Band director sounds a tune the refs don't like to hear
The loudest noise from the N.C. State pep band doesn't come from the drums.
It's the voice of band director Paul Garcia. And he's not shouting a one, a two.
He's screaming at the referees, working them harder than Wolfpack coach Kay Yow.
During Friday's game against Florida State, Garcia was sure one referee was cutting the Seminoles 6-foot-4 inch center Britany Miller too much slack.
"Come on, Ref,'' he yelled, "No 33 is getting away with pushing down low."
After a Wolfpack player was whistled for a foul that Garcia was sure being overlooked at the Florida State end of the court, he exploded.
"Ref, if you are to call it on this end of the court, you have to call it at the other."
He never lets up, except during timeouts when he turns, mounts portable steps and directs the band.
So does a State diploma hang on his office wall?
It does indeed, but from New Mexico State. He's got advanced degrees from Tennessee and Southern Mississippi.
After three years at N.C. State as assistant director of athletic bands, he has become a zealot about Wolfpack basketball, especially the women's team. He has gotten to know every player and Coach Yow and her staff.
"I love being at State,'' he said. "I get to work with people like Kay Yow. She's is a wonderful role model."
Maybe he deflects the attention of referrees from Yow. If she gets too harsh in her criticism she could be called for a technical foul. The refs can only glare at Garcia, whose voice carries much farther than Yow's.