WOLFPACK GETS ITS MAN ... SQUIRRELS GOT THEIR WAY

 Of all things:

Thank goodness … North Carolina State signed 

WILL WADE after Virginia also expressed interest 

in the McNeese State basketball coach … thereby 

saving the Cavaliers from potential embarrassment ... 

Obviously, the Wolfpack overlooked – or just didn’t 

care about -- Wade’s checkered past that included a 

year-long suspension for illegal recruiting. (He was 

caught bragging about it on a wire tap by the FBI, 

for crying out loud.) … The announcement came on 

the eve of McNeese first-round NCAA tournament 

game … and Wade apparently made sure he let 

everyone know he kept his players appraised with 

what was going on … unlike the time he bolted VCU 

for Louisiana State … when he told the squad he was 

staying then, a few hours later, flew to Baton Rouge 

to sign with LSU. (Then again, why not keep his 

current group of players informed? Surely Wade will 

tale some with him to Raleigh.) … MIKE 

RHOADES came from Randolph-Macon to replace 

Wade … and quickly learned several players had 

been paid (under the table) and expected Rhoades, 

now in charge of the program at Penn State, to do 

likewise. He refused, and they left … Later, when 

Wade got into serious trouble at LSU and was fired, 

VCU athletic director ED McLAUGHLIN made a 

big show of an investigation into Wade’s three years 

on Franklin St., and told everyone – with a straight 

face – that Wade was clean here. Booo!

------- Speaking of a big show … McLaughlin was 

among four panelists for Richmond BizSense ... that 

drew a large crowd Wednesday morning at River 

City Roll for an update on the Diamond District and 

future thereof … Joining McLaughlin on stage were

 JASON GUILLOT of Thalhimer Realty Partners; 

City Council member KATHERINE JORDAN; and

 KEVIN VONCK, director of Richmond’s 

department of planning … Diamond 

District Partners, charged with oversight of the 

mixed-use development of the 67-acre project 

(minus CarMax Field, already-under-construction 

home for baseball’s Flying Squirrels), is led by 

Thalhimer.

To hear everyone tell it, all was well … it was full-

speed ahead … not to worry … the total commitment 

of all parties involved assured the project’s 

completion … even though it could take an 

unspecified number of years … VCU’s proposed 

41.7-acre athletic compound across Ashe Boulevard 

from the new $117 million-plus CarMax will be 

done in three phases, McLaughlin said, taking 

possibly as long as 10 years.

Of course, Henrico County’s failed GreenSpace 

project, that was to include a 17,500-seat arena, got 

some (if brief) mention … and Guillot, the man from 

Thalhimer, assured that wasn’t going to happen 

with the Diamond District that, in addition to the 

new ball yard replacing the Diamond (built in 1985 

for $8 million), will have lots of office space, high-

rise residence buildings and a couple of hotels as 

well as a park … No one seemed concerned that 

financing the stadium with a sale of bonds could 

result in an extra burden for tax payers if the city 

couldn’t pay the money back in an orderly fashion. 

In fact, Guillot said later, that won’t be a problem, 

given the large amount of expected tax revenue … of 

which 50 percent is earmarked to help pay off the 

debt … Also, the AA Eastern League’s Flying 

Squirrels will add $3.2 million a year in rent for the 

first 10 of a 30-year lease ($66M in all) ... which, by 

any definition, is a lot of money, perhaps too much ... 

that is until you consider they worked out their own 

arrangement with the city to remain here and 

undoubtedly can afford it – and then some … FYI: 

The baseball team made it clear … either we get our 

way with respect to just about everything involving 

the new field … or we’re outta here … which anyone 

operating from a position of strength would be crazy 

not to do. Without the Squirrels, chances of the $2.4 

billion Diamond District becoming more than just 

another talking point (cliché alert) were slim and 

none … and slim left town.

For the most part Wednesday a.m., everything was 

uncommonly positive and free from controversy, a 

veritable love-in … which anyone who has lived 

here for more than a day and a half knows is too 

good to be true … Sure enough, about 44 minutes 

into the 1:26.33 presentation, BizSense moderator 

 MICHAEL SCHWARTZ said, “You’re probably 

wondering why the Squirrels are not represented on 

the stage here … Their absence helps illustrate some 

of the tension that has occurred during this project … 

and still lingers. The Squirrels were contacted … and 

certain parties chose not to attend.” Oops! … We 

asked Jason, the man from Thalhimer, about it, and 

he dismissed the whole thing with … “We don’t have 

any particular issues ourselves. So I’m not going to 

comment.” Come on, Jason, weren’t you the one 

who earlier told the assembled about the importance 

of transparency?

Even always-affable, never-at-a-loss-for-words (or 

an opinion) TODD “PARNEY” PARNELL, former 

Squirrels’ general manager but still very involved as 

a consultant, went mum on the subject. “I’m in 

Arizona at spring training. I wasn’t there. Everything 

is fine. I don’t know what Michael is talking about. 

For me thngs are going great ... People are just trying 

to start stuff,” Parnell said, suggesting we talk to

 LOU DiBELLA, who is the Squirrels’ president 

and go-to man for questions about CarMax Field.

“I really don’t know anything,” Parnell said.

DiBella did not respond to a written request made to 

his boxing and entertainment company … Just when 

we thought nobody knew nothin’ about nutin’ … 

Schwartz returned our call Friday and said, basically, 

nothing was new in the tension department … that 

there is always disagreement in an undertaking of 

this magnitude. Originally, the team and Thalhimer, 

acting in its role as frontman for Diamond District 

Partners, had issues that were, for the most part, 

ressolved when the Squirrels “went on their own … 

doing their own thing,” Schwartz said.

Then again … asked about the Squirrels’ not '

accepting an invitation to take part in Wednesday’s 

well-attended session, he said, “I know why … but 

that’s between me and them.”

End of story … temporarily, at least.

------- Finally … your Richmond Kickers were 

among five pro teams ousted by an amateur eleven in 

the first round of their U.S. Open Cup. Despite 

dominating every statistical department but the one 

that counted most (on the scoreboard), the 1995 Cup 

champions dropped a 3-1 decision to the Virginia 

Dream from Falls Church Wednesday (March 19) at 

City Stadium … Making its first Open Cup 

appearance, the three-year-old Dream, owned and 

operated by former Kicker and Virginia Cavalier

 LUCAS MENDES, got a successful penalty kick 

by 6-2 forward NICOLAS LIKULA in the 8^th

 minute then broke a tie at one with a pair of second-

half goals eight minutes apart to eliminate the home 

team. JAMES VAUGHAN scored for the Kickers in 

the 36^th minute on a right-footed strike from outside 

the box to the upper left corner of the goal … 

Otherwise, one-time VCU goalkeeper JOE RICE, 

who appeared in three games for the Kickers in 

2019, stood tall, stopping six shots including three 

headers labeled goal by CHANDLER O’DWYER 

late in the game ...

Third-place Richmond (1-0-1) returns to City 

Stadium Saturday (6 p.m., kickoff) against AV Alta 

FC (0-0-1), located in Southern California 

(Lancaster), one of five expansion teams in USL 

League One.

Until next time ...