A winner wherever he goes

By Rob Miech

Tuesday, Feb. 12, 2008 | 2 a.m.

By the time Lon Kruger moved on from his first head-coaching gig, at Texas-Pan American, near the southern tip of Texas, he had a proven blueprint for success that still serves him well at UNLV.

The elements that turned the Broncs into winners helped Kruger record the 400th victory of his career Saturday when the Rebels doused Colorado State at the Thomas & Mack Center: Playing tight defense, boxing out on the boards and sinking 3-point shots.

The proper ingredients Barb Kruger coveted, however, were chopped tomatoes, onions, lime juice and jalapeno and serrano chile peppers.

The coach’s wife left Pan American with an exquisite pico de gallo recipe.

“The real way,” she says. “It takes a lot of time.”

Lon Kruger required some time to develop his own hardwood formula.

After four years as a player and five as an assistant under the stern watch of famed Kansas State coach Jack Hartman, Kruger got his first top post in Edinburg, Texas.

Pan American won an NAIA national title in 1963. Its best player, Lucious “Luscious Luke” Jackson, played beside Wilt Chamberlain in Philadelphia. But the program had been sliding for years, and the Broncs finished 5-20 in 1981-82.

Pan American President Dr. Miguel A. Nevarez and Board of Regents Chairman Ricardo Hinojosa — Barb Kruger’s pico de gallo mentor — hired Kruger to jump-start the program.

“We had a great time,” Kruger says. “We really enjoyed the Rio Grande Valley. They weren’t used to winning. It takes time. It’s a process. It doesn’t happen overnight.”

The Krugers lived in McAllen, five miles south of campus in Edinburg. They took visitors on dining and shopping excursions to Reynosa, Mexico, a short drive across the Rio Grande, five miles south of McAllen.

Angie, the Krugers’ daughter, was a toddler and relished playing with Hinojosa when he stopped by the house. Kevin, their son, who played at UNLV last season, was born there. Some of his first words were Spanish.

Barb Kruger taught aerobics and coached the Broncs’ cheerleading squads.

In his spare time, Lon Kruger played golf and racquetball. That was rare, though, because Hinojosa and Nevarez also signed him as athletic director.

“That was just a way for them to save money,” Lon Kruger says, smiling.

“There were a lot of challenges,” Barb Kruger says. “That helped him in many ways. He could see the whole picture of an athletic department.”

The picture was warm. The average winter temperature in Edinburg is 71 degrees. So when Rust Belt teams played at Pan American, they had a built-in base of fans who annually fled the harsh winter back home.

It took awhile, Barb Kruger says, to develop a home-court advantage. By the time Lon Kruger was responsible for his roster, which would become a trademark, the Broncs flourished.

They took off, going 20-8 in 1985-86 — Kruger’s final season — a year after sweet-shooting Joe Johnson joined the program.

“There were a couple others, but he stepped in and made plays,” Kruger says. “He changed the mentality of the team. He was really aggressive, had great intensity and flew around.”

The Broncs reflected Kruger’s mettle that season. They went to the free-throw line often and nearly set a school record for steals.

He taught them toughness the whole time. Three of his seasons stand as top-five Pan Am marks in fewest average rebounds allowed to opponents.

When you take over a program, Kruger says, you have to have an idea of what you have, what you need and where you want to go.

“And it always comes back to dealing with good people who want to be there,” he says. “That will not ever change.”

When Hinojosa left his post in 2004, after 23 years, he was the longest-seated Hispanic president of a four-year college or university in the country.

A year after signing Kruger, Nevarez was tapped by President Reagan as a federal judge in the U.S. District Court for southern Texas.

He is the chairman of the U.S. Sentencing Commission, and he was one of several candidates the George W. Bush administration considered for the U.S. Supreme Court seat vacated by Sandra Day O’Connor.

“It was fabulous, a great place to start a family,” Barb Kruger says. “I cried when we had to leave. Then again, I’ve cried everywhere we’ve left.”

In 2002 the Krugers became charter members — beating Coca-Cola — to Pan American’s Century Club, donors who pledge $100,000 to the Bronc Athletic Foundation. Kruger said he was thankful that Pan Am hired a 29-year-old coach with no experience.

“That’s an early beginning,” Kruger says. “Those people meant a lot to us. They were very supportive and we loved living there.”

What if the Broncs hadn’t won 20 games that fourth season? Would it have been more difficult for Hartman to pick him as his successor at Kansas State?

“Good point,” Kruger says. “Maybe we were that close to not coaching anymore. You always look back on those crossroads moments.”

Rob Miech can be reached at 259-4087 or at [email protected].