OSU has found its own Mr. Intensity
Ford motivates his teams to play hard

When he did, everyone knew it.

He would spike the bat to the ground, then huff and puff around the dugout. He was only 6 or 7 at the time, but you'd have thought he just made the last out of the World Series.

"Travis,” his parents would say when they got home, "you can't do that.”

"But I can't strike out,” he'd cry.

That intensity has yet to wane.

More than 30 years later, Ford is still that fiery competitor who threw the bat in little league. Now, he just happens to be the new men's basketball coach at Oklahoma State.

The Cowboys hired Mr. Intensity.

"I enjoy working hard,” Ford said Thursday at his introductory press conference. "I like being in the office. I like recruiting. I like being on the court.

"I'm not afraid to put in the time to do what it takes to be successful.”

Ford met with the players on his new team shortly before his press conference.

His message to the Cowboys: "If you don't like to work, you're probably not gonna like playin' for me.”

I believe it.

During games, Ford gets after it on the bench. We haven't had a chance to see many of his games in this neck of the woods during the past few years — Eastern Kentucky and UMass aren't exactly ratings bonanzas — but we got a glimpse last month. His Minutemen made a deep run in the NIT, and Ford worked the sideline every step of the way.

He stalked. He pointed. He glared.

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