Canzano: Bob De Carolis deserves victory lap

Retired Oregon State AD named to Hall of Fame

Bob De Carolis, years ago, at a news conference at Oregon State with Pat Casey.

We met on a Thursday morning in early spring at Starbucks. Bob De Carolis picked the spot because it was located a block from the senior-living community in Sherwood he now calls home.

“It’s the weirdest thing,” the former Oregon State athletic director told me, “there are 40 guys living there — and nine of us are named Bob.”

De Carolis, now 70, was elected to the OSU Hall of Fame this week. In the fall, he’ll be enshrined alongside the greatest contributors in university history. I don’t know about you, but whenever I see a football game at Reser Stadium I think about the guy nicknamed “Bobby D” and “Builder Bob.”

The athletic department made no small plans under De Carolis’ leadership. It did the unthinkable for an entity that endured a 28-season football bowl-game drought prior to his arrival — it expanded the football stadium.

Then, OSU built a 35,000-square-foot basketball practice compound and invested in an expansion of the strength and conditioning facility. When faced with challenges, De Carolis put his hard hat on and went to work. Oregon State’s campus wouldn’t be the same — or look the same — without him.

For that, the guy deserves a victory lap.

I called De Carolis on Tuesday night to congratulate him on the Hall of Fame honor. He spent 17 years in Corvallis, 13 of them as the athletic director. De Carolis picked up the phone and told me: “It was a good ride.”

He started his career at Michigan, coaching softball. Then, he fell into administration and eventually ended up at Oregon State. During our call De Carolis talked fondly about the support staff and deputy athletic directors who worked alongside him in Corvallis.

“It takes a lot of people to get things done,” he said. “Lots of good things happened. Not everything we wanted to happen happened. But we got that football stadium started. 20 years later they’re finishing it.”

De Carolis laughed when he said that last part.

Still, it’s true.

On Sept. 9 against UC Davis, Oregon State will officially unveil the now-$161 million west-side renovation. The “Raising Reser” project De Carolis started with the east side of the stadium all those years ago will finally be complete.

“It was a big lift originally and so many things had to come together,” De Carolis said.

The kid from South Philly uses a walker now. He struggles with balance occasionally. In 2011, De Carolis went public with his diagnosis of Parkinson's disease. I remember sitting with him in downtown Portland not long after that, talking about raising children and coaching youth sports teams.

De Carolis spent 47 years in college athletics. But it’s his three now-adult daughters — Lyndsay, Lauren and Hayley that he talks most fondly about. He brings them up often. I also happen to have three daughters. When my oldest was just six years old, I coached her youth soccer team. When De Carolis heard about it, he called me.

“Your most important job,” the AD reminded me, “is to make sure she wants to come back the next day.

“Remember, make it fun.”

De Carolis told me he’s getting along OK these days. He has a solid social circle and talks frequently with his children. It won’t surprise anyone that he’s been appointed the head of several clubs in the senior-living community he lives in. He organizes contests, card games, and even helped orchestrate a Jeopardy-style “Which Bob is it?” quiz contest among the residents.

“We tried to get people to learn all about the different Bobs,” he said.

Parkinson’s symptoms include tremors and rigidity. De Carolis has done hot yoga for years and is under the care of physicians. The side effects from some of the medications make things challenging.

As the disease progresses, some patients report “freezing.” They just — stop — inexplicably unable to move their feet. Some have described that feeling as having their shoes glued to the floor. Others sometimes fall over. It’s why De Carolis started using the walker.

“It’s weird,” he said, “the freezing happens most often when I pass through a doorway or approach a door threshold or some interruption in the flow of a hallway. I’ll just stop for no reason whatsoever. I’ll just stand there.

“I’m living somewhere between ‘assisted-living’ and ‘independent-living’ but I’m still struggling with the freezing.”

It takes courage to talk candidly about your limitations. De Carolis may always be associated with the construction that happened on his watch at OSU. But as I write this column, I’m left thinking about his bravery and authenticity.

On Father’s Day, De Carolis went to Top Golf with one of his daughters and hit golf balls. This fall, he said, “I’m looking forward to football.” There will be game nights and card games at the senior community he lives in. Also, before we hung up, I told him we’ll get coffee again and talk shop.

“I’d like that,” he said.

It’s always the simple stuff, isn’t it?

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