Gary Strickland’s Impact on Wake Forest Men’s Basketball Spans Over Four Decades
2/10/2023 10:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
Strickland will be retiring as the longest-tenured ACC official scorer at the end of the 2022-23 season.
Interested applicants to be the new official scorer for the Demon Deacons should email Assistant AD Jeff Dusin (Dusinj@wfu.edu).
WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. – When Wake Forest basketball sports information director Phil Warshauer told Gary Strickland he could not find anyone else to be the official scorer as the 1981 season approached, Strickland begrudgingly agreed to serve — for one season.
Forty-two years later, Strickland will be scoring his final Wake Forest basketball game inside Lawrence Joel Veterans Memorial Coliseum when this season comes to a close.
"I started going to Wake Forest games on a regular basis in 1960," Strickland said. "I grew up a Wake Forest fan and went to Wake Forest. I started going as a kid, then enrolled at Wake Forest and was a student manager.
"That's a great gig if you can get it. You get paid and get to travel, and don't have to run a single lap. That's where I got to know folks in the ACC, in terms of the officials and other dignitaries."
It was during his work as student manager where Strickland got to know Warshauer and other folks around the conference. Warshauer offered Strickland the official scorer position in the Spring of 1981, but he declined. After an extensive, deliberative search, Warshauer was unable to find anyone else suitable, so he reached out to Strickland yet again, with Strickland unconvinced there was even a search.
"I'll do it for one year," he told Warshauer.
As the official scorer, Strickland works in concert with the three officials on the court to keep order in what at times can be a chaotic and frantically paced game.
"The word official means something," Strickland explained. "The official score is what is in the home book. All the time, the scoreboard should have the same score you do. But the official scorer keeps the score, tallies the fouls — both personal and team. We alert the officials when it's time for the bonus or double bonus, we keep up with timeouts and track the possession arrow. The most difficult thing to do now is keeping up with who is in the game."
This becomes even more of a challenge in late-game situations where there are frequent offense-for-defense substitutions.
"If you come out of the game, you can't come back in until after the clock has started," Strickland said. "You have to track who's in the game for each team, and when players come out of the game."
Despite the number of colorful characters and legendary coaches who have roamed the sidelines across the ACC over the last four decades, Strickland maintains the vast majority of interactions he's had have been positive.
"Once they've put in the coaching boxes, I seldom communicate with the head coaches," he said. "I haven't had any issues in 42 years with any coach aside from one and have never had any problems with any Wake Forest coach. The opponents are high-quality, and I just don't have any issues."
Despite growing up a Demon Deacon fan, Strickland maintains a neutral, professional approach during the games — working the game at Joel Coliseum and then watching it as a fan once he gets home.
"I feel like I'm part of the game," he said. "I have to do it right, or it's a problem. You have to stay sharp and can't take any naps."
The 1996 Senior Night 84-60 victory over North Carolina is one particular game that registers in Strickland's mind as one of the best moments during his time being the official scorer.
"Tony Rutland hit a shot right before the half, in the corner right in front of the North Carolina bench, then stole the in-bounds pass, was falling out of bounds and shot an illegal shot which was counted," he said. "You can't shoot from behind the basket, but it was counted as a three. Aside from a tractor pull that I went to one time, it was the loudest I've ever heard Joel Coliseum.
"It was Rusty Larue's Senior Night, and he dunked on his last possession, and he wasn't much of a dunker. They beat Carolina pretty good."
As the 2020 season was coming to an end, Wake Forest director of athletics John Currie recognized Strickland with a commemorative basketball as thanks for his 40 years serving as official scorer.
"It means I'm old," Strickland said with a laugh when asked what that meant to him. "I'm just happy to have been healthy enough to do it for that long. You need somewhat of a clear head. I appreciated someone noticing. At 42 years now, I'm 71-years old. I have seen people do it too long. That's not going to happen to me. I think I'm as good or bad as I ever was, but I'm not going to stay too long."
Strickland will be retiring as the longest-tenured ACC official scorer, with an asterisk, he adds, because scorers at both Boston College and NC State have longer tenures, but those tenures include years in which the teams weren't part of the ACC.
"I'll miss the camaraderie," Strickland said. "I'll also miss the press room chatter before the game and the camaraderie with the opponents and officials. I'm a people person. I'll miss relationships."
WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. – When Wake Forest basketball sports information director Phil Warshauer told Gary Strickland he could not find anyone else to be the official scorer as the 1981 season approached, Strickland begrudgingly agreed to serve — for one season.
Forty-two years later, Strickland will be scoring his final Wake Forest basketball game inside Lawrence Joel Veterans Memorial Coliseum when this season comes to a close.
"I started going to Wake Forest games on a regular basis in 1960," Strickland said. "I grew up a Wake Forest fan and went to Wake Forest. I started going as a kid, then enrolled at Wake Forest and was a student manager.
"That's a great gig if you can get it. You get paid and get to travel, and don't have to run a single lap. That's where I got to know folks in the ACC, in terms of the officials and other dignitaries."
It was during his work as student manager where Strickland got to know Warshauer and other folks around the conference. Warshauer offered Strickland the official scorer position in the Spring of 1981, but he declined. After an extensive, deliberative search, Warshauer was unable to find anyone else suitable, so he reached out to Strickland yet again, with Strickland unconvinced there was even a search.
"I'll do it for one year," he told Warshauer.
As the official scorer, Strickland works in concert with the three officials on the court to keep order in what at times can be a chaotic and frantically paced game.
"The word official means something," Strickland explained. "The official score is what is in the home book. All the time, the scoreboard should have the same score you do. But the official scorer keeps the score, tallies the fouls — both personal and team. We alert the officials when it's time for the bonus or double bonus, we keep up with timeouts and track the possession arrow. The most difficult thing to do now is keeping up with who is in the game."
This becomes even more of a challenge in late-game situations where there are frequent offense-for-defense substitutions.
"If you come out of the game, you can't come back in until after the clock has started," Strickland said. "You have to track who's in the game for each team, and when players come out of the game."
Despite the number of colorful characters and legendary coaches who have roamed the sidelines across the ACC over the last four decades, Strickland maintains the vast majority of interactions he's had have been positive.
"Once they've put in the coaching boxes, I seldom communicate with the head coaches," he said. "I haven't had any issues in 42 years with any coach aside from one and have never had any problems with any Wake Forest coach. The opponents are high-quality, and I just don't have any issues."
Despite growing up a Demon Deacon fan, Strickland maintains a neutral, professional approach during the games — working the game at Joel Coliseum and then watching it as a fan once he gets home.
"I feel like I'm part of the game," he said. "I have to do it right, or it's a problem. You have to stay sharp and can't take any naps."
The 1996 Senior Night 84-60 victory over North Carolina is one particular game that registers in Strickland's mind as one of the best moments during his time being the official scorer.
"Tony Rutland hit a shot right before the half, in the corner right in front of the North Carolina bench, then stole the in-bounds pass, was falling out of bounds and shot an illegal shot which was counted," he said. "You can't shoot from behind the basket, but it was counted as a three. Aside from a tractor pull that I went to one time, it was the loudest I've ever heard Joel Coliseum.
"It was Rusty Larue's Senior Night, and he dunked on his last possession, and he wasn't much of a dunker. They beat Carolina pretty good."
As the 2020 season was coming to an end, Wake Forest director of athletics John Currie recognized Strickland with a commemorative basketball as thanks for his 40 years serving as official scorer.
"It means I'm old," Strickland said with a laugh when asked what that meant to him. "I'm just happy to have been healthy enough to do it for that long. You need somewhat of a clear head. I appreciated someone noticing. At 42 years now, I'm 71-years old. I have seen people do it too long. That's not going to happen to me. I think I'm as good or bad as I ever was, but I'm not going to stay too long."
Strickland will be retiring as the longest-tenured ACC official scorer, with an asterisk, he adds, because scorers at both Boston College and NC State have longer tenures, but those tenures include years in which the teams weren't part of the ACC.
"I'll miss the camaraderie," Strickland said. "I'll also miss the press room chatter before the game and the camaraderie with the opponents and officials. I'm a people person. I'll miss relationships."
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