....Believe it or not, the noise level in MSG for those games rivalled that in the RHG. Some people on this board ask whether we can capture St. John's supposed position as "NYC's college team." Back in '71, nobody was even talking about St. John's. What they were talking about was how an upstart team of true student-athletes was playing basketball as exciting as the Knicks'--and that during a time when the Knicks were playing championship-caliber basketball. Who cares if St. John's ducks us? It's just one more indication of that program's degraded status. The future belongs to Fordham, if we have the good sense to keep building on what we've achieved so far. Yes, we should honor that '70-71 Fordham team for what it accomplished, and (if we have any class at all) we'll do so next season. But this shouldn't just be an exercise in nostalgia. That team's success should be a model and a challenge to us today--reminding us not just where we've been, but where we can go from here. -- Fordham Rams Basketball Message Board

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Date Posted: Sun March 20, 2005 15:45:23
Author: Ram'69
Subject: ....Believe it or not, the noise level in MSG for those games rivalled that in the RHG. Some people on this board ask whether we can capture St. John's supposed position as "NYC's college team." Back in '71, nobody was even talking about St. John's. What they were talking about was how an upstart team of true student-athletes was playing basketball as exciting as the Knicks'--and that during a time when the Knicks were playing championship-caliber basketball. Who cares if St. John's ducks us? It's just one more indication of that program's degraded status. The future belongs to Fordham, if we have the good sense to keep building on what we've achieved so far. Yes, we should honor that '70-71 Fordham team for what it accomplished, and (if we have any class at all) we'll do so next season. But this shouldn't just be an exercise in nostalgia. That team's success should be a model and a challenge to us today--reminding us not just where we've been, but where we can go from here.
In reply to: Ram'69 's message, "It's understandable that current students and younger alums would say "Enough Already!" to us old grads reminiscing about the '70-71 team. Yet, you truly had to be there to understand the excitement which that '70-71 basketball team generated. They had nowhere near the height, muscle, or talent that many of our opponents had; they started off ranked something like 125 in the pre-season polls; but they ultimately played their way into the top ten through sheer guts and hustle. In two successive weeks in '71, they brought 19,500 fans to MSG--first to see us beat Notre Dame and then to see us lose an overtime heart-breaker to second-ranked Marquette. Charley Yelverton captured the City's imagination, holding ND's Adrian Dantley in check in the first game, and alternately covering Marquette's Dean Meminger, and Jim Chones in the second one (as I recall, Charley repeatedly rejected shots by Chones who was a good 10 inches taller). More...." on Sun March 20, 2005 14:59:49

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A great post. You're right - it makes no difference that St. John's is ducking us. We need to chart our own course & stick with it until we have a program that competes at the highest level year in and year out. The problem we had in not being able to sustain the '71 success was there was no program infrastructure to build on. It was like a house of cards - Ed Conlin recruited the players on a shoestring budget using guile, hard work & charm. Digger came in & made the team into a machine that could beat just about anybody in the country, & NY adopted us as it's "home town team". All of NY was talking about the Rams, from cabdrivers to CEO's. Then Digger left, a bad hire decision was made, the budget remained at the shoestring level, & we had arguably the toughest schedule in the country. It just fell apart. This time we need to make sure the foundation's built & sustained. Fordham can be much better than St. John's - we just need the right leadership & institutional support. (NT) -- Rambacker, Sun March 20, 2005 22:17:48
- Ram'69 and Rambacker--Excellent posts which show the relevance of Fordham's past to our present and future. Like Digger, Whit knows how to turn a team around, and how to inspire young people. BUT (and this is the million dollar question) will Whit follow Digger's bad example and leave us for a "bigger" program as soon as we've built up a head of steam? Some people (see posts above) seem to think that it is only a matter of time until he leaves Rose Hill for NC State or some such place. (NT) -- Nervous Nelly, Mon March 21, 2005 15:26:16
  - New York is the biggest stage for success on our planet. If Fordham makes it worthwhile for DW to stay, both from a financial standpoint and in terms of institutional support, there will be no reason for him to leave. And if he still does, if we do those things, the job will be very attractive for another outstanding coach to step in and continue to build on our success. It's all about if Fordham as an institution wants to make it happen. Let's hope Fr. McShane understands that. (NT) -- Rambacker, Mon March 21, 2005 22:30:00
  - I don't know DW's inclinations, but I think it's wrong to assume that he's inevitably going to walk out on us. From a distance, it would seem that Fordham is in fact a pretty good fit for him. Located in the basketball and media capital of the world, Fordham is a respected academic university where his no-nonsense approach is appreciated. He doesn't have to cater to "stars" with an attitude, or ride herd on potential felons--as he might have to at some big basketball schools. If DW keeps getting support from the Fordham community; if we pay him what he's worth; and if we provide him the resources he needs, maybe he'll see Fordham not as a stepping-stone, but as a place to have a long and satisfying career. (NT) -- Ram'69, Tue March 22, 2005 18:04:57
    - Well said. I think that could be a realistic scenario, but we need to start planning for a convocations center fairly soon if it's to happen. As much as I love the old gym, I doubt if he will stick around to play in the RHG for the long term. We need to deal with this reality. He is a big time coach - if we want to compete on the national stage, we need to do this right. (NT) -- Rambacker, Tue March 22, 2005 18:24:44
      - Right on target. With all the freshmen, DW likes the intimacy of the RHG. Eventually, though, he (and most of us) will want an arena more appropriate to a program on the rise. We should start soon on the planning (albeit long-term) for a new on-campus arena. (NT) -- Ram'69, Tue March 22, 2005 22:26:54
    - The RHG was an issue when Digger Phelps left Fordham back in '71. After being planned as a major intercollegiate arena, the Lombardi Center was downgraded to what it is today. Digger probably would have left for ND anyway, but the refusal to build a better facility certainly reinforced his decision to leave. Here we are 24 years later, and the RHG is still an issue. I love the place, and I'll admit it is an exciting venue to see a game. But if we intend to be taken seriously on the national level, we must build an arena that is appropriate to that level of competition. Wouldn't it be ironic if the administration's reluctance to build a new gym again contributes to a good coach's leaving us. Will we ever learn? (NT) -- JCC, Wed March 23, 2005 14:01:19
      - Woops! Make that: "34 YEARS LATER!" (NT) -- JCC, Wed March 23, 2005 14:17:08
        It is amazing that it's still an issue today after all this time. History seems to repeat itself at Fordham when it comes to athletics. Let's hope the McShane era is different. (NT) -- Rambacker, Wed March 23, 2005 16:00:04

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