Mick Foley Blogs
A WRESTLER’S QUEST FOR A CUSTOM VEST: HOW A WWE CHAMP FOUND A HERO IN LIZ KITLEY
While I am certainly not an expert on women’s basketball, I do think my rapid trajectory from curious highlight seeker to super-fan is indicative of how far, how fast the women’s game has come to be appreciated by sports fans in general. Two years ago, I was just a guy typing “Iowa women’s basketball” on YouTube, trying to see more of who this University of Iowa phenom – whose name I could not yet remember- sinking shots that previously had seemed thinkable only by the likes of Steph Curry in the NBA.
Just one year ago, I was a guy watching NCAA women’s basketball highlights on ESPN and catching the two Final Four semi-finals, but missing the championship game due to travel. By the end of Caitlin Clark’s remarkable run at Iowa, I was watching up to six hours of NCAA women’s basketball a day, gaining greater appreciation for the players I’d seen only sparingly before – like Angel Reese and Cameron Brink, great respect for the greats I’d read about but never seen – like USC’s JuJu Watkins and UConn’s Paige Bueckers, and thoroughly enjoying the work ethic and skills of a host of players who had previously been unknown to me.
Born in Bloomington, Indiana, I had grown up as a huge fan of Bobby Knight’s Indiana Hoosiers teams and can still rattle off the starting five of their hallowed 1976 undefeated NCAA championship team. My father had long preferred the men’s college game to the pros and I had the good fortune to accompany him to two different Final Fours during my adolescence. A few years ago, I even had a spirited conversation with the iconic actor Bill Murray about the night in February 1980 I spotted him at Madison Square Garden, when a pre-NC State Jimmy Valvano’s underdog Iona Gaels had defeated that year’s eventual NCAA champion Louisville Cardinals by 19 points in the world’s most famous arena. That game provided such a lasting memory for me, because I had seen three of Iowa’s starters – Jeff Ruland, Glenn Vickers and Kevin Hamilton play high school hoops and had even had Hamilton as my camp counselor in 1978, when I was right on the verge of becoming a mediocre player.
For the record, I ended my competitive basketball career with a 100% field goal percentage- shooting 1-1 for a grand total of 2 points on the JV team. Somewhere in storage, tucked away in a box of keepsakes, I have the copy of Mad Magazine Mr. Murray signed for me that night at MSG. If someone had told 14 year old me that night, that 45 years later, I would prefer the women’s game to the men’s, I would have assumed they were delusional.
Surprisingly, though, it was not Clark, Watkins, Reese, Brink or any of the other outstanding players on display during the NCAA tourney who made the biggest, most lasting impression on me. Instead, it was Virginia Tech Elizabeth Kitley, who did not suit up for her team’s second round game against Baylor, and who has yet to play a single WNBA game. Unaware that Kitley had suffered a season ending ACL tear during the her final regular season game, I had tuned in, excited to see more of the 6’6 center who had impressed me so much in the 2023 Final Four loss to LSU.
Although I had only seen Kitley in action that one time, I felt a profound sense of loss upon learning of her injury; a sense that deepened further when the Hokies dropped a heartbreaker to Baylor and a camera shot caught Kitley’s eyes immediately filling with tears. The moment immediately made me think of an October, 2019 NFL game where Patrick Mahomes suffered what looked like a season ending injury (although Mahomes fortunately missed only two games) and I felt that same profound sense of loss – not just for Mahomes, but for the sake of the game. In that one moment, Mahomes, to me personally, went from being a great player, whose talents and charisma I enjoyed and appreciated to becoming my favorite player; an athlete whose games I actively sought out – and still do to this day.
For the next two days, I sat on my couch, my ailing pappilon, Randall by my side, watching as many Elizabeth Kitley YouTube clips as I could find, marveling at this remarkable athlete swatting shots like Dikembe Mutumbo in his prime and displaying a deft shooting touch and footwork near the hoop that reminded me of my childhood hero, NBA legend, Willis Reed. But as much as Liz Kitley impressed me as a player, it was learning of her kindness, her compassion, her character as a human being that impressed me even more. As the father of a child on the autism spectrum, learning of Kitley’s close relationship with her sister, Raven touched my heart. The look of sheer joy on Liz’s face during Virginia Tech’s Autism Awareness game resonated so deeply with me that I took a screenshot of it – and still refer to it when I need reassurance that kindness still matters, probably now more than ever.
I wondered whether I would ever have the opportunity to let Elizabeth know how much her indomitable spirit had touched me, how much I had enjoyed learning more about her, how my heart ached to see a certain top 10 WNBA draft pick before her injury taken with pick number 24 by the Las Vegas Aces. My buddy, Boston Celtics radio play-by-play man Sean Grande put things in a more positive perspective for me upon learning of my newfound appreciation for Liz Kitley – as a player and a human being. “Good choice”, Grande texted me. “I think she’s going to play for Becky. Great place to start her career.” Like I said at the beginning of this article, I’m far from an expert on women’s basketball, and still have much to learn. I had no idea the Ace’s head coach Becky Hammon had previously been an assistant coach for the NBA’s San Antonio Spurs and that my pal Grande was quite familiar with Hammon’s coaching experience and mindset.
A few days later, while watching the New York Knicks in playoff action, I saw famed film director and Knicks super-fan Spike Lee wearing what appeared to be a custom Jalen Brunson vest, crafted from a Knicks jersey. Not being privy to the knowledge that what Spike was wearing was actually known as a “puffer jacket” available for purchase, I immediately made a bold declaration in the Foley living room: “I’m going to have a custom Elizabeth Kitley vest made from a jersey!”
I actually did have the chance to tell Liz Kitley how much she means to me, ordering not one, but two custom videos from her on Cameo. I was mildly concerned that Elizabeth Kitley might not want a former pro wrestler with a plethora of scars, a host of missing teeth and one missing ear rocking her jersey/vest publicly, but she was quite enthusiastic about the prospect, giving her blessing to my quest for a custom vest.
It took some doing, it took some time, but after finding a fine seamstress in the White Mountains of New Hampshire who specialized in zippers, I ordered not one – but two Elizabeth Kitley jerseys – one Las Vegas Aces jersey and one Virginia Tech Hokies jersey to undergo the transformation from jerseys to custom vests. Upon seeing the finished products, Kitley herself deemed them “sick”, sending me to my Cameo DM’s for reassurance that “sick” was a positive thing. Liz assured me that “sick” was indeed a good thing!
Those two vests have become my favorite articles of clothing. Longtime wrestling fans may be surprised to learn that Elizabeth Kitley vests – and not my trademark cut-off flannels – have become my garment of choice, especially when traveling through airports, where I feel like my custom vests serve not only as a moving billboard of sorts for a unique and talented player, but as a testament to the virtue of kindness itself – which is always the first thing I think of when I think of Elizabeth Kitley.
In addition to heralding my vests as “sick”, Liz has been deeply appreciative in each of our messages, never failing to let me know how much my support means to her, referring to me on several occasions as “the best” and even once as “the coolest” in those messages. Recently, one of my children asked me if Liz has any idea who I am – in terms of my wrestling career. I told him that I really didn’t know – although I suspect that if she did not know before, she’ll know for sure once this article is posted. For those who don’t know, once upon a time, long before Elizabeth Kitley was born, I defeated Dwayne Johnson for the WWE title – a feat so nice I did it twice! It might matter in the sense that the wrestling angle might place this article in front of more eyeballs, and shine a light on a very special talent, working hard to come back from a devastating injury to earn a spot in the most competitive professional sports league in the world. I believe my friend Sean Grande’s words will be proven true. She’s going to play for Becky… and I believe she is going to do it very well.
In the meantime, the future of women’s basketball – both college and pro – looks very bright indeed. There is a definite learning curve that goes into fully appreciating the game, and all the great players who have worked so hard to push it into its well-deserved spotlight. But I recently had dinner with three of my very best friends dating back to middle school, during which a conversation took place which I think is quite illuminating, and indicative of where the women’s game is headed. For in addition to inquiring about old friends and family, we talked at length, enthusiastically, joyfully, about the WNBA – and the all-star game in particular. Despite having been played almost 6 weeks earlier, the game was still fresh in all our minds, with all of us agreeing it was the most exciting All-Star game of any sport that we could recall. I mentioned that I had literally jumped off my couch on multiple occasions at the shooting display put forth by all-star MVP Arike Ogunbowale and that I had literally had goosebumps when Caitlin Clark dished beautifully to Angel Reese, seeing the two women in that instant, not as heated rivals, but as two indispensable talents, helping lead their sport to heights few would have imagined just a few years ago.
I find myself using my ESPN app far more in the past several months than I had in previous years, when I would only check in sparingly to see who had won a big boxing match or UFC fight, or to see who won an occasional NFL or NBA playoff game. These days, I’m on that app every single day, always checking in on the WNBA first, seeing how the playoff picture is shaping up, keeping track of Aja Wilson’s incredible season, checking the box score after every single Indiana Fever game. I’m thrilled at the success Caitlin Clark is having, making me feel like the 1,000 miles I drove and $700 I spent for a single ticket to see her play in February 2024 was a small price to pay for having the honor of seeing a generational talent during her final college season. Caitlin might be my favorite player… but Elizabeth Kitley is my hero.