Rarely has one chair become so interesting.
The rolling chair that Georgia State coach Ron Hunter used, and fell off celebrating his team’s win over Baylor in the second round of the NCAA Tournament on Thursday, has taken on a life — and Twitter handle (@RonHunterschair) — of its own.
It has a blue seat. It can roll. It looks like a piece of office equipment. That’s all Hunter would divulge as he was asked more questions about the chair than about Xavier ahead of Saturday’s third-round game against the Musketeers.
“That chair has more protection than the president of the United States,” Hunter said.
Citing security, Hunter wouldn’t divulge if the chair has a name or where it came from. Some nicknames were offered on Twitter yesterday: “Blue Thunder,” “Bench Warmer,” and “I’ve fallen and Baylor can’t get up.”
An assistant coach said that trainer Dinika Johnson found it in the trainer’s room. It was one of several pieces of equipment that Hunter said he tried as he attempted to find something that he would be comfortable with while coaching on the sideline.
Hunter, who normally runs up and down the sideline when he coaches in a foot-stomping, arm-waving frenzy, said it took him a while Thursday to get comfortable with the chair.
He thought Georgia State’s defense struggled early because he couldn’t relay the calls from the normal spots on the floor.
As he settled down and figured out how to move around, Georgia State’s defense improved.
“I think I’ll feel a lot more comfortable because we’re going to change up some things a little bit with our defensive calls on Saturday,” he said. “It’s important I’m able to do that. What I didn’t want to do is I didn’t want this to be difficult for the players.”
The players have had no end of fun with Hunter, his chair and his lack of balance.
They said they prefer the stationary Hunter to the maniacal Hunter, not even giving the question a half-second of thought.
They have watched the memes of Hunter falling off the chair, with the favorites being their coach at the White House, and one featuring a “Life Alert” theme.
R.J. Hunter even re-created the fall for ESPN.
“It kind of hurt, so I imagine it hurt him yesterday, too,” he said.
Ron Hunter said R.J. Hunter tried to sit in the chair, which he wasn’t having. His son doesn’t get to sit on it. The seniors don’t get to sit on it. Even his wife doesn’t get to sit on it.
So, the chair may be here to stay.
“That chair will stay with me for the rest of my life,” Ron Hunter said.
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