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SOUTH BEND – Luke Harangody played in his face, tried everything he could think of, and Rob Kurz still annihilated him.
Summer school had been in session for two weeks in 2006 and Harangody, then a Notre Dame freshman, was in the midst of a two-on-two game against Kurz and senior Colin Falls. A few months out of Andrean High School, the domination destroyed Harangody’s confidence.
“He had Gody distraught that day,” said junior swingman Ryan Ayers, who had been Gody’s two-on-two partner. “… Rob was just on fire, and there was nothing Luke could do about it.
“It was brutal.”
So brutal, Harangody doubted his place at Notre Dame before he played a real game. He called his father, Dave, and said he thought he’d be a four-year bench player. He said the same thing about the academics, intimidated by the college coursework.
In essence, Harangody was a blubbering mess and fall semester hadn’t even started.
“I was pretty low to be honest,” Harangody said. “… I’m not that athletic, I’m not that big, and you’re thinking to yourself, ‘How is it going to be out there when the games really start playing?’ ”
So understand when the sophomore is stunned by all the hype surrounding him now. Big East Player of the Year? Two years ago, he didn’t think he’d be a Big East starter.
Potentially leaving early for the NBA? Yeah, only in the dreams he had while playing against his brother, Ty, on the basketball court his family built in the backyard of their Schererville home.
But in Harangody’s new reality, one he describes as “surreal,” all of this is possible.
“It’s hard to believe what is happening,” his father said. “We didn’t think it would happen this quickly, and we didn’t think it would be this big. This is pretty wild.”
Even at the beginning of this season, when Harangody knew he’d be a starter on a team with Top 25 aspirations, he viewed himself more as a contributor.
Now, after averaging a Big East-leading 20.4 points and a second-in-the-league 10.3 rebounds, he’s a midseason candidate for the Wooden and Naismith National Player of the Year awards.
But all of this excitement has come with a price. While his on-court yelling and intensity would imply the opposite, Harangody is a reserved person off the court. The attention makes him uncomfortable.
Harangody’s anonymity – something he’s always had – is disappearing. When he goes to dinner with junior guard Kyle McAlarney, Harangody receives all the attention while McAlarney blends in. He’s still baffled when people want to take pictures with him in public and fawn over him.
“You have to think to yourself now, when you do go out in public you have to watch what you say, you’ve got to watch what you’re doing,” Harangody said. “You can’t make a scene anymore. You’re kind of like a public figure.”
It’s anonymity he knows he won’t recover – at least in college. Notre Dame has become a comfort zone for Harangody and, despite the talk of a more immediate NBA future, Harangody said he plans on getting his degree. He’ll discuss possibilities with Notre Dame coach Mike Brey at the end of the season, but Harangody couldn’t “see myself necessarily going after this year. There are still a lot of things I have to work on, but it’s crazy to hear that kind of talk.”
His parents agree.
“It’s gotten way out of hand,” Dave said. “It’s silly to even suggest this, as far as we’re concerned.”
Harangody will admit he craves privacy more and while he was sad to see one of his best friends, Joe Harden, transfer after last season, it might have been a fortuitous situation. Harden transferred late enough so Harangody has a single dorm room in Keough Hall.
The room has become a safe haven for Harangody, the one place he can escape from the world unexpectedly closing around him quicker than he ever imagined.
And it’s a long way from when he was the beat-up freshman almost two years ago.
“What he’s doing,” McAlarney said, “is pretty amazing.”
mrothstein@jg.net
