Ford finding his groove in Amherst
To recap: In his first 18 days since being hired at UMass, Ford bought a house, hired a staff, signed a point guard and met half of Western Massachusetts.
He has had little time for sleep and even less time for reflection. It wasn't until almost a week after his hiring that Ford realized his most bizarre connection to UMass. After college, Ford was recruited to act in The Sixth Man, a ghastly Hollywood film about a Pac-10 team sparked by a hothead (played by Ford) and a ghost (played by Kadeem Hardison). They reach the national title game, where they beat ... UMass.
"I'd totally forgotten about that," Ford says. "Somebody had to mention it to me. I've been busy."
He'll get busier. UMass has two available scholarships left, and Ford would like to use both. There's individual instruction with his players. And there's more community appearances, including a possible date at Fenway Park, where Ford might soon throw the ceremonial first pitch. On May 25 he plans to sneak in a round of golf. He's been invited by a friend to play Augusta National, home of the Masters.
Fenway and Augusta National are a long way from Madisonville, but he sounds comfortable. Travis Ford sounds comfortable, if you can believe it, in Amherst, Mass.
"I'm definitely putting down roots," he says. "UMass is a place where every day I fall in love with it more and more. It's an incredibly beautiful area, and the people are so nice. And it doesn't hurt that they love their basketball."
