Grady Wilson
Footballguy
One of the best 30 for 30's I've seen.
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30 for 30 - Big East Conference (1 Viewer)
- Thread starter Grady Wilson
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PIK95
Footballguy
That was great and sad at the same time. With our family having P.C. season tickets through the 80's and 90's I was very lucky to see some great coaches and players come through. A.I. was the most talented and the entertaining athlete and Pitino was god around here. I remember watching Jerome Lane smash that backboard on my lil black and white TV while watching the big east network or whatever it was at the time. It was bigger then Monday night football for me back then. We were lucky to have it.
Fariq
Footballguy
I saw Iverson play at SHU. Georgetown won 80-60.
I did not watch basketball under 1990, yet I amazingly saw the Lane play live while channel surfing (with an old clunky brown remote control with wood paneling and a wire). If I was five seconds too slow, I would not have seen the destruction.
I did not watch basketball under 1990, yet I amazingly saw the Lane play live while channel surfing (with an old clunky brown remote control with wood paneling and a wire). If I was five seconds too slow, I would not have seen the destruction.
Captain Quinoa
Footballguy
My sisters went to high school with Jerome Lane so I was always a big fan. Still can't figure out how that Pitt team lost to Will freaking Perdue and Vandy in 88.
I thought it was one of the best 30-for-30s, but perhaps that's because I identify with it as much as I do.
It captured the problem Gavitt was trying to solve with the conference, the difficulty of bringing the group together, and then their meteoric rise with many of the interesting details covered vividly. As a Syracuse native who grew up in the 80's, the conference helped define my childhood and obviously I was not alone. There are millions of us who have had this part of who we are taken from us.
The saddest part to me was the pans of the crowd at last year's Syracuse-Georgetown BET semi-finals showing kids with their dads. I wanted to bring my kids with me to MSG in March for a weekend as I had done as child to watch Syracuse vs Georgetown/Providence/Nova/St John's. It helped center my world around NYC; creating an Emerald City quality to that place that still lives with me today.
Most importantly, it taught me about eastern basketball and clearly connected the dots in my young head to the CYO basketball I'd play every day in Syracuse to the big-time-nature of the mostly-Catholic-gym-schools that made up the conference. There was a tightly knit network that I somehow connected with. Among many little connections, one that comes to mind is my Catholic elementary school basketball coach (yes, elementary..who was far too good for the job, but was donating his time with all his heart) was close with Beilein who coached Lemoyne who was loosely tied in with one of SU's assistants which tied us all to the varied basketball camps in the region, including Boeheim's of course. There was a connectivity to this tradition and culture that just isnt there with Carolina blue-bloods and never will be; no matter where the tournament is played.
It captured the problem Gavitt was trying to solve with the conference, the difficulty of bringing the group together, and then their meteoric rise with many of the interesting details covered vividly. As a Syracuse native who grew up in the 80's, the conference helped define my childhood and obviously I was not alone. There are millions of us who have had this part of who we are taken from us.
The saddest part to me was the pans of the crowd at last year's Syracuse-Georgetown BET semi-finals showing kids with their dads. I wanted to bring my kids with me to MSG in March for a weekend as I had done as child to watch Syracuse vs Georgetown/Providence/Nova/St John's. It helped center my world around NYC; creating an Emerald City quality to that place that still lives with me today.
Most importantly, it taught me about eastern basketball and clearly connected the dots in my young head to the CYO basketball I'd play every day in Syracuse to the big-time-nature of the mostly-Catholic-gym-schools that made up the conference. There was a tightly knit network that I somehow connected with. Among many little connections, one that comes to mind is my Catholic elementary school basketball coach (yes, elementary..who was far too good for the job, but was donating his time with all his heart) was close with Beilein who coached Lemoyne who was loosely tied in with one of SU's assistants which tied us all to the varied basketball camps in the region, including Boeheim's of course. There was a connectivity to this tradition and culture that just isnt there with Carolina blue-bloods and never will be; no matter where the tournament is played.
Hooper31
Footballguy
Wow. First thing that came to mind for me was Lane smashing that backboard. Sort of cool to see several others mention him as well.
I grew up with the Big East. I graduated from high school in 87 and lived for basketball. The first brackett I remember filling out was the 83 NC State year. Became a big UNLV fan when I saw Tarkanian chewing on a towel long before Grandmama arrived. Got to see Georgetown win a title when the final four came our way in Seattle. Lived for CBS's "The road to...". Fell in love with Danny and the miracles.
Big East was a monster conference. Mullin, Ewing, and Washington had epic battles, but there were TONS of other players they didn't mention. I don't think I heard Seikaly and Coleman's name once. Charles Smith from Pitt? I guess the list is probably way too long to get them all.
I grew up with the Big East. I graduated from high school in 87 and lived for basketball. The first brackett I remember filling out was the 83 NC State year. Became a big UNLV fan when I saw Tarkanian chewing on a towel long before Grandmama arrived. Got to see Georgetown win a title when the final four came our way in Seattle. Lived for CBS's "The road to...". Fell in love with Danny and the miracles.
Big East was a monster conference. Mullin, Ewing, and Washington had epic battles, but there were TONS of other players they didn't mention. I don't think I heard Seikaly and Coleman's name once. Charles Smith from Pitt? I guess the list is probably way too long to get them all.
Gadzooks
Footballguy
After watching it I thought about what a huge Syracuse/Big East junkie I was growing up and all the great SU players that passed the torch during my childhood (my family came from Syracuse so Orange was drilled into me from the time I could walk) In elementary school I used to write "31" on the back of my t-shirts with a marker for the Pearl and loved watching him and Raph Addison and Wendell Alexis and then in Junior High was the years of Sherman Douglas, Seikaly, Coleman and Stephen Thompson and then came Billy Owens and then Lawrence Moten. I used to love "Big Monday". I've never really gotten into college basketball or SU since probably the early to mid 90's. It was great to re-live those days while watching last night. And I will go to my death bed believing no one ever had a cross over dribble as good as the Pearl (sorry Tim Hardaway, but the Pearl's was better)
Premier
Footballguy
They really glossed over how the commissioners passed over a 1.5 billion dollar tv deal a few years ago hoping to get more. They ended up with about 20 million total. Hard to believe that they weren't all fired for gross incompetence.
Of course in the show they smoothed right over that and said the breakup was inevitable and just meant to be....but it wasn't. A billion dollars would have saved all of this. Whatever.
Of course in the show they smoothed right over that and said the breakup was inevitable and just meant to be....but it wasn't. A billion dollars would have saved all of this. Whatever.
No kidding. No one in the Syracuse media dares ask Dr Gross anymore than superficial questions about it.
Given that there was a national television program dedicated to the Big East with Syracuse at the fore-front of the discussion, you would think someone at the Post Standard would do an investigative piece to find out what really happened at SU. Of course we know it was about the $$$ on a superficial level and that's why it happened; but go beyond that....
- Who was in that room making the decisions?
- What did Gross' presentation (assuming he made one) to the Board of Trustees look like?
- Who in the room were the traditionalist that wanted to find an alternative to jumping off the ship that we built with our own hands?
- Who led the pragmatists? Gross?
- Did the previous generation; ie Jake Crouthamel or even Jim Boeheim have any chance to weigh-in at all?
- What role did Paul Taglbiue play, if any?
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Timmay
Footballguy
Boston
Footballguy
Grew up in Rhody with PC season tix (Dad was an Alum)...went to college close to UConn and have lived in the Boston area since the early 90's...in it's heyday this conference was as fun a league as there could be...everyone remembers the big names but each team seemed to have role players that you grew to hate or respect...guys like Michael Graham of Georgetown, Harold Triche of the Cuse (I swear to God he played there for 8 years), Matt Brust of St. John's, Toraino Walker of UConn and Marty Conlon of PC are names that littered that landscape...to this day one of the best sporting events I have ever attended was UConn knocking off Georgetown with Mutombo and Mourning at the Hartford Civic Center...this was at the beginning of UConn becoming a big-time program and I still remember the electricity in the building that evening...
Uruk-Hai
Footballguy
I thought Conlon was at BC when Gary coached there? Michael Adams was there, too. Or am I thinking of another big, goofy-looking, white dude who was really good? BC also had a guy around then who's name completely escapes me but was an AA - kind of pudgy guy that could score in buckets.
Speaking of pudgy guys who could score, Corny Thompson at UConn was another.
Georgetown at the time was growing fast. They already had Tom Skates, Bebe Durham, and Big Sky Shelton but landing Sleepy Floyd really put them on the map. Then, of course, Ewing and the deluge of top recruits. John Thompson really took advantage of Lefty's alienation of the local DC/Baltimore market.
I have this on the DVR waiting for me. I grew up in Pittsburgh so of course I was watching when "Send it in, Jerome!" happened. My first memory of disappointment was the aforementioned OT loss to Vandy and Barry ####### Goheen. Jason Matthews from the corner, he and Sean Miller automatic from the line, Lane rebounding everything in the arena, Brian Shorter battling the flu and beating Syracuse pretty much by himself...
Missed it this year.
Missed it this year.
I remember '88 game at the Dome very well. Last game of the reg season. Pitt won by a point. I was po'd. : )
Boston
Footballguy
Conlon was a PC kid...actually played a little pro as well...maybe you are thinking of Curley, Clark or Murphy from BC...all big white kids with some game...I think the other guy you are thinking of is Gerard Abrams...wide-body who could play but never fully developed after a quick start...
Koya
Footballguy
While I really enjoyed the piece, it focused a bit too much on the coaches and the '80's. Yes, that was the meteoric rise, but how do you completely gloss over (really, ignore) UCONN's rise to dominance? Why so little focus on players other than a couple that they highlighted? What about the 90's as an established conference that become a mega-conference sending a ton of talent to the NBA? What about the early echos of when UM, VT and BC left... which they touched on in a graphic, if I can recall.
So, while good, it was too narrow in scope and seemed to stay on the limited topics of the 80's and those coaches while giving short thrift to a lot of other potential story lines that helped make the big east - and become its undoing.
So, while good, it was too narrow in scope and seemed to stay on the limited topics of the 80's and those coaches while giving short thrift to a lot of other potential story lines that helped make the big east - and become its undoing.
Raider Nation
Devil's Advocate
On ESPN2 at the bottom of the hour. Very enjoyable 30 for 30.
Raider Nation
Devil's Advocate
Some good names thrown around in this thread. Raise your hand if you remember Jacek Duda!
Raider Nation
Devil's Advocate
Those Cuse teams were so fun to watch. Boeheim should have another title (at least). I think Coleman cost him one at the FT line.
Grady Wilson
Footballguy
I believe he was a Providence player from their 1987 Final Four team, correct? Maybe I'm thinking of someone else.
Raider Nation
Devil's Advocate
Yep. Big and slow. Mostly big.
Grady Wilson
Footballguy
That was the team with Billy Donovan and I believe Delray Brooks or something like that. I think he was an IU transfer...
Raider Nation
Devil's Advocate
ILUVBEER99
Footballguy
i thought it was one of the worst 30/30's so far. i only made it through half of it so maybe it got a lot better at the end.
Yea, DC missed the front end before Smart's shot.
Days of silence in my house ensued...roof stoof
Uruk-Hai
Footballguy
Uruk-Hai
Footballguy
A little off-topic, but what a run of title games in the 80s. '82 was GTown/UNC Jordan & "threw it away to Worthy". '83, Lo Charles "won it on the dunk!". '84 was Freddie Brown's redemption over a still-stacked Houston. '85 was Nova/GTown (which wasn't the upset for the ages most would have you believe; Nova was a bad matchup for the Hoyas and they still had to play out of their minds to win). '86 was Never Nervous Pervis over Duke. '87 was the Cuse/Indiana game. '88 was Danny & the Miracles over rival (& loaded) Oklahoma. '89 was that crazy Michigan/ Seton Hall game.
I understood that the 80s would be the focus, but at times it seemed like a Georgetown documentary. It needed a much more significant focus as to what happened in the post Dave Gavitt years, especially given that they had two hours to work with - instead they just opted for a quick summary over a few minutes. It was also interesting that they interviewed Calhoun for the documentary, yet not a single reference to UConn's success.Overall, it was pretty good. But nowhere near the best 30 for 30s.
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Hooper31
Footballguy
Brooks was another strong memory for me. Bobby Knight railed on and on about him in "Season on the brink". Kid was just too passive for an ####### like Knight. Went on to success with Providence making Donovan and Pitino household names.
Uruk-Hai
Footballguy
I think some folks here are missing the point due to biases or age. The Big East was a made-for-TV event, and the first in college hoops. On top of that, it was "city" ball. It basically made ESPN, for better or worse. In the 80s, the term "Big East" had cache and was a brand - no other conference had a synchronicity like it did with ESPN. Nowadays, everyone is on TV. Not so, back then. The ACC was syndicated. Much has been made of the Fab Five as cultural influences, but mid-80s Big East was both better and before. In the 2000s, the Big East was just another conference, though a damned fine one. That's why they concentrated on the 80s. And John Thompson was the behemoth that strode that era. You may not like it, but it's the ### ####ed truth.
elguapo07
Footballguy
I remember Ewing coming out of HS (Cambridge Ringe & Latin) and his decision came down between Georgetown or BC. He hit the ground running to say the least and along with Cuse, SJU and Nova the BE just exploded. I always wondered "what if" if he went to BC. I believe his HS coach, Mike Jarvis, wasn't a fan of BC though.
mr. furley
Footballguy
nowadays a guy pushes another, gets tossed from the game, suspended by the university, destroyed by the media and fans as a thug and his college life is ruined
in the Big East 80s teams more or less rioted and nobody batted an eye
how the world has changed
in the Big East 80s teams more or less rioted and nobody batted an eye
how the world has changed
