Evan Fjeld is more than just a mustache
November 18th, 2010 by Sam PerkinsHARTFORD, CT – Some players wear their hearts on their sleeves. Evan Fjeld wears his – a heart the size of a basketball – on his upper lip.
When Fjeld takes the floor away from the cozy confines of Patrick Gymnasium, most opposing fans won’t recognize him as a key component for the first Vermont squad to make it to the big dance since 2005, or as the heart, soul, and most talented player for the Catamounts this year. Most won’t take the time to learn about Fjeld’s story off of the court, or realize that Fjeld is one of the most remarkable young men they will ever cross paths with.
Most fans will only notice the mustache.
But if fans take the time learn the story behind the mustache and never pay attention to – or respect – Fjeld the player, that’s enough for him.
Fjeld has taken the floor this season looking like he just stepped out of the movie Serpico, and is quick to crack a joke at his own expense.
“I know, I look like I’m forty or something,” he says with a laugh.
But the meaning behind the mustache is far more than a good luck charm, superstition, or novelty.
“It’s for ‘Movember’; It’s a cancer awareness thing,” explains Fjeld.
“Movember” is a worldwide fund-raising campaign that encourages men to grow mustaches in the month of November to raise money and awareness for men’s health issues – specifically prostate cancer.
“I have a Movember MySpace thing, and you can go online and donate to the Live Strong Foundation,” says Fjeld. “I think last year guys growing mustaches raised like thirty-six million dollars for prostate cancer, and hopefully I can be a little bit of a part of that.”
To Fjeld, cancer is an incredibly personal disease.
Last season, while Fjeld and the Catamounts battled for a trip to the NCAA tournament, Fjeld’s mother, Susan, fought an entirely different battle, one against breast cancer. At Susan’s request (“She really did not want to burden people with what was going on with her,” Fjeld’s father John was later quoted as saying), Fjeld carried the burden alone all season, never telling his teammates, schoolmates, or coaches that his mother was sick, let alone terminally ill.
“He’s a very strong young man – to carry that all year and handle himself the way he did on the court, in the locker room, in the classroom, in life, he’s remarkable,” says Vermont head coach Mike Lonergan.
Fjeld finally opened up to his teammates about his mother’s deteriorating health on Monday, March 8th, one day after the Catamounts had earned a spot in the conference championship game. The next morning, Susan passed away. Four days later Fjeld took the floor in Burlington as the Catamounts played for the conference championship. After a moment of silence for his mother, Fjeld shed tears as the national anthem played. A few hours later, Fjeld celebrated wildly at center court with his teammates before cutting down the nets, all the while wearing a 1000-watt smile on his face.
That, in a nutshell, tells you about Evan Fjeld.
Entering this season, the Catamounts were met with skepticism. Many – myself included – wondered how Fjeld, who had never averaged more than 10.6 points per game, could make the leap. Before this season, Fjeld was a supporting player operating in the shadow of two-time America East Player of the Year Marqus Blakely. But now Fjeld has to be a go-to guy.
The change in role hasn’t gone unnoticed by Fjeld, either. “I think the biggest thing is every game I need to be ready to play, and I can’t have off games because Marqus isn’t here to pick us up this year, it’s my job,” he says.
But no matter how heavy, the load Fjeld carries for his team on the court is infinitesimal in comparison to the burden he carried all last season.
After scoring 19 points in the Catamounts’ opener – an upset victory at Siena, earned against the Saints and 8,000 partisan fans – Fjeld played the best game of his life on the road against UConn. Going toe-to-toe with a menacing Big East front-line, Fjeld was the best frontcourt player on the floor, scoring a career-high 26 points while rejecting 3 shots.
After leading by 3 at the half, Vermont would eventually fall short, 89-73 – a more than respectable outcome in a road game against a traditional basketball powerhouse. But Fjeld was phenomenal, scoring on an array of hooks, up-and-unders, and even a few midrange jumpers.
“I told him [after the game], ‘I need some of your post moves,’” said UConn center Alex Oriakhi, who spent most of the game trying to contain Fjeld. “He’s just a crafty player. I wasn’t expecting that. He can shoot, jump-hook with either hand, he’s just a heck of a player,”
Even after two strong performances to begin the season, there are still many question marks with the Catamounts. The point guard position is shaky, and it’s still unclear they can maintain a high level of play for a whole season without Blakely. The leadership component, however, is already taken care of.
“A lot of times the captain has the respect from the players, but Evan has the respect from the coaching staff, players, and the whole campus, just because of what he went through, and the way he handled it, and the way he still handles it today. I learned a lot from him. My mom died in June of 1995 and I still think about it every single day,” says Lonergan, before adding “I love Evan Fjeld.”
It’s a sentiment I share with Vermont’s head coach. I lost my father tragically when I was 19 years old. It took me seven years to finally begin to handle the loss. By that time, I had fumbled away both my college and professional career as an athlete, which is why I am in awe of the strength Evan displays every day on the court and leading his team. And it is why, despite being in a profession where impartiality is a must, I can’t help but root for the Catamounts’ senior as he plays out his career.
Tags: Alex Oriakhi, Evan Fjeld, Marqus Blakely, Mike Lonergan, Siena, UConn, Vermont
That’s quite a story. Wish I’d known about Movember earlier in the month!
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