photo by: Nick Krug

Kansas head coach Bill Self laughs with Oklahoma State head coach Brad Underwood during Big 12 Media Day on Tuesday, Oct. 25, 2016 at Sprint Center.

When you’re the king of the Big 12 Conference, you tend to carry yourself a little differently than all of the other coaches trying to knock you off your spot at the top of the mountain.

There’s a certain element that can only be described as cool, calm and collected that comes with it and although the 10 men’s basketball coaches in the Big 12 all have a great deal of respect for one another, it’s Kansas coach Bill Self who seems most comfortable among his peers.

That was crystal clear while observing Self at Tuesday’s Big 12 Media Day in Kansas City, where the coaches and several players came together to preview the upcoming season and discuss the ins and outs of men’s hoops in the Big 12.

Naturally, talk about the league’s best players, best team and biggest surprises popped up in front of every microphone and camera. But with three new leaders in the conference this season, Self had some new material to talk about. Not that that kept Self from having fun at West Virginia coach Bob Huggins’ expense. I’m not sure anything could keep Self from a wise crack and a smile or 20 about Huggins. But the presence of Oklahoma State’s Brad Underwood, TCU’s Jamie Dixon and Texas Tech’s Chris Beard at least took Self’s attention off of Huggy Bear for a bit.

While it’s clear that Self is excited to have all three newcomers in the conference — he said Beard would win a congeniality award among Big 12 coaches and added that it was only a matter of time before Dixon got things rolling at TCU — it’s Underwood who Self has the most significant personal connection to among the trio of first-year Big 12 bosses.

Asked about their relationship — past and present — during Tuesday’s Media Day, Self was equal parts complimentary and class clown.

“I showed Brad around on his
recruiting visit to Oklahoma State,”
Self recalled. “I was a freshman and
he was a senior in high school. Thank
God, for Oklahoma State, Brad is a
much better coach than he was a
player. He was actually a guy I hoped
that we could sign because I didn’t
think that that would take away many
minutes.”

With the laughter from the media members in attendance still audible, Self transitioned into talk about the path that led Underwood to his alma mater.

“He has done so well,” said Self of
Underwood, who was 89-14 in three
seasons at Stephen F. Austin from
2013-2016. “What he did at Stephen F.,
I mean, that’s remarkable what he did
and how players got better.”

It’s Underwood’s coaching chops, along with the passion and character he figures to bring to OSU, that makes Self feel so certain that the Cowboys are in great hands.

“From what I understand, and I don’t
need anybody telling me this because
you knew it would happen, he’s done an
unbelievable job connecting with and
reconnecting the OSU community and
family,” Self said of Underwood, who
played at Kansas State and also
coached there under Huggins and Frank
Martin from 2006-12. “And as you guys
follow basketball in our league,
Oklahoma State, the tradition and
history that exists there is relevant
to the college basketball game on the
national scene, as well. I think he’ll
do a very nice job in making all
Cowboy fans and alums proud.”

That’s the goal, according to Underwood, who said OSU’s history played a big part in luring him back to the Big 12.

“I’m an old-school guy from the
standpoint of the tradition means a
great deal,” Underwood said. “I still
get goose bumps and hair on the back
of my neck stands up when I walk into
Gallagher-Iba every single day. And I
did not get to know Mr. Iba. I got to
visit with him briefly when I was at
Kansas State with Jack Hartman. I know
what a great teacher, innovator of the
game he was. To stand on Eddie Sutton
court every day, there is 806 wins
there with Coach Sutton, two Final
Fours. Coach Iba won a couple of
national titles. That’s pretty
important.

“I’ve always said Gallagher-Iba is one
of the elite basketball arenas in all
of the country, and that excites me,
getting that crowd going and getting
that fan base. We have an extremely
educated fan base. That excites me.
That all plays into it. As a young guy
growing up in McPherson, Kansas, and
understanding those Saturday game of
the week (broadcasts) in the Big Eight
back in that day and then getting the
opportunity to play in those arenas
and then go back as a coach in those
arenas, this is very special for me
and I’m very, very fortunate and very
blessed to be back in this great
league.”