ARCATA -- The numbers are impressive, the legacy ever-growing and the trophy cabinet packed to near capacity, but this week Frank Cheek had other things on his mind.

"Come on," he told me Tuesday afternoon, "I've got to go water the infield, we can talk on the way."

And so we did, talking as we walked, Cheek as forthright as ever, giving me his thoughts on this week's NCAA West Region Tournament, and, at times it seems, dissecting every single play his players made this season.

In his 36th year coaching at Humboldt State, Cheek remains as sharp as ever and as hands-on as ever, and some would argue it's his attention to the little details that have paved the way to the remarkable success he has enjoyed over the past four decades.

Three years ago, it wasn't unusual for the earliest of risers to see Cheek out working on the Arcata Softball Complex at 6 in the morning getting the city field ready for his players that day, nor for the last of the students leaving the campus that night to see his office lights still on in an otherwise darkened Forbes Complex.

Nowadays, Cheek doesn't have as far to go to get the field ready for his team -- an on-campus softball field that will undoubtedly someday bear his name was opened at the start of last season -- but he remains as hands-on as ever when it comes to running his program, and as a result his program remains as competitive as ever.

Getting to the playoffs in any given year would be viewed as an accomplishment for most programs, yet Cheek has led his softball team to 15 postseason appearances in his 16 years in charge of the program, missing out only in 1992.

During that time he has also won 12 conference championships, four West Region titles and a national championship in 1999, while winning more than 40 games for the past 12 consecutive seasons, including eight of 50 or more wins.

Earlier this year, the former HSU wrestling coach and Athletics Director reached a milestone with his 1,000th career win -- he now has 261 in wrestling and 751 in softball -- further cementing his legendary status at the school.

The players have come and gone -- 16 different players accounting for 28 All-American honors during his reign as softball coach -- but the results have remained the same, a credit to Cheeks' ability to not only recruit the right athletes, but also to ensure they live up to their potential.

His program remains not just one of the most competitive Division-II softball programs in the nation, but one of the most competitive throughout the NCAA at any level in any sport.

This week, the former marine who runs a very disciplined program, will try to add one more chapter to his already packed resume, hosting the regional tournament for the third time in 10 seasons and entering the tournament as top seed and favorite.

He has at his disposal a relatively young team with just two seniors and a plethora of hard-hitting freshmen, but that inexperience doesn't worry the veteran coach.

"The freshmen don't know what day it is," he said laughing, "they don't know what pressure is. They just go out there and hit."

And hit they have this spring, with a team batting average of .343, the most impressive offensive lineup Cheek can ever recall having, and a change in philosophy for the normally defensive-minded Lady Jacks.

Either way, it's a lineup Cheek will gladly take into battle, and one he will surely have as well prepared and game-ready as ever when they take to the field this afternoon.

"This is where we want to be," he said about making the playoffs again.

For the longtime coach, there will be one more season after this and then he says -- not for the first time in his life -- he will hand over the reins, the keys to this Ferrari he has proudly maintained over the course of the past 16 years.

As a part of the budget cuts facing the athletic department and the entire school this summer, the head coach position of the softball program has been cut by 50 percent, although contrary to what I reported two weeks ago, that won't affect Cheek, who has been a part of the Faculty Early Retirement Program for the past four years, a program that allows HSU faculty members ease their way into retirement by working half-time for five years.

While Cheek has worked "part-time" during that, the athletic department has budgeted for a full-time coach to ensure the funds would remain there when the time came to replace the longtime coach. With the cuts this summer, that will no longer be the case, although that won't affect Cheek, who will be back for one more shot at glory a year from now regardless.

For now, though, Cheek isn't thinking that far ahead, just planning for this week's tournament, and another possible trip to the nationals.

For now, the dynasty lives on at HSU and with four West Region banners already adorning his office wall, the drive for five is alive and well.