MUScoop
MUScoop => Hangin' at the Al => Topic started by: Galway Eagle on August 08, 2014, 12:03:19 AM
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So my uncle was telling me some old stories about how when he was younger around Milwaukee he'd always go to MU games and cheer for them (this is clearly before him, his wife and both his kids went to UW). But it got me curious if any of you could give me some insight into the feeling of that game? Were we the underdogs? Were we a Cinderella story that year? Did we choke? Etc.
And for that matter some info on the other years would be great! What happened against OSU that ruined our perfect year? Were the students Pi$$ed we rejected the NCAA tournament? Or 1976 were we supposed to beat the undefeated IU team or was that like the match of the year?
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So my uncle was telling me some old stories about how when he was younger around Milwaukee he'd always go to MU games and cheer for them (this is clearly before him, his wife and both his kids went to UW). But it got me curious if any of you could give me some insight into the feeling of that game? Were we the underdogs? Were we a Cinderella story that year? Did we choke? Etc.
Al choked.
But we were underdogs. Two words: David Thompson.
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Al choked.
But we were underdogs. Two words: David Thompson.
It was basically a home game for them also right? Also think we would have beaten UCLA if they had won against NC State?
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I know all the answers
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I know all the answers
Do share, Obi Wan.
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vs NCST
Virtually no chance from the get go in Greensboro. In the semis NCST took down UCLA and we did what Crean didn't have a clue about, i.e. beating Kansas. But, on championship Monday, Thompson was too much.
vs tOSU
In Athens, GA and I was in attendance. 39 game winning streak was history when #14 (RIP) fouled out on a bullchit charging call with about 4-5 min. left. He had never fouled out of either a high school or college game to that point. This was about the lowest I've ever felt following a loss. Thought we could have beaten any team that year includin' UCLA. felt terrible for #22, #14, #12, et al. Had no interest in watching the second game even tough UK lost to WKU.
vs IU
I was present in Baton Rouge for #1 vs #2. Many thought this was the real national championship game. Close game throughout. MU couldn't capitalize on Hoosier foul trouble enough to take out May, Benson, and Buckner.
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Great info thanks for sharing! And finally what about the way the student body felt about turning down the NCAA bid? Cause I mean the scores in the NIT tournament were pretty lopsided showing we probably could've done great in the NCAA tournament
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Students were firmly behind and trusting of Al. Part of the allure of McGuire was the unpredictibility andmaverick in him. Besides, the NIT had more prestige then, than now.
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We were down in the game, but not by a lot when McGuire got two technicals which pretty much did us in. We were lucky to get to the final 4 as Lucas fouled out in the great 8 game. Homan came in for Lucas and had the game of his life. At least that is what I was told. I was travelling at that time and did not get to watch the game.
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Students were firmly behind and trusting of Al. Part of the allure of McGuire was the unpredictibility andmaverick in him. Besides, the NIT had more prestige then, than now.
Were we good enough that year to legitimately challenge for the title or final four?
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Were we good enough that year to legitimately challenge for the title or final four?
No.
UCLA was incredible in those years. I believe it was post Kareem Abdul Jabaar and pre-Bill Walton. It was the Steve Patterson teams and John Wooden was an unbelievable coach. He got 180% or more from every player on the team. It was hard to hate UCLA because you watched in awe of what Wooden's teams were able to do.
Plus, in those days, the NCAA was a 24 team tournament. If you weren't a conference champion or a very highly regarded independent, you didn't go to the NCAA. As a result, the NIT was probably as good a tournament as the NCAA and the quality of the teams were wonderful.
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Students were firmly behind and trusting of Al. Part of the allure of McGuire was the unpredictibility andmaverick in him. Besides, the NIT had more prestige then, than now.
Not only did it have more prestige, but it had more exposure; simply put, the NCAA wasn't televised like it is today, and the NIT - being in the media epicenter of the United States - was broadcast to many more households than most, if not all, NCAA games.
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In 1970, where was Marquette placed that got Al all riled up? He wanted to be in the mideast where Iowa was given the de facto #1 seed right?
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Students were firmly behind and trusting of Al. Part of the allure of McGuire was the unpredictibility andmaverick in him. Besides, the NIT had more prestige then, than now.
It was a different world then. There was no internet and no big-time recruiting services that said so and so was going to such and such university. Tweets were what birds did, not what teen-aged basketball players did when coaches expressed interest.
We discussed this once before on Scoop, but if the internet, facebook and tweets, texting and other social media existed in the 1970s, I'm not sure how Al would have been perceived.
I can only imagine a 1974 Scoop when Al took the second technical at Greensboro against NC State. It would have been vicious.
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In 1970, where was Marquette placed that got Al all riled up? He wanted to be in the mideast where Iowa was given the de facto #1 seed right?
Midwest regional.
Al was angry because the University of Notre Dame was given the Mideast slot and we were sent further away from our fans. We beat ND that year, as I recall.
The NCAA did not particularly like Al and this was Al's way of getting back at them.
By the way, they did not seed the tournament back then. Major independents, like Marquette, played mid-major conferences (like the Ohio Valley or MAC) in the first round. The winner played the SEC or Big 10. SEC and Big 10 teams got byes in the first round.
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vs tOSU
In Athens, GA and I was in attendance. 39 game winning streak was history when #14 (RIP) fouled out on a bullchit charging call with about 4-5 min. left. He had never fouled out of either a high school or college game to that point. This was about the lowest I've ever felt following a loss. Thought we could have beaten any team that year includin' UCLA. felt terrible for #22, #14, #12, et al. Had no interest in watching the second game even tough UK lost to WKU.
Second worst MU game ever (seems like a broken record with tOSU). Worst MU game ever was in March 1978 against Miami of Ohio.
That game never should have happened. At least against tOSU, we lost to an equal (a Big 10 school).
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Earlier you said that you didn't think we could get to the Final Four that year. But that year New Mexico State got to the Final Four from the midwest. You don't think Marquette could have gotten past them?
(I agree that they wouldn't have beaten UCLA.)
BTW, the leading scorer on that New Mexico State team was Jimmy Collins. The same Jimmy Collins that Bruce Pearl turned in when Collins was an assistant at Illinois, and then feuded with Pearl when they were coaching UIC and UWM.
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in 1970 Marquette was ranked #8 with a 22-3 record.
Jacksonville (25-1 led by Artis Gilmore's 27ppg and 22rpg) was ranked #4 and got one of the two at-large bids in Dayton. They eventually lost to UCLA in the championship game.
Notre Dame (20-6 led by Austin Carr's 38ppg) was ranked #9 and got the final at-large bid in Dayton.
Marquette was offered a spot in Fort Worth.
Al thought MU deserved a spot in Dayton. The second at-large would play Kentucky in the second game. Al accused UK Coach Adolph Rupp of having the NCAA move MU out of that spot in Dayton (after MU had knocked off UK in the NCAA's the previous season).
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Midwest regional.
Al was angry because the University of Notre Dame was given the Mideast slot and we were sent further away from our fans. We beat ND that year, as I recall.
Actually, we lost to ND in South Bend that year. We led by 2 with seconds remaining. Inbounded the ball, got mugged, no call, they score to tie, we lose in OT. I was at the game, had driven down there with three friends from MU. The driver and one of the other guys were so pissed they went back to Milwaukee immediately after the game. My roommate and I stayed to party Saturday night with a buddy of mine from ND. Hitching back to Milwaukee the next day (a typical February one in the Midwest) we wondered "What were we thinking?"
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on paper the Midwest appeared a much easier path to the Final Four in 1970.
The auto bids went to:
Kansas State 19-7 from the Big Eight
Drake 21-6 from the Missouri Valley
Rice 14-10 from the Southwest Conference
outside of UCLA, New Mexico State was the only team west of the Mississippi ranked in the top ten at #5. #12 Houston was the second at-large pick in the Midwest. Dayton was the substitute for Marquette.
Meanwhile, the Mideast featured 4 top 10 teams including #1 Kentucky.
NM State was lead by Coach Lou Henson and included 5 players from NYC and one from New Jersey. Besides leading scorer Jimmy Collins they also had big man Sam Lacey that had a long NBA career and the 5' 8" waterbug Charlie Criss that also ended up in the NBA.
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No.
UCLA was incredible in those years. I believe it was post Kareem Abdul Jabaar and pre-Bill Walton. It was the Steve Patterson teams and John Wooden was an unbelievable coach. He got 180% or more from every player on the team. It was hard to hate UCLA because you watched in awe of what Wooden's teams were able to do.
Plus, in those days, the NCAA was a 24 team tournament. If you weren't a conference champion or a very highly regarded independent, you didn't go to the NCAA. As a result, the NIT was probably as good a tournament as the NCAA and the quality of the teams were wonderful.
I think that was Wicks, Rowe, and Bibby as well. Great team.
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what I hear from the 1971 game against Ohio State was MU built up a large lead in the first half at 22-9. Al's maxim was when the lead got over 10 you stopped pressing. Switching to a straight zone seemed to shift the momentum to the Buckeyes.
Combine the loss of Meminger with 5 minutes to go with the Marquette 11-21 FT shooting, Ohio State rallied back to take their first lead with about a minute to go.
With about 8 seconds to go trailing by one, Allie McGuire threw a sidecourt inbound pass to Mike Mills, Mills returned the pass but Allie hadn't set both feet inbounds before receiving the pass. Line violation. Ohio State ball.
Back in the day the NCAA tournament had a consolation game for third place in the Regions. MU bounced back from the OSU loss to rout Kentucky 91-74.
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Tom Payne played center for Rupp :o
Jim McDaniel for Western was a load in that Regional also.
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So far all the comments I've read are pretty much as I remember the games. We students were stunned when Al turned down the NCAA, but firmly behind him. We took on an attitude of "yeah, take that!" Nit was a big deal then, MSG and all. I think the lack of seeding then led to the IU early loss in what should have been the championship game. Seem to remember a lot of 'do over' calls in IU's favor at the end of the game but not the specifics as well as 'Old Warrior' does.
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4 ever
Your notes on the three games are once again spot on.
Keefe
Al did not choke in 1974. Lost to a better team and think his t's put blame on him and not the team. It actually was unselfish move by Al because we were outmanned that day and fighting home crowd.
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4 ever
Your notes on the three games are once again spot on.
Keefe
Al did not choke in 1974. Lost to a better team and think his t's put blame on him and not the team. It actually was unselfish move by Al because we were outmanned that day and fighting home crowd.
Goose,
I'm a little fuzzy on 74, but as I recall the game was very tight in the first half. We were up 4 or 5, NC State went on a run to take maybe a 2 or 3 point lead. Al got the Ts to make it 8 or 9 just before halftime. the game stayed in the 6-13 point range the rest of the way. We were a longshot, not the better team, but the technicals cost us whatever chance we had. Anything can happen in a tight game down the stretch - I think Al might have stolen one from Norm Sloan if it had been close at the end.
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... what about the way the student body felt about turning down the NCAA bid?
This photo of Schroeder Hall from the 1970 yearbook should answer your question...click to enlarge.
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Was that on an all girls floor? Actually, pretty sure Schroeder was all male in 1970, hey?
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Yea, NC State had essentially a home game, 7'4'' Tom Burleson and the almighty David Thompson--the DWade of his era, but the guy who really beat us was Monte Towe, State's little point guard who avoided traps all night long and kept feeding Thompson and Burleson.
Al said it best: the short kid killed us.
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Goose,
I'm a little fuzzy on 74, but as I recall the game was very tight in the first half. We were up 4 or 5, NC State went on a run to take maybe a 2 or 3 point lead. Al got the Ts to make it 8 or 9 just before halftime. the game stayed in the 6-13 point range the rest of the way. We were a longshot, not the better team, but the technicals cost us whatever chance we had. Anything can happen in a tight game down the stretch - I think Al might have stolen one from Norm Sloan if it had been close at the end.
That's how I recall it as well. We were certainly the underdog after NC St. beat UCLA, but my recollection was that Al's Ts turned a close game into a comfortable lead that NC St. never gave up.
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Once again from the yearbook, the image below is a great summary of the 1970 decision with commentary on the matter from the NCAA, McGuire, Adolph Rupp and MU players. McGuire believed that Adolph Rupp influenced the selection committee into moving Marquette out of his region because Rupp was afraid to play MU, having been knocked of the tourney by them in 1969 in Madison. It was the pinnacle of a long-standing feud between McGuire and Rupp.
My favorite McGuire quote: "If you slap me, I'm going to punch you."
Click to enlarge.
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Once again from the yearbook, the image below is a great summary of the 1970 decision with commentary on the matter from the NCAA, McGuire, Adolph Rupp and MU players. McGuire believed that Adolf Rupp influenced the selection committee into moving Marquette out of his region because Rupp was afraid to play MU, having been knocked of the tourney by them in 1969 in Madison. It was the pinnacle of a long-standing feud between McGuire and Rupp.
My favorite McGuire quote: "If you slap me, I'm going to punch you."
Click to enlarge.
That is hilarious. Thanks for sharing.
On the one hand, I can see why the selection committee voted the way they did since ND won the head to head.
On the other, having an SEC athletic director chairing the committee certainly ads to the conspiracy.
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That's how I recall it as well. We were certainly the underdog after NC St. beat UCLA, but my recollection was that Al's Ts turned a close game into a comfortable lead that NC St. never gave up.
It was a tight game. Al's T's were the difference. If not for those, I think MU had a legit shot in that game.
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That's how I recall it as well. We were certainly the underdog after NC St. beat UCLA, but my recollection was that Al's Ts turned a close game into a comfortable lead that NC St. never gave up.
Even McGuire admitted after the 1974 loss to NC St that he thought his technicals cost us the game. Unfortunately, it would not be the last time his temper arguably cost us a shot at the national title. He essentially did the same thing in 1976 against Indiana. The first two images below are articles from the Milwaukee Journal after each of those games. If you also want to throw in the 1970 decision to go the NIT instead of the NCAA (fueled mostly by McGuire ego), you could make an argument that Al's temper potentially cost us 3 national championships. That 1970 team was loaded and one of the top 2 or 3 in the nation. The third image below is again from the 1970 yearbook where opposing coaches talk about MU as a powerhouse in 1970 that could have beaten any team.
So...did McGuire's temper potentially cost us not one, not two, but possibly even 3 national championships???? Now THERE'S an interesting off-season topic of discussion!
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I feel both in '74 and '76 Al took the blame for the loss because he did not want to admit we lost to better teams. If we played Indaina ten times in '76 I think we maybe we beat them three times. That team was stacked and we never should have been playing them before the championship game that year.
Al got life better than all of us combined and I will die believing he purposely took those T's to make it look like he cost us the games.
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I feel both in '74 and '76 Al took the blame for the loss because he did not want to admit we lost to better teams. If we played Indaina ten times in '76 I think we maybe we beat them three times. That team was stacked and we never should have been playing them before the championship game that year.
Al got life better than all of us combined and I will die believing he purposely took those T's to make it look like he cost us the games.
Outside of UCLA, IU in '76 was one of the better college teams ever.
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I feel both in '74 and '76 Al took the blame for the loss because he did not want to admit we lost to better teams. If we played Indaina ten times in '76 I think we maybe we beat them three times. That team was stacked and we never should have been playing them before the championship game that year.
Al got life better than all of us combined and I will die believing he purposely took those T's to make it look like he cost us the games.
Point well taken, and I hope you're right. But I really don't think there was that much forethought or strategy behind the technicals. I think he just couldn't control himself. In the '76 tourney, we were down only 3 points with 25 seconds left. That's an eternity in basketball. The game was still very much in doubt. I don't mean to be sacrilegious, but you've got to be smarter in that situation than to ask a referee how much he makes and then offer to bet him. You KNOW you're going to get a technical. You are basically asking to lose the game.
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This is a great thread.
I said after Untucked was released, that they could have done a full length 30 for 30 on Marquette under Al. So many compelling stories, and amazing contrasts from that era. I don't know if anything can come close to it, especially now that we're in the power football conference era.
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I feel both in '74 and '76 Al took the blame for the loss because he did not want to admit we lost to better teams. If we played Indaina ten times in '76 I think we maybe we beat them three times. That team was stacked and we never should have been playing them before the championship game that year.
Al got life better than all of us combined and I will die believing he purposely took those T's to make it look like he cost us the games.
I could maybe see Al intentionally getting the T with 25 seconds to go against Indiana - maybe he decided Bo's missed shot was our last chance - so he'd have the excuse.
But the Ts against NC St. came in the first half, when the game was still very close. Are you saying that even before halftime, in a close game, Al was so certain we were eventually going to lose that he purposely got the Ts to create an excuse? That one I don't buy for a minute.
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I could maybe see Al intentionally getting the T with 25 seconds to go against Indiana - maybe he decided Bo's missed shot was our last chance - so he'd have the excuse.
But the Ts against NC St. came in the first half, when the game was still very close. Are you saying that even before halftime, in a close game, Al was so certain we were eventually going to lose that he purposely got the Ts to create an excuse? That one I don't buy for a minute.
No I think what Goose is saying is that Al said "I cost us the game" not necessarily because he thought he cost MU the game, but because he didn't want to imply "I don't think those technicals cost us the game. Indiana/NC State was just a better team."
IOW, what Al said shouldn't be used as evidence as to whether or not it truly cost MU those game.
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Some great images I found from the 1974 Final Four game against Kansas. Please don't copy them as I don't own the rights. Enjoy...
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And some images from the 1974 Championship game. Again, please don't copy them.
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GoooMarquette
I do not think Al made excuse for anything he ever did in life. I believe he felt those T's deflected attention away from the players and onto him. Do not think it was intentional attempt to try to build an excuse. He lost his cool and cost us some points in '74 but we were not going to win that game with or without the T's IMO. Nobody wanted to win more than Al and no one was more realistic in chances of winning than Al.
The guy flat out knew the angles and did not sugar coat things. He knew when he was in a fight he could win and one he could not.
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GoooMarquette
I do not think Al made excuse for anything he ever did in life. I believe he felt those T's deflected attention away from the players and onto him. Do not think it was intentional attempt to try to build an excuse. He lost his cool and cost us some points in '74 but we were not going to win that game with or without the T's IMO. Nobody wanted to win more than Al and no one was more realistic in chances of winning than Al.
The guy flat out knew the angles and did not sugar coat things. He knew when he was in a fight he could win and one he could not.
I agree with that - that he got the Ts because he lost his cool. I did not agree with your previous statement that Al "purposely took those Ts to make it look like he cost us those games."
Getting the Ts was an emotional response - taking the blame was the purposeful part.
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Any y'all got pictures of Crean leadin' our team in battle durin' the 2003 Final Four?
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Great hearing this from everyone. Love hearing these stories
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This is a great thread.
I said after Untucked was released, that they could have done a full length 30 for 30 on Marquette under Al. So many compelling stories, and amazing contrasts from that era. I don't know if anything can come close to it, especially now that we're in the power football conference era.
I worked hard to try and get that to happen several years ago with ESPN, but just couldn't pull it together. If you recall, they were doing a number of series through EOE (Espn Original Entertainment). When I was in Chicago last week one of the guys I met with was a former producer for EOE and he had an Al McGuire photo in his office on his wall. Went down memory lane a bit about why ESPN never did an hour with Al. My arguments back then were you still had some of his peers alive, take advantage of it. Hank, Rick, the players, Louie, Dean, etc. Ray Meyer had passed and others weren't exactly spring chickens or in good health. Sure enough, fast forward a few years and a number of those folks have died.
Disappointing, it was a project that I felt could be done, was worth doing, but there were many of those types of projects and it didn't happen. Maybe down the road someone will do one, but with the loss of life and memories (and great stories), I'm not sure how compelling it could be now.
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This is the most enjoyable thread I've read on muscoop in at least a year.
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Chicos - When I read the 30 for 30 suggestion, I had the same thought...that it would have had to happen while guys like Hank and Rick were still alive. Somehow, I can't imagine it being nearly as enjoyable if the commentary came from Bob Knight, Dukie V and Digger Phelps. :o
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I agree that there are still enough great guys alive to tell the stories. Few have better Al stories than Dick Enberg, Herb Kohl and the many long time close friends if his still alive. I could listen to Al stories non ball related all night and you could do that many nights without hearing same story twice. Truthfully, just hearing stories about nights at the Lime House in Brookfield could fill a lot of nights over cocktails.
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I worked hard to try and get that to happen several years ago with ESPN, but just couldn't pull it together. If you recall, they were doing a number of series through EOE (Espn Original Entertainment). When I was in Chicago last week one of the guys I met with was a former producer for EOE and he had an Al McGuire photo in his office on his wall. Went down memory lane a bit about why ESPN never did an hour with Al. My arguments back then were you still had some of his peers alive, take advantage of it. Hank, Rick, the players, Louie, Dean, etc. Ray Meyer had passed and others weren't exactly spring chickens or in good health. Sure enough, fast forward a few years and a number of those folks have died.
Disappointing, it was a project that I felt could be done, was worth doing, but there were many of those types of projects and it didn't happen. Maybe down the road someone will do one, but with the loss of life and memories (and great stories), I'm not sure how compelling it could be now.
More so than ESPN 30 For 30, I've always thought HBO should produce a documentary about Al. They've produced many great programs about sports heroes from the past and Al would be a perfect fit.
As for the technical fouls, Al always wanted to take the bullet for his team and his teams were an extension of him. He wouldn't hesitate to get into it with one of players, but always tried to protect them too.
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Two BS calls on MU that earned the technicals. Irv Brown T'd Al up twice, who was actually a friend of Al's. Read the article where Al refused to rip Irv.
http://www.denverpost.com/ci_22971208/irv-brown-remembers-his-longtime-career-college-basketball
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I was not around in '74, but somewhere over the last 14 years I read an excerpt from Sloan's book about the championship game. The story was that Sloan saw the last 15 minutes of Marquette's practice that was open to the press. He saw no fewer than 3 fist fights between players and players/ coaches. Right after, Al walked by Sloan and told him that if State stayed on the floor longer than their allotted time, Al would find him and "kick his a@#." Sloan laughed and said he couldn't concentrate on his practice after the entertainment of MU's practice. I'm probably way off on this story, but it's what I remember.
This is an awesome thread.
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This is an awesome thread.
This is a great thread.
This is the most enjoyable thread I've read on muscoop in at least a year.
Just basking in the love for this thread
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I remember the weekend before the '77 Ship Dean Smith and his assistants didn't slept a wink whereas the Marquette coaches were busily engaged in everything but game planning. Hank was speaking at a Coaches Conference, Majerus was on the road recruiting, and Al was riding a bike identical to his own back home that he bought on Saturday from an Atlanta Kawasaki dealer - he had arranged to sell it back to the dealer on Monday.
NCAA rules said that each team was allowed to practice one hour on the Omni court that Sunday and since Al wasn't even holding a practice he sent Marquette SID Kevin Byrne to the Omni to ensure Dean Smith vacated the court promptly at one hour. When the hour was up Byrne told Smith it was Marquette's turn and a handful of Marquette people, none of them players or coaches, took the court and commenced a game of HORSE.
So while the UNC players were putting their uniform warm-ups back on Smith and his staff, dressed in suits, watched Byrne, Weingart, and four guys in jeans and sweats commence a round of HORSE. Smith asked Byrne where Al was and Byrne told a stunned Smith, "I think he's out riding his motorcycle." Smith stared at Byrne slack jawed for 30 seconds then simply walked away shaking his head.
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I remember the weekend before the '77 Ship Dean Smith and his assistants didn't slept a wink whereas the Marquette coaches were busily engaged in everything but game planning. Hank was speaking at a Coaches Conference, Majerus was on the road recruiting, and Al was riding a bike identical to his own back home that he bought on Saturday from an Atlanta Kawasaki dealer - he had arranged to sell it back to the dealer on Monday.
NCAA rules said that each team was allowed to practice one hour on the Omni court that Sunday and since Al wasn't even holding a practice he sent Marquette SID Kevin Byrne to the Omni to ensure Dean Smith vacated the court promptly at one hour. When the hour was up Byrne told Smith it was Marquette's turn and a handful of Marquette people, none of them players or coaches, took the court and commenced a game of HORSE.
So while the UNC players were putting their uniform warm-ups back on Smith and his staff, dressed in suits, watched Byrne, Weingart, and four guys in jeans and sweats commence a round of HORSE. Smith asked Byrne where Al was and Byrne told a stunned Smith, "I think he's out riding his motorcycle." Smith stared at Byrne slack jawed for 30 seconds then simply walked away shaking his head.
Awesome, awesome, awesome. I grew up in Indiana, with my family huge IU fans. They have never said it, but I'm pretty sure they hated Marquette in the '70s for stories just like this.
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I remember the weekend before the '77 Ship Dean Smith and his assistants didn't slept a wink whereas the Marquette coaches were busily engaged in everything but game planning. Hank was speaking at a Coaches Conference, Majerus was on the road recruiting, and Al was riding a bike identical to his own back home that he bought on Saturday from an Atlanta Kawasaki dealer - he had arranged to sell it back to the dealer on Monday.
NCAA rules said that each team was allowed to practice one hour on the Omni court that Sunday and since Al wasn't even holding a practice he sent Marquette SID Kevin Byrne to the Omni to ensure Dean Smith vacated the court promptly at one hour. When the hour was up Byrne told Smith it was Marquette's turn and a handful of Marquette people, none of them players or coaches, took the court and commenced a game of HORSE.
So while the UNC players were putting their uniform warm-ups back on Smith and his staff, dressed in suits, watched Byrne, Weingart, and four guys in jeans and sweats commence a round of HORSE. Smith asked Byrne where Al was and Byrne told a stunned Smith, "I think he's out riding his motorcycle." Smith stared at Byrne slack jawed for 30 seconds then simply walked away shaking his head.
My new most favorite Al story ever.
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My new most favorite Al story ever.
I love this. So much more fun than arguing about the current team.
Best Scoop posts in a long time! I miss Al!
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I miss Al too. Was had long talk with buddy at gym about this thread and we both said there will never be another Al.
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I miss Al too. Was had long talk with buddy at gym about this thread and we both said there will never be another Al.
Amen, Joe. The Almighty broke the mold after forging Alfred McGuire.
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The thing I remember most about 1974 was the NCAA rewarding North Carolina State for breaking the rules. They had been on a year's probation for violating recruiting rules, so the NCAA rewarded them by giving them home games in the entire tournament. They never left the state in winning the title. Al's Ts killed us in the title game but we were getting absolutely hosed on the calls.
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Amen, Joe. The Almighty broke the mold after forging Alfred McGuire.
Yep, Al was one of a kind.
Seashells and balloons.
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When Al walked into a room he owned it. I've known a few guys who had "it", but Al had "it" in spades. Dick Enberg hung with his share of big shots but he puts Al alone on top of his "most interesting person" list.
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vs IU
I was present in Baton Rouge for #1 vs #2. Many thought this was the real national championship game. Close game throughout. MU couldn't capitalize on Hoosier foul trouble enough to take out May, Benson, and Buckner.
Shortly after his taking the Texas Tech job, I went to lunch in Houston, and there was Bobby Knight, sitting alone, waiting to meet some Tech alums for lunch, one table over. I intro'd myself by noting he broke my heart in '76, as an MU/McGuire fan. Bobby said that was his best team ever, and then he said (maybe he was being polite....wait ...this was Knight, so it was more likely his blunt truth..lol) that he thought, going into the game, MU was the most serious threat to IU not going undefeated and to winning it all. He even agreed the game should not have been set up in the brackets until the final 4, saying ..."the NCAA got more serious about seedings after that one" . He didn't think Al's T fouls cost us the game, as he just smiled and said, "Well, that was just Al being Al" . Overall, you could tell he was still stinging about any talk of IU...waiting alone for lunch with a couple of Tech yokels left me feeling a little sad for his circumstances.
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Yep, Al was one of a kind.
Seashells and balloons.
I had the unbelievable privilege of working with him for 3 years on the MU television broadcasts when we owned the rights to them as a department. I'll never forget it and still have a few of the notes he hand wrote to me, one of which is framed in my man cave. He was a blast.
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Dug the highlights of that Final 4 up.
http://youtu.be/dMtGTxKpOz8
http://youtu.be/5-pf5LXeB90
http://youtu.be/ZIw-UzjLNQk
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Dug the highlights of that Final 4 up.
http://youtu.be/dMtGTxKpOz8
http://youtu.be/5-pf5LXeB90
http://youtu.be/ZIw-UzjLNQk
Funny you should mention these. i was actually watching them when I posted this thread.
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I was on campus the day Al announced he was retiring. It was finals week and nothing was a bigger downer for us than Al deciding to leave. Left a really bad feeling at the end of the semester.
For the better part of 10 years, Al was Marquette to the outside world. One of his great sayings, "A coach is a reflection of his team…. Mine are arrogant and obnoxious," could have very much applied to Marquette in the late 1960s and 1970s. Here was a small Catholic school on the edge of a bad neighborhood in Milwaukee with an outsized vision of itself largely because of our brash basketball coach.
The place hasn't been quite the same since -- but we're trying!
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This is a wonderful thread. Please everyone that experienced these things please keep telling these stories and keep them alive. As time passes we must keep the memory of AL and this era alive, this is what sets our program apart from the rest in college basketball and makes us special. We cannot let this fade over time.
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My favorite McGuire Quote: "A Notre Dame grad will pick his nose to make sure you see his class ring"?
My favorite other Al memory: I don't know where I saw this, but his pre-game dance around with the players before some game was hilarious. I just about split my side laughing when I saw the clip.
My personal Al stories: Al came out to Oconomowoc frequently to visit my uncle and shop at his clothing store. Usually rode his cycle and stopped at Kuhtz's General Store for a drink and a sandwich before or after.
I was working on my uncle's yard one day and Al drives up on his cycle and just starts talking about the beautiful day and how I should appreciate it and how lucky I was to be working outside that day.
Another time I was walking up my Uncle's lawn from the lake with my future ex-wife. Al was walking down to the lake. She really did not like basketball, but she sure ran ahead of me to fawn all over Al. I did not even know if she knew who he was until she started sprinting. He talked to her about non-basketball stuff for about 10 minutes. I am a die hard fan and wanted to talk hoops or MU history or something. I can't remember the conversation, but it was very interesting.
My uncle told me that after the '77 championship game (it could have been another game, but I am pretty sure it was the championship), Al had my uncle and some good friends hang with him very long after things died down. Ultimately, they figured out he lost his car and was waiting for all the cars to leave so he could find it.
Al was a one of a kind.
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Another time I was walking up my Uncle's lawn from the lake with my future ex-wife
Well done!
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Too many people talk about Al getting the 2 T's in 74' but not enough how awful the two calls were.
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My personal Al stories: Al came out to Oconomowoc frequently to visit my uncle and shop at his clothing store.
Snyder's?
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Too many people talk about Al getting the 2 T's in 74' but not enough how awful the two calls were.
Calls were bad, but Al was doing his thing before that...
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Too many people talk about Al getting the 2 T's in 74' but not enough how awful the two calls were.
Yep, especially that first one. Not even close to a charge.
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Yep, especially that first one. Not even close to a charge.
Yes that was on Marcus Washington I think. What a joke of a call. The guy was so far under the basket he was actually on the other side of it.
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There is a story about Al during the 1977 Championship run--I think they were in Oklahoma, staying in a hotel shaped something like the Hyatt in Milwaukee with a big, open area on the first floor. They practiced and Hank ran the practice--no one knew where Al was, but that wasn't unusual. Some idiot shows up riding a motorcycle in the main area--taking a lap around the atrium. the guy stops, pops off his helmet, and it was Al. He then rode out.
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Brad Palmer from Chicago media posted this in June. Classic from 1972 Chicago Alumni Luncheon.
http://youtu.be/Ta08uVdRzck
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Brad Palmer from Chicago media posted this in June. Classic from 1972 Chicago Alumni Luncheon.
http://youtu.be/Ta08uVdRzck
Classic. Thanks for sharing.
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Great moment to plug it: 2014 Al's Run
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EXgFge3l4Ug
I hear the mods are planning on organizing the fundraiser again.
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Does anyone remember if 76 was the year that the Russian BB team played both MU and Indiana in the preseason?
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Does anyone remember if 76 was the year that the Russian BB team played both MU and Indiana in the preseason?
They actually played in November of 1975.
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Here's a question: what if we had had won the 74 game and/or we won the OSU game and at least got to the Final four. Would we be talked about as the clear runner up to UCLA back then? Would MU in the 80s never have happened?
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Here's a question: what if we had had won the 74 game and/or we won the OSU game and at least got to the Final four. Would we be talked about as the clear runner up to UCLA back then? Would MU in the 80s never have happened?
Possibly yes.
Al retired.
Hank replaced him then stepped away from the post.
Majerus took over and then departed.
If 77's title - much closer chronologically than 74 - couldn't positively affect the 80s, then the 74 title probably wouldn't do much either.
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Here's a question: what if we had had won the 74 game and/or we won the OSU game and at least got to the Final four. Would we be talked about as the clear runner up to UCLA back then? Would MU in the 80s never have happened?
Two separate questions. First, we were the runner-up to UCLA. Nobody had more victories in the 1970s than Marquette, except for UCLA.
Second, if we had defeated NC State and tOSU, would the 1980s never have happened? Honestly, I doubt anything would have changed. The 1980s happened because of a series of bad management mistakes by administration that, like many of us, believed the good times would never end.
I suspect a lot of us thought we could plug Donald Duck into the head coaching role and the combination of our legacy and Al's past would have made sure we won, well, forever. We chose a master tactician in Hank. He was a fine man and stood for many of the things Marquette stood for. He wasn't Al and he wasn't, unfortunately, the dynamic force necessary to continue a top-flite basketball program into the next decade.
We compounded our problems by prematurely hiring Rick Majerus and then stumbling into the Pianoman. Had we not found Kevin O'Neill, we'd be the Loyola of Chicago of the north!
P.S. -- Given the talent we had, if Jim Chones, Larry McNeill and Maurice Lucas all had stayed for four years at MU, we probably would have had a decent chance at hanging National Championship banners in 1972, 1973, 1974 and 1975 to go with 1977. When Jim Chones left in 1972, for example, we were undefeated and had cut through our schedule like a blazing knife through butter. And then the roof fell in. Sorry Bill Walton, we would have kicked you a*s! And I like Bill Walton!
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Two separate questions. First, we were the runner-up to UCLA. Nobody had more victories in the 1970s than Marquette, except for UCLA.
Second, if we had defeated NC State and tOSU, would the 1980s never have happened? Honestly, I doubt anything would have changed. The 1980s happened because of a series of bad management mistakes by administration that, like many of us, believed the good times would never end.
I suspect a lot of us thought we could plug Donald Duck into the head coaching role and the combination of our legacy and Al's past would have made sure we won, well, forever. We chose a master tactician in Hank. He was a fine man and stood for many of the things Marquette stood for. He wasn't Al and he wasn't, unfortunately, the dynamic force necessary to continue a top-flite basketball program into the next decade.
We compounded our problems by prematurely hiring Rick Majerus and then stumbling into the Pianoman. Had we not found Kevin O'Neill, we'd be the Loyola of Chicago of the north!
P.S. -- Given the talent we had, if Jim Chones, Larry McNeill and Maurice Lucas all had stayed for four years at MU, we probably would have had a decent chance at hanging National Championship banners in 1972, 1973, 1974 and 1975 to go with 1977. When Jim Chones left in 1972, for example, we were undefeated and had cut through our schedule like a blazing knife through butter. And then the roof fell in. Sorry Bill Walton, we would have kicked you a*s! And I like Bill Walton!
I know we had the most victories, I meant be the obvious runner up. Outside of avid basketball fans I doubt many would immediately say MU if you were to ask the second best team of that era. I definitely agree about the Jim Chones situation, still don't understand why he left at such a weird time in the year. Was that common back then?
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Here's a question: what if we had had won the 74 game and/or we won the OSU game and at least got to the Final four. Would we be talked about as the clear runner up to UCLA back then? Would MU in the 80s never have happened?
I was a freshman in 85-86 and even at that time, it seemed like the 77 championship had been a million years ago. So, no, it would NOT have made a difference if we had won in 74 or even 75. The reason the program went downhill so fast was a combination of three things.
First, Majerus left the cupboard bare when he took off for the NBA in 86. He didn't do a good job of recruiting in his last year, because, I believe, he knew he was gone and just didn’t really care. Dukiet had his back against the wall from day one.
Second, after Majerus left, the admins made the mistake of trying to resurrect the same formula that achieved so much success for them with McGuire; namely hiring a young, unproven guy from a small college on the east coast with the hope of re-establishing a pipeline to New York talent (cracked sidewalks). It didn't work. Dukiet was no McGuire and simply didn't have the charisma or street smarts to pull it off.
Third, lack of conference affiliation killed us. In the 60s and 70s, our independence worked to our advantage by offering so much scheduling flexibility. By the 80s, times had changed and you had to be in a conference to recruit. Realizing this too late, the admins compounded their mistake by leaping at the first offer and joining a crappy conference. I remember McGuire at the time saying they moved too quickly and should have tried to join the Big East. Just imagine if we had in 1987!
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Well I am not sure the BE had any interest in Marquette back then. But yeah, the MCC thing was bad. Good think it was only a short term issue and the Great Midwest was developed just a few years later.
The other factor was that the University was struggling overall. The campus was aging. The neighborhood had really gotten bad (much worse than it is now), and enrollment was a problem. (I was a freshman in '86-87)
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The neighborhood had really gotten bad (much worse than it is now)...
"I disagree. I had a great time living around Marquette in the 80's and met lots of friends!"
- J. Dahmer
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recently watched the espn 30 for 30 on Bernie and Ernie
Was kind of surprised those two came out of NYC and went to Tennessee, when MU had the NYC pipeline. does any one know if we were in on those guys? Bernard seemed to have amiserable time in knoxville and was arrested and ruffed up by the cops on a few occassions , couldnt help but wonder how much more happy he would have bee at Mu and how much more happy we would of been to have him
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recently watched the espn 30 for 30 on Bernie and Ernie
Was kind of surprised those two came out of NYC and went to Tennessee, when MU had the NYC pipeline. does any one know if we were in on those guys? Bernard seemed to have amiserable time in knoxville and was arrested and ruffed up by the cops on a few occassions , couldnt help but wonder how much more happy he would have bee at Mu and how much more happy we would of been to have him
We played the University of Tennessee in, I believe, 1972, which was the first year of the Ernie and Bernie show. The year before, Tennessee came to Milwaukee and had their heads (arms, legs, feet, hands, heart, eyes, nose and about everything else) handed to them in a game they never even were close to being in (kinda like tOSU last year for us).
In 1972, with Ernie and Bernie and playing at Stokley Athletic Center in Knoxville, we got out in double overtime with our lives. I believe Ernie was the first African American ever to play for the University of Tennessee's basketball team.
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We played the University of Tennessee in, I believe, 1972, which was the first year of the Ernie and Bernie show. The year before, Tennessee came to Milwaukee and had their heads (arms, legs, feet, hands, heart, eyes, nose and about everything else) handed to them in a game they never even were close to being in (kinda like tOSU last year for us).
In 1972, with Ernie and Bernie and playing at Stokley Athletic Center in Knoxville, we got out in double overtime with our lives. I believe Ernie was the first African American ever to play for the University of Tennessee's basketball team.
That would be Bernie.
I don't think Ernie Grunfeld was African American. ;)
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I know we had the most victories, I meant be the obvious runner up. Outside of avid basketball fans I doubt many would immediately say MU if you were to ask the second best team of that era. I definitely agree about the Jim Chones situation, still don't understand why he left at such a weird time in the year. Was that common back then?
Most fans probably would have had a hard time picking ANY team as second best in that era. It was pretty much UCLA #1 and then everyone else. Who knows what might have been if Chones stayed and we had beaten the mighty Bruins?
As far as Chones leaving, keep in mind that was when the ABA was trying to beat the NBA for top college players. The ABA had no rules regarding waiting until a player graduated or finished a year. They made him an offer that he had to accept right away, not after the season ended. Al basically told him to take the sure money. I think Chones' mother was still working as a cleaning lady.
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That would be Bernie.
I don't think Ernie Grunfeld was African American. ;)
Yeup, you're right. I think Ernie was Jewish, making him the first Hebrew Volunteer.
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I know we had the most victories, I meant be the obvious runner up. Outside of avid basketball fans I doubt many would immediately say MU if you were to ask the second best team of that era. I definitely agree about the Jim Chones situation, still don't understand why he left at such a weird time in the year. Was that common back then?
Keep in mind though the next year Larry McNeill turned pro (against everyone's better judgment) and then just before the 1974-1975 school year began (or shortly after it started), Maurice Lucas signed a contract with the ABA Spirit of St. Louis. In 1975, with Lucas, Ellis and Earl Tatum, along with Butch Lee and Lloyd Walton, we would have been dynamite. Lucas leaving left a huge hole in our team. We made the NCAA but lost to a tough Alabama team.
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In 1975 MU ended the regular season at 23-3 and ranked 5th. Once again it was Kentucky in the first round. This time in Tuscaloosa, Alabama.
Kentucky jumped out to an early 9 point lead but MU went on a 21-4 run late in the first half to build a 28-25 halftime lead.
UK using it's size to overpower Ellis, Homan and Tatum (Earl fouled out with more than 16 minutes left) inside erupted for 51 points in the second half and pulled away for a 22 point margin.
Kentucky went on to beat undefeated Indiana in the Regional final and eventually lost to UCLA in the championship game.
After seeing the depth, and size, of the Indiana and Kentucky teams, McGuire vowed to increase the number of scholarships (8) Marquette used. No longer would the two scholarships per season and filling the remainder of the roster out with walkons be able to compete with the top squads.
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In 1975 MU ended the regular season at 23-3 and ranked 5th. Once again it was Kentucky in the first round. This time in Tuscaloosa, Alabama.
I am really getting old. I should have remembered that.
I remember the day because I split my head open in an accident at McCormick Hall. I was bleeding all over the place and went to County General to get it fixed. Maybe that's why I don't remember who we played.
I feel dumb!
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In 1975 MU ended the regular season at 23-3 and ranked 5th. Once again it was Kentucky in the first round. This time in Tuscaloosa, Alabama.
Kentucky jumped out to an early 9 point lead but MU went on a 21-4 run late in the first half to build a 28-25 halftime lead.
UK using it's size to overpower Ellis, Homan and Tatum (Earl fouled out with more than 16 minutes left) inside erupted for 51 points in the second half and pulled away for a 22 point margin.
At 14, that was my first MU tournament game in person. If I remember correctly, I think Earl even got his 4th foul late in the first half, right?
The Bama fans were ruthless - cheering for conference foe UK over that school from up north! I recall that the MU band played the Alabama fight song, but that didn't do anything to sway the crowd.
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Did we used to play an easier schedule or something? It just seams odd that we were putting up such great records and didn't make it far that often. Or were we just seeded poorly for our teams most years?
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Did we used to play an easier schedule or something? It just seams odd that we were putting up such great records and didn't make it far that often. Or were we just seeded poorly for our teams most years?
One of the criticisms of Marquette was that as an independent we played a much easier schedule than did teams from the power conferences. Whether correct or not, that was the perception.
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recently watched the espn 30 for 30 on Bernie and Ernie
Was kind of surprised those two came out of NYC and went to Tennessee, when MU had the NYC pipeline. does any one know if we were in on those guys? Bernard seemed to have amiserable time in knoxville and was arrested and ruffed up by the cops on a few occassions , couldnt help but wonder how much more happy he would have bee at Mu and how much more happy we would of been to have him
Actually, I had that discussion with Ernie during his GM tenure with the Bucks. Al, indeed, did recruit Grunfeld. They had that Long Island thing goin' on. But, in the end, the Jesuit factor came into play. Things have changed over the past 40 years, aina?
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One of the criticisms of Marquette was that as an independent we played a much easier schedule than did teams from the power conferences. Whether correct or not, that was the perception.
I don't know about that. There were plenty of independents during Al's time. There was no BE. Our schedules were always decent.
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Did we used to play an easier schedule or something? It just seams odd that we were putting up such great records and didn't make it far that often. Or were we just seeded poorly for our teams most years?
There really wasn't seeding back then - teams were placed more geographically, regardless of how stacked this made certain regions. In '76, National #2 MU lost to National #1 IU...in the Mideast Regional Final. And in #78, I believe we were #2 and would have played #1 UK in the Mideast Regional second round if we hadn't been hosed in the opening game against Miami. Both IU and UK went on to win the Championship those years.
Also, "didn't make it that far" is subjective - we made it at least to the Sweet Sixteen or Elite Eight nearly every season once Al got things rolling. Look at the finishes of Al's last seven teams:
'71: Sweet Sixteen
'72: Sweet Sixteen
'73: Sweet Sixteen
'74: National Runner up
'75: One and done (lost to eventual national runner up UK)
'76: Elite Eight (lost to eventual NC IU)
'77: National Champs
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There really wasn't seeding back then - teams were placed more geographically, regardless of how stacked this made certain regions. In '76, National #2 MU lost to National #1 IU...in the Mideast Regional Final. And in #78, I believe we were #2 and would have played #1 UK in the Mideast Regional second round if we hadn't been hosed in the opening game against Miami. Both IU and UK went on to win the Championship those years.
Also, "didn't make it that far" is subjective - we made it at least to the Sweet Sixteen or Elite Eight nearly every season once Al got things rolling. Look at the finishes of Al's last seven teams:
'71: Sweet Sixteen
'72: Sweet Sixteen
'73: Sweet Sixteen
'74: National Runner up
'75: One and done (lost to eventual national runner up UK)
'76: Elite Eight (lost to eventual NC IU)
'77: National Champs
Wasn't sweet16 just winning one game back then?
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Wasn't sweet16 just winning one game back then?
Yes, but just getting in was a much bigger deal.
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Actually, I had that discussion with Ernie during his GM tenure with the Bucks. Al, indeed, did recruit Grunfeld. They had that Long Island thing goin' on. But, in the end, the Jesuit factor came into play. Things have changed over the past 40 years, aina?
Any idea about Bernard King? Seems like he would have been a prototypical Al guy.
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Have no knowledge of any MU interest in Bernard. Maybe, Albert? Not for sure on that, doe.
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wasn't Albert King the top player in the country?
If memory serves, he verbaled to 3-4 places before ending up with Lefty in Maryland.
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wasn't Albert King the top player in the country?
In his day he was. Albert King was one of the greatest blues players ever. If Al could have signed him the pre-game Star Spangled Banner would have been surreal.
(http://www.mojohand.com/blueslyrics/picgallery/Albert%2BKing.jpg)
(http://images.popmatters.com/news_art/k/kingvaughn-splsh.jpg)
(http://t2.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcSgcHSmNj1Y8vF2Llo8PerBzBRfvZ-T8IHKSKp2rowHnMfGpTr_RQ)
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The Velvet Bulldozer.
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So, I live in Michigan not far from Detroit and I was watching a TV commercial last night that was promoting a new network for the University of Detroit Titans basketball team. The commercial showed a series of pictures from past teams and one in particular caught my eye. It was from 1977 and showed two UD players wearing warm-ups with nothing but the words "Beat Marquette" on them. I managed to snap a picture of it (below). Just shows you the amount of respect that McGuire and MU had back in those days that a team would go through the trouble and expense of having custom warm-ups made for just ONE opponent. Then I did some research and found the underlying story behind them. Looks like Dick Vitale, then coach of UD, had them made prior to playing us at the MECCA in 1977. He believed that an NCAA birth was on the line and that he HAD to beat us to get in. In his book "Living a Dream" he makes reference to the game, it's importance, and his relationship with Al McGuire and Larry Donald, the editor of Basketball Weekly at the time. I pasted the text next to the picture.
Turns out the importance of the game was not lost on his players either. They upset us on our home court in the final seconds and would later earn an NCAA bid and make it to the Sweet Sixteen in Vitale's final season as head coach. We had the last laugh though, winning the National Championship!!
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It was a different world then. There was no internet and no big-time recruiting services that said so and so was going to such and such university. Tweets were what birds did, not what teen-aged basketball players did when coaches expressed interest.
We discussed this once before on Scoop, but if the internet, facebook and tweets, texting and other social media existed in the 1970s, I'm not sure how Al would have been perceived.
I can only imagine a 1974 Scoop when Al took the second technical at Greensboro against NC State. It would have been vicious.
Not many care to remember but Al more than got his when he (and his wife) were roundly booed when Marquette tried to honor Al after his final home game. Marquette had just lost its third straight home game to Wichita State which everyone figured that made it curtains for getting into the NCAA tournament that year. Al never mentioned it, but Bill Neary never forgot - giving the finger to many fans during the national championship victory parade.
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Not many care to remember but Al more than got his when he (and his wife) were roundly booed when Marquette tried to honor Al after his final home game. Marquette had just lost its third straight home game to Wichita State which everyone figured that made it curtains for getting into the NCAA tournament that year. Al never mentioned it, but Bill Neary never forgot - giving the finger to many fans during the national championship victory parade.
That wasn't the only time that Al and the Warriors were booed at home
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Man, looking back at that 1977 schedule it's almost surprising that we even got in the tourney at all. Like you said, we lost 3 in row at home then faced 5 straight road games to close out the season. Knowing that McGuire was already leaving, it's easy to see why the fan base might have been frustrated at that point. And like Al later acknowledged, had the committee waited until after the loss to Michigan to make their decision, we would never have gotten in at all. Fortunately, Al's lucky suit saved us!
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Not many care to remember but Al more than got his when he (and his wife) were roundly booed when Marquette tried to honor Al after his final home game. Marquette had just lost its third straight home game to Wichita State which everyone figured that made it curtains for getting into the NCAA tournament that year. Al never mentioned it, but Bill Neary never forgot - giving the finger to many fans during the national championship victory parade.
I was there that day.
I think the booing was less for Al than for the half-hearted effort the team put out that day. We were in fact playing Wichita State and we were sucking wind all day. I have my own theories as to why but I'll keep them to myself -- it's almost 40 years later and there's no sense repeating why.
All I'll say is that Al could only work with what he had. That day, the NCAA Champions-to-be were not very good. Their effort was not up to what we had expected.
Of course we booed. And Neary flipped us off because he knew what we knew -- we were booing them that day. Not Al.
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IIRC correctly was Cheese Johnson the big center on Wichta St. With that name he should have played in Wisconsin.
Didn't Al change his suit at halftime of hte Michigan game, signifying we were in? He didn't need the lucky suit any more.
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Didn't Al change his suit at halftime of hte Michigan game, signifying we were in? He didn't need the lucky suit any more.
Yes
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Al continued to wear his lucky suit throughout the Tourney run.
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In his day he was. Albert King was one of the greatest blues players ever. If Al could have signed him the pre-game Star Spangled Banner would have been surreal.
(http://www.mojohand.com/blueslyrics/picgallery/Albert%2BKing.jpg)
(http://images.popmatters.com/news_art/k/kingvaughn-splsh.jpg)
(http://t2.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcSgcHSmNj1Y8vF2Llo8PerBzBRfvZ-T8IHKSKp2rowHnMfGpTr_RQ)
He was . But BB King is still my number 1.
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I believe Bob Elmore (brother of Len Elmore) was the starting center for Wichita State and "Cheese" Johnson was a slashing guard or small forward. He destroyed Marquette that day. I was in the student section and heard the fans booing and was shocked that they would do that. I knew a few players on the team and they weren't happy about it and backed Neary 100%.
I'll ask this of people that know more than me about the situation at that time. I heard that Jim Valvano (then the coach at Iona) was interested in the Marquette, job but that the hierarchy at Marquette didn't want another brash New Yorker as coach.
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Actually, I had that discussion with Ernie during his GM tenure with the Bucks. Al, indeed, did recruit Grunfeld. They had that Long Island thing goin' on. But, in the end, the Jesuit factor came into play. Things have changed over the past 40 years, aina?
Yeah ... Wojo knows how to recruit members of the Tribe!
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I too was at the games-never missed a home game-and remember booing Dickie Vitale when he danced at midcourt after the Titans win. I also remember the booing after the loss to the Shockers, believe it was directed at the players, but would have to have polled every one that was booing to know.
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Al continued to wear his lucky suit throughout the Tourney run.
As should the conductor of a symphony...
http://youtu.be/owKRlgpmSa0
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I was there that day.
I think the booing was less for Al than for the half-hearted effort the team put out that day. We were in fact playing Wichita State and we were sucking wind all day. I have my own theories as to why but I'll keep them to myself -- it's almost 40 years later and there's no sense repeating why.
All I'll say is that Al could only work with what he had. That day, the NCAA Champions-to-be were not very good. Their effort was not up to what we had expected.
Of course we booed. And Neary flipped us off because he knew what we knew -- we were booing them that day. Not Al.
I too was at the games-never missed a home game-and remember booing Dickie Vitale when he danced at midcourt after the Titans win. I also remember the booing after the loss to the Shockers, believe it was directed at the players, but would have to have polled every one that was booing to know.
I was at the game and my memory was that the booing continued after the game during Al's retirement ceremony.
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I was at the game and my memory was that the booing continued after the game during Al's retirement ceremony.
Don't think I was booing. More disappointed and kinda angry at the way things transgressed that day (kinda like how I felt last season). I loved Al then and now and so I seriously doubt I had the bad taste to boo a guy who was the closest thing I had to a sports hero.
Of course I was in college and so bad taste was in my genetic code. However, I can't see myself ever having booed Al. I didn't even scream when he got the double technicals in 1974.
As to Al's ceremony, if the booing continued, it was because we were angry at the players, not Al. And they had it coming that day -- more than any other game in the four years I was at Marquette.
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I was at the game and my memory was that the booing continued after the game during Al's retirement ceremony.
I was also at that game and like you, Murray, I think the jeers were for coach and players.
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Al's last home game against WS was ugly across the board. Please remember I was 14 at the time, but Al was honored at halftime. The place was beyond crazy from start to finish. Much if not all, of the booing was intending for the refs. Again, long time ago, but I believe the refs had very difficult time even leaving the arena that night. Things got wild and fitting ending of Al's time at that barn.