There will be a familiar sight in Savage Arena on Monday night.
No, not the Rocket men’s basketball team playing a game. Jay Lehman.
This marks the Varsity T Hall of Famer’s 25th season calling Toledo games on television or radio. The Defiance native arrived on campus in 1977, became a starter during his freshman season, and Lehman’s status never changed, dishing out a then-record 518 career assists.
That mark has since been surpassed multiple times, but Lehman remains fourth in the school’s all-time record book. His 13 assists in Toledo’s heartbreaking loss to Florida State in the 1980 NCAA tournament are the second-most in a single game and he’s eighth in career free-throw percentage.
Bob Nichols, UT’s all-time wins leader, called Lehman the best guard during his 22 seasons leading the Rockets.
Lehman’s teams won three MAC championships, 83 total games, and qualified for two NCAA tournaments. He’s a 1,000-point scorer and played in 116 career games. He holds the school record by making all 10 free throw attempts in a game and remains one of the MAC’s all-time assist leaders.
Following his playing career, Lehman served as an assistant coach at Toledo and Oakland. He worked at Team Sports for 36 years, retiring in September of 2021, and he had a conversation with The Blade prior to UT’s season opener against Detroit Mercy.
The Blade: How did you end up at Toledo?
Lehman: Well, I thought I was going to Wittenberg. I was hardly recruited at all. Bowling Green came to a few of my games, as well as Toledo. And then right at the last minute, I played in some high school all-star games. Coach Nichols came to those practices and games, and [Toledo] said they needed a ball handler who could take care of the ball in crunch time, and they gave me a shot.
He was at one of my practices and he talked to my dad. He said that he was going to offer me a scholarship and to have me call him. So I called him the next day and coach said, ‘When can you come up?’ And I said, tomorrow. He said, ‘Well, I’m busy tomorrow, but you can come the next day.’ He offered me a scholarship and it certainly was where I wanted to play.
The Blade: Once you got to Toledo — obviously you had some tremendous teammates and a legendary coach — did you realize right away that you were surrounded by so much talent?
Lehman: My senior year of high school, I watched Toledo beat Indiana. I saw Dick Miller as a freshman, he was maybe the star of that game. Jeff Seemann had a great defensive game and was awarded the game ball. I could tell there was a lot of talent. Now, did I know two of them were going to be second-round draft picks and one a fifth-round draft pick? I certainly didn’t know that.
The Blade: You experienced some of the Toledo basketball glory years. Playing in the NCAA tournament, that whole experience of winning at a high level consistently, what was it like?
Lehman: It was terrific. Again, it goes back to what you said and the great teammates that I played with. One year we tied Central Michigan and had to beat them in a playoff to go to the NCAA tournament. There was no [MAC] tournament that year. It was such a huge win. To go to the NCAA tournament and beat the Big Ten champions, it doesn’t get any better than that.
The Blade: I know there are a million of them, but if you had to boil it down to a single moment that stands out to you as the most memorable of your Toledo career, what is it?
Lehman: It has to be Stan Joplin’s shot at the buzzer to beat Iowa in the NCAA tournament.
The Blade: What was the locker room like after that game?
Lehman: First of all, it took us forever to get to the locker room. We were jumping on each other out in the middle of the court. There were a lot of hugs and probably some tears, a lot of happy tears after winning that ball game.
The Blade: How did broadcasting come about?
Lehman: Stan Joplin, my teammate, was the head coach. I started back in 1998 and did a couple games on television, when 13 and 11 were doing games. The guy who was doing color on the radio with Mark Beier left, and then Stan came to me and asked if I wanted to do it.
The Blade: Did you enjoy it from the get-go?
Lehman: Yes, it was great. I’ve been very fortunate to be around great kids, especially now with Tod’s guys. They are tremendous to be around and fun. You get to have a very good seat and call basketball games and work with a great partner in Mark Beier. It’s just a whole lot of fun.
The Blade: How enjoyable has it been to do for 25 years where you went to school? And they’ve had some really great years lately.
Lehman: It’s been terrific. Stan had a lot of good years. Ever since Tod’s second year, it’s been tremendous. He has a great coaching staff, great culture, great kids. They do a great job in the classroom. Excellent basketball players, obviously, with the three MAC championships in a row. It’s unbelievable, never been done before. And I think they have a chance to win another one this year.
The Blade: How much do you enjoy being around college basketball players?
Lehman: It’s extremely enjoyable. I coached a little bit in high school and college. It’s great to be around and it’s so enjoyable because of the type of people and the type of culture Tod has going right now.
First Published November 5, 2023, 3:30 p.m.
