Weather | Sports | Forums | Comics | Classifieds | Calendar | Movies
Oldsmar officials say Monte Kiffin stood them up. The Bucs say it's all a mix-up.
By JULIE CHURCH
© St. Petersburg Times, published May 11, 2001
OLDSMAR -- It's not every day that the Tampa Bay Buccaneers come to Oldsmar. To the surprise of a luncheon crowd at the East Lake Country Club, Wednesday wasn't the day, either.
A record crowd of 174 showed up at the Greater Oldsmar Chamber of Commerce's monthly meeting to hear the guest of honor, Bucs defensive coordinator Monte Kiffin.
About halfway through a lunch of chicken, rice and green beans, chamber president and CEO Kevin Gartland announced that Kiffin hadn't shown, and no one knew why.
On Thursday, Gartland faxed Bucs general manager Rich McKay a caustic letter saying the people of Oldsmar did not appreciate the snub.
"He never showed up," Gartland wrote. "He didn't arrange to have a Bucs player appear on his behalf, and he didn't send an assistant coach, a public relations guy, a ticket sales rep -- or even a towel boy -- to speak to the crowd."
Arrangements to have Kiffin speak were made in September but had been confirmed as late as last week, Gartland added. Based on that, he said, the chamber had promoted Kiffin's appearance, and the crowd included about 50 Bucs season ticket holders and several local elected officials.
"We began to have concerns about his reliability last week when Coach Kiffin called to say he "didn't remember' ever making a commitment to speak to our organization. Our fears were calmed however, by Mr. Kiffin's promise that he and a Buccaneers player would attend the luncheon as scheduled," Gartland's letter said.
"It wasn't until (special events coordinator) Brenda Robinson called Mr. Kiffin's office at about 12:30 p.m. that we learned he wasn't coming, that he was "needed on the practice field.' "
On Thursday, Bucs spokesman Reggie Roberts said "it was an unfortunate mix-up, but our community relations department did everything they should have."
"Kiff feels horrible about it," Roberts said.
Roberts said the team sent a letter to the chamber dated March 8 saying that neither Kiffin nor any member of the Bucs could attend the luncheon.
Gartland disputed that.
"I never saw a letter," Gartland said. "This is a small office, and I see every piece of mail that comes in here, and I never saw that one."
Roberts agreed to fax a copy of the letter to the St. Petersburg Times late Thursday afternoon, but as of 8 p.m., no letter had been received.
In his letter to the Bucs, Gartland said "we suspect that (Kiffin) simply went fishing ... that's what Coach (Tony) Dungy's secretary told us his plans for Wednesday were when Ms. Robinson talked with her on Monday morning."
No, Roberts said, Kiffin was "out coaching. He was working. He was on the practice field."
Kiffin's non-appearance has left some hurt feelings in Oldsmar.
"I don't know why I should be as upset as I am about this," said Robin Howe, an Oldsmar tile company owner who is on the chamber's executive board. "But we only have high-profile speakers, and this is the only one who let us down."
Some members of the chamber e-mailed local radio stations, prompting WFLA radio personalities Jack Harris and Tedd Webb to mention the episode on Thursday morning's A.M. Tampa Bay.
"Well," Harris said, "I suppose when you are winning, you can get away with anything."
Mayor Jerry Beverland said the team should be careful when dealing with Oldsmar.
"I would hope that they would keep their meetings better than they play football," Beverland said. "They need to watch out. Oldsmar is the most progressive city on the west coast of Florida, and they can't win a Super Bowl without our support."
Roberts has offered to make things right with the chamber, although no exact plans have been made.
"We have a lot of season ticket holders in Oldsmar," he said.
Gartland said that although chamber members were disappointed at the no-show, they might be willing to give the team another chance.
"We'd rather have good relations than no relations at all," he said.
- Julie Church can be reached at (727) 445-4229.