TAMPA — At times, his demeanor was a demerit. Ruben Guerrero’s former coach wanted him meaner, scrappier. Even today, beleaguered USF fans wouldn’t mind seeing Guerrero wield an elbow — or even an expletive — on occasion.
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Bulls interim coach Murry Bartow gets it. And to be sure, Bartow would like his junior 7-footer to betray more aggressiveness — and consistency — on the court. But he’s also smart enough not to defy human nature. Which is to say, it’s futile to coax Guerrero into brandishing a scowl as profound as his sneaker size (16).
It simply wouldn’t befit one of the nicest guys on USF’s sprawling campus.
"I think he is who he is," Bartow said. "I think what you try to do with every player is build on who they are and not try to maybe make ’em something they’re not."
This is who Ruben Guerrero is: native of Marbella, Spain; honor student (3.7 GPA as a finance major); scathing self-critic and immaculate housekeeper (almost to a fault).
He’s a member of USF’s Student-Athlete Advisory Committee, two-time recipient of USF’s Spirit Award (given to the student-athlete who shows the most support for the other teams) and winner of the 2015-16 NCAA Division I Male Sportsmanship Award.
It’s just not in him to elicit trash, even in a dumpster-fire season (6-17 record, 0-12 in AAC).
Take that women’s tennis match last spring on campus. A few USF fraternity guys were giving opposing players and even coaches the business. Instead of joining them, Guerrero — a towering fixture at Bulls’ sporting events — admonished them.
"I just went over there and was just like, ‘C’mon guys,’ because they were actually hurting our girls, too. They couldn’t focus and stuff," Guerrero recalled. "I was like, ‘Just keep it down, just cheer on our team and forget about the opposite team.’ "
They stopped.
"As good a young man as I’ve ever been around," Bartow said.
Even his dark side is fluorescent. If any skeletons lurk in Guerrero’s closet, they’re probably aligned just so.
"He has a very clean room," teammate and roommate Jake Bodway said. "Even if he has candies, he places them organized. Like, if he has six Laffy Taffys, he’ll organize the Laffy Taffys perfectly on his little desk."
If only life were so tidy in the low post.
Since arriving at USF as a rawboned project (less than 200 pounds) from Kansas’ Sunrise Christian Academy, Guerrero has transformed his body (he’s now 235), but still is struggling for consistency three seasons into his college career.
He had 16 points and 10 rebounds in 79-67 home loss to Tulsa on Jan. 21, but collected neither a point nor a rebound in an 81-60 home loss to Connecticut four nights later. A double double in a season-opening win against Florida A&M was followed by a scoreless night (six rebounds) in a 13-point loss to Elon six nights afterward.
Pretty burdensome cross for a self-admitted perfectionist.
"He’s a guy that we really try to pump his tires … because he’s so critical of himself," Bartow said. "Crazy critical of himself."
Then of course, there’s the matter of reconciling his natural disposition with the ruggedness required in the trenches of high-level Division I-A basketball.
"When I step on this court or wherever we go, they need me to forget all that nice stuff and be more mean, more aggressive," Guerrero said.
But it’s such a fragile balance, Bartow would rather maximize Guerrero’s other gifts (agility, high motor, ability to scramble defensively) than try to concoct one that may never come to fruition.
"He and (6-9, 266-pound sophomore) Luis (Santos) are extreme opposites," Bartow said. "So we want him to be more aggressive, but we’re not being as dramatic now if he doesn’t be as physical as maybe some people hope would hope that he’d be, because he’s really not that guy."
Not all big men have to be Charles Oakley.
Besides, most on campus would deem it a shame to take the jolly out of USF’s green-and-gold giant.
Contact Joey Knight at jknight@tampabay.com. Follow @TBTimes_Bulls.
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