College World Series champion and all-tournament team member in 1972 and '73. He was also MVP of the eastern Regional in 1973, as well as an All American that same year. Drafted by the Texas Rangers in 1972, he was signed by the Montreal Expos in 1963 but quickly found his calling in the dugout.

We caught up with Rhine earlier this month as he prepared his invitations for the March 29 induction, and talked about all things baseball, from his early days in the game, to his views on the College World Series, steroids and fishing with his son.

Highlands Today: "How did you find out about the nomination?"

Jack Rhine: "They take nominations one year in advance and you're nominated by someone on the commission or a person that's in the Hall of Fame. I got this call in October, and I had to call them back. Really, truly, as a person with average ability who tried to make himself better, it doesn't happen that often, to be among those type of people. Obviously, we won a few games along the way as a coach, but it's humbling. I don't know what the deal's going to be when I get to that banquet - I don't know how I'm going to react at all. It's nice, it really is. I don't know if I have words for it. I just know the people that are in there."

HT: You were All-Suncoast Conference in baseball, football and basketball for Riviera High School, with all-state honors in 1968 for football and 1969 for baseball. What are some of your memories from that time?

JR: "It's a great place to grow up in a coastal town, really a commercial fishing village at that time. You knew everyone. And there were truly quality players at those high schools, so you know every Friday night, whether it was football, basketball, or baseball or American Legion ball, you had to be at a different level to compete. The level of competition every single game was to that level. Being able to grow up in an area like that in that time was great. Today, Sebring is the way it was back then, without the water.

HT: You coached at four different stops, including a stint at the University of Florida. In fact, you're also being honored later this year for your 1979 season at Newberry College, where you went 48-21 with a No. 12 national ranking. Is that a certain team that stands out?

JR: Each place I went I was very fortunate. Working on my masters, I coached the baseball team at Georgetown and that was my pay. They had never really won a whole lot, because we had a couple of baseball players and a lot of football players who didn't want to go to spring practice, but we won games. Then we went to Newberry, and they never won a whole lot there, and we worked with three scholarships and broke them up and ended up being nationally ranked. We got lucky and won some games.

HT: Was being in Gainesville a big change from those schools?

JR: Going to Florida, you're at the level where you better have players. When I first went there, whether you were at Florida, FSU, Miami and any other school in Florida, I said, if you can't win here, you need to be fired, and I believe that. Florida was a little bit behind on facilities at that point, but you're still able to bring in good players and players that are probably going to have a good chance to sign. We put 43 players in pro ball in the four years we had there, a lot of them to the big leagues and a couple first-rounders, it was pretty rewarding. It was a great place to be and there's a lot of good memories there.

HT: Ever stumble upon any gems on the recruiting trail?

JR: My first year at Florida, I went down to see a pitcher named Vance Loveless, who ended up going to the major leagues. He was scratched day, and the pitcher that day, of course you couldn't touch him, was Dwight Gooden. Same high school team. A lot of times you'd leave practice early, you try to jump on the charter flight with the football coach and drive all night to see a player.

HT: You're still a big college baseball fan. How have you seen the game change?

JR: The game itself hasn't changed. The first-and-third situations, the bunt situations, the counts, what you're going to do on certain counts, rules on pitches on certain count - those haven't changed. What's changed today is the size and speed. Even when I got to Newberry when i was young and just out of pro ball, they didn't know about being in weight room at 5:30 a.m. and doing conditioning. At Florida, Nautilus had come out and our guys were in there at 5:30., and you're in the football stadium on those steps and you had availability to strength coaches and the training table back then. Today it's even better. The size and speed and strength is what I see today. A lot of it's with the bats, and they're hot. They rely on the longball and that's changed the game.

HT: The game gets so much more exposure in the media, especially on TV. Would that make coaching more intense, knowing even regular season games are all over ESPN or CSS?

JR: "I would love it. I'm glad baseball's made it to that point. Anyone that's a sports fan, doesn't miss the College World Series. It has a home in Omaha and people know when it's coming and it's a great format. Maybe football could end up getting to that some day, to let some other teams in there, Years ago, it was dominated by the teams out of Florida, Louisiana, Texas, Arizona or California. Now, with Oregon State and Fresno State coming in there, you're seeing different teams and smaller teams like Rice and Maine and it's good because it brings the interest from the whole country. I was born and raised in Florida and I like to see Florida teams do well, but for the interest of the whole country and the viewing network, it's awesome. College sports are still fun today because those players leave everything on the field every day and they have to compete in practice every day because there's someone right there ready to take their place. And that's the beauty of college sports. The competition is there, the players are still young and aggressive and not walking around with their briefcases. They're players.

HT: You can't talk baseball without mentioning steroids. What's your take on the issue, and did you see much of it during your pro days?

JR: You see it today in what happens to players' bodies. All the sudden they're pretty big guys and balls start flying. Hitters are the focus, but there's a lot of position players and pitchers who have done well evidently on that stuff. When I was playing in the 60s and 70s, I don't think there were a lot of steroids going, but there were things that kept you going, like 'greenies.' But I never really saw any of it. Every player is looking for an edge. It can be something like a tip, from how a pitcher grips the ball to the angle hit pitch is coming out. But when you get to something to allow you to perform better, I think it's a whole different thing. I'm certainly not an expert, but I hate to see it. You love to see big numbers and records broken, but you want it all done the right way. A lot of first-ballot votes are not even close to getting them now.

HT: What was it like watching your son, former Indianapolis Colts kicker Allen Rhine, play at Florida, both for the baseball and football team?

JR: Allen went to Florida in '96 and graduated in 2000. Any father at every level loves watching their kid play and they play every inning and every down with them. For a kid with average ability to come from Sebring and come out of here and get to that next level, he had to do the things sometimes, other people didn't want to do. There was extra training and conditioning, and he knew he had to take 1000 more groundballs or angle kicks with hats and shirts instead of cones. And that got him there and beyong Florida. He'd do that on Sunday's and Saturday and in the offseason and without anyone knowing or caring he was doing it. It was a pleasure to watch. I was proud of him and I'm proud of him today as successful as he as in business today.

HT: I hear you two make quite the fishing team?

JR: "We're one of the few who fish a father-son team in the Original Redfish Tour, mainly in Florida, but we can get points in Louisiana, Georgia, North Carolina or South Carolina. For allen, it's the competiion, for me, it's being able to be with my best frined. I listen to him because he knows more about it and he's better than me. He sees fish better, and he knows the right rod and reel at the right time. So he's coaching me a little bit. We've never won a tournament, but we've finished 10th-14th. We both have day jobs. but I look at it like I pretty much win every tournament. If you're with your son and can do this, I win every week."

Want to see us 'Take A Knee' with your favorite local sports star? Send suggestions to sports@highlandstoday.com.

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