MSU's Neitzel dedicates play, stays strong for ALS victim
March 8, 2007

BY JO-ANN BARNAS

FREE PRESS SPORTS WRITER

"You OK?"

Drew Neitzel was optimistic -- maybe his friend just didn't have it that day. But deep down Neitzel knew something was wrong. Adam never loses the ball on the dribble.


Then it happened again. And again.

"He said he didn't know why, but he kept losing feeling in his hand," Neitzel said.

As their workout session deteriorated that day at the Grandville YMCA, Neitzel grew more watchful and supportive, thinking about all those times Adam Visser had been there for him when Neitzel needed a shoulder to lean on.

That's what their friendship was about.

* * *

An hour before tip-off, 10 minutes before the pregame team meeting, Michigan State basketball coach Tom Izzo called Neitzel, the Spartans' junior point guard, into his downstairs office at the Breslin Center for a private conversation.

It was Feb. 20, the day of Visser's funeral in Grand Rapids. The Spartans were hosting top-ranked Wisconsin that night. Neitzel insisted on playing. He wanted to dedicate the game to his friend.

Visser, husband of Bobbijean, father to daughters Anna and Ava, mentor to dozens of players in his 10 years of coaching boys basketball at Jenison Junior High, died Feb. 16 after a three-year battle with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, also known as Lou Gehrig's Disease. He was 35.

For Neitzel, 21, Visser was more than a weekend workout buddy. He was like a big brother in the best way, selfless and encouraging, someone who coaxed the soft-spoken Neitzel out of his shell long before Izzo got hold of him. This was back when Neitzel was in high school at Wyoming Park and Visser was doing what he did best, being himself, ending nearly every conversation with a smile.

"Adam didn't care who I was because he influenced so many kids, not just me," Neitzel said. "He had a great perspective on life. Even when he was sick, he was positive the whole way through. When he got fluid in his lungs, the doctors said he was going to pass away in a day. But he kept fighting for over a week. That shows you what kind of fighter he was.

"Adam was just someone who wanted the best for you. I mean, here we were working out together, and three years later, he's gone."

Now Neitzel was in Izzo's office, an hour until tip-off against the Badgers, his mind racing with thoughts of his friend.

He had attended visitation for Visser two days before, on Feb. 18, and heard that players from Jenison and Tri-Unity Christian High, where Visser was also an assistant, wore their basketball jerseys at the funeral to honor their coach.

With a big game against Wisconsin looming, Izzo wanted to make sure Neitzel, who didn't attend the funeral, was OK.

"I always hate telling someone I understand what they're going through if I haven't been through it," Izzo said he told Neitzel straightaway. "I hate that. I don't know exactly where you were with him, but I can tell by how you feel and how you look that it's been hard. So I'm going to hang with you. But if you throw the ball away three times, I'm going to jump on you."

Neitzel smiled. Izzo was relieved.

Izzo continued: "You say you want to dedicate this game. You say you want to play your best. I'm going to coach you to play your best. But anytime you start drifting off, come over and talk to me."

No follow-up was necessary.

In their most emotional victory of the season, the Spartans defeated Wisconsin, 64-55, toppling the nation's top-ranked team with a comeback that was ignited by the inspired play of their star point guard.

"Adam was with me that night," Neitzel said.

In one stretch late in the second half, Neitzel scored 11 straight points, pushing the Spartans from a 49-45 deficit to a 56-51 lead. When it was over, fans stormed the court in celebration. TV cameras caught Izzo -- the game was nationally televised -- choked up and near tears.

In the stands, Craig and Linda Neitzel, Drew's parents, were overcome with emotion.

Craig Neitzel said he spoke to Drew by cell phone before the game, as their custom, father reminding son: "Just think of the good times you had with Adam."

Neitzel finished with a game-high 28 points.

The timing of the victory wasn't lost on Izzo or the team.

"Yes, it had been an emotional time for all of us -- and we had lost those four games -- and we were coming back," Izzo told the Free Press on Monday. "Sometimes you have to give a guy his space, and I'm not great at that, but I just said to Drew after the game: 'Man, I'm proud of you and I'm sure he's proud of you, too.' "

* * *

When Neitzel laces his basketball shoes for this afternoon's first-round game in the Big Ten tournament in Chicago, he'll gaze at an inscription scrawled just above the Nike swoosh: Visser's initials.

Michigan State, the No. 7 seed, opens against lowly Northwestern. The winner will play No. 2 seed Wisconsin on Friday night.

After practice Monday at the Breslin Center, Neitzel turned his right foot to show something he had written on his gym shoes: "Josh 1:9."

"It's about being strong and courageous -- do not fear anything, put all your trust in the Lord," Neitzel said.

He turned to reveal his left shoe and the abbreviation "Phil 4:19."

"That's my favorite verse -- to put all my faith and belief in Christ and knowing that everything is possible with Him in my life.

"I try to read the Bible and do devotionals every day. It's tough sometimes with our schedule, but I think I need that -- especially with the demands and the ups and downs of being not only a college basketball player, but a college student."

Neitzel seems to be handling both very well -- on both counts. In school, he said he sported a 3.2 grade-point average. On the court, he has been recognized as one of the top players in the country.

Neitzel has been selected as one of 22 finalists for the John R. Wooden Award as player of the year. He also was selected to the National Association of Basketball Association Coaches' All-District II team.

Tuesday, Neitzel, who averages 18.3 points, was voted to the Big Ten's all-conference first team. He led the conference in free-throw percentage (.884) and three-point field goals (99) and was second in minutes (35.3).

Izzo said he loved the type of player Neitzel had become. Truth is, Izzo is fond of the whole family.

Drew's father, Craig Neitzel, who works in quality control at General Motors, has never missed watching his son play a basketball game. His mother, Linda, who cleans houses, has missed only a few.

"That makes me feel pretty good to always have their support," Drew said.

Although Craig Neitzel coached his son's teams during his youth, the streak is still impressive. He estimates he has attended well over 1,000 games.

He and his wife rarely travel by plane; they drive nearly everywhere.

During Drew's freshman year, the family embarked on an incredible trip -- a 19-hour-drive to Austin, Texas, where the Spartans were playing in the Sweet 16.

Izzo remembers another Neitzel family trip.

"I'll never forget, Duke at Duke," Izzo said of the Spartans' 81-74 loss to the Blue Devils in November 2004, Neitzel's freshman year. "His family is so into seeing him playing. They're more nervous than I am. I turn around to head back to the bench after a time-out, and Drew's mom is sitting up there like this."

Izzo leans forward, covering his face with his hands.

"I yelled, 'Hey! You're making me nervous! Knock it off!' "

Like his son, Craig Neitzel starred at point guard at Wyoming Park, graduating in 1976. He later coached the freshman team but never coached his son -- Drew made varsity in ninth grade.

It was Craig who taught his son how to dribble, shoot and pass with his right and left hands. He began dribbling two balls -- one in each hand -- when he was about 4. Sometimes they'd time each other bouncing two balls around the cul-de-sac in front of their house.

Drew likes to work out alone, sometimes hours at a time, after practice at MSU. Izzo would like Neitzel to "drag somebody" in with him during those sessions and be more vocal.

"I'm not sure I've ever coached a guy who puts in more time on his game than Drew," Izzo said. "He's a gym rat, and I've had a lot of them. He's a leader, but I'm looking for him to lead even more in preventative management times. That would be his only weakness that I see left.

"He just needs to drag other people with him. I always say that great players play great, but elite players make other players play great."

Neitzel said: "I'm definitely not at the point where I need to be yet, but I think I have taken significant strides since my freshman year."

For certain, Neitzel will have his game face on for today's matchup against Northwestern, right down to his shaved head that has become his trademark since, well, sometime in high school, he said.

"Too long now," Neitzel said with a smile Monday, rubbing the dark stubble on his scalp. "I usually cut it about once a week. But now, I'll let it grow until Wednesday night. I try to cut it before a game.

"My mom used to cut it in high school, but once I moved away I had to learn how to do it myself. It took a little time to learn, but now I can do it in five, 10 minutes. It's cheap, too. I've saved so much money on free haircuts. It's just me. It's what I do. I give everything I have to my team."

As for opposing fans who taunt him, calling him names such as "Britney Spears," here's news for them. Craig Neitzel said his son thrived on it.

"Of course they don't know, he feeds off that," Craig said. "He likes to warm up in front of their student section. It fires him up."

Regardless of how the upcoming Big Ten tournament and, if they make it, NCAA tournament play out for the Spartans, Drew Neitzel will return for certain to Jenison in late April for the annual Visser Classic 3-on-3 roundball tournament to benefit ALS research.

Last year, Neitzel was the guest speaker at the event. During practice this week, he has been wearing a red wrist band that he recently found in his room commemorating the 2005 Visser Classic.

"In remembrance of him," Neitzel said.

Bobbijean Visser knows how strong the bond was between the friends. She described how her husband used to sit in his wheelchair in the living room and watch Drew and the Spartans play on TV.

"Adam would never miss a Michigan State basketball game," she said. "Adam meant a lot to Drew, and Drew meant a lot to Adam."

This year's Visser Classic 3-on-3 roundball tournament to raise money for ALS research will be April 27-28 at Jenison Junior High, 8295 20th Ave., Jenison, Mich. 49428.

Contact JO-ANN BARNAS at 313-222-2037 or jbarnas@freepress.com.