jerseyshorejohnny
Well-known member
Heard that Chris and Coach Carnesecca will be profiled on 60 Minutes to air in late November or early December
Chris / 60 Minutes
- Thread starter jerseyshorejohnny
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Very cool. It's a great story and we have no better ambassadors than Coach C and now Chris.
While I know we'll have to suffer through the "program in disarray" parts of the story, it will be great to have the national attention on these two guys.
While I know we'll have to suffer through the "program in disarray" parts of the story, it will be great to have the national attention on these two guys.
The ratings are -150 and no one watches it anymore.
I actually used to watch it a lot but not so much anymore.
60 Minutes still gets huge ratings, relative to everything else that's out there. It was #7 in the 18-49 demographic last week.
This is going to be tremendous exposure for the program.
http://tvbythenumbers.zap2it.com/2015/10/13/broadcast-weekly-top-25-oct-5-11-2015/478287/
L J S A
Well-known member
Hopefully, it's one of their puff pieces, and not an "in-depth, investigative report."
But, with Mike Wallace now dead, they should have no one to fear, anyway.
P.S. I'm sure it's a complementary piece.
If Lou is there the theme seems pretty obvious -- local boy comes home to be savior and to be the mentor for a new generation of kids like Coach Carnesecca was for him. I guarantee they will mention his battle with alcoholism, but the overriding message will be that he's been sober for 27 years and he expects the same discipline from his players in everything they do while at the school. Should be a great 8 to 10 minutes for St. John's basketball fans, and hopefully catches the eye of the parent of a star in the middle of nowhere.
beast of the east
Active member
There has never been, nor will there be, a better ambassador for St. John's University than Lou Carnesecca. There will be better coaches, and perhaps those who know would say Lapchick was one, and Lou would likely wholeheartedly agree.
When honored by SJU at the President's dinner a few years back (at Mike Francessa's last year as emcee), Mr. Carnesecca in his acceptance speech did not mention basketball even once. He did speak about how his Catholic, Vincentian education at St. John's transformed his life by setting a foundation for his ethics and values to be of service to others. It was clear that night just how special he is.
Roll this forward to last winter. A 90th birthday celebration at a modest catering hall in Queens Village. Packed house. The undertone of the evening were uttered in hushed whispers and louder outrage about how another SJU bball team had gotten off badly. The comments about Lavin, who wasn't there due to another commitment, ranged from "I don't know about Steve", to "Where is he? He should be here", to "Fire that bum." Carnesecca, who arrived after the cocktail hour looking all of 90 and frail, could feel the pitchfork and torch atmosphere.
When it came time for him to speak, he rose slowly and unsteadily. Graspin the back of his chair for balance and support, he began slowly, giving an oral history of SJU basketball. As only Looie can, he peppered in jokes about each era, his own desire to study pre-med, and his own moment of employment uncertainty when one of his teams got off badly. He candidly offered that when Jack Kaiser asked to meet with the staff, they all thought the ax was falling. Instead, the great Jack Kaiser encouraged them, and predicted they would turn it all around. He was right, and another NCAA bid ensued.
With a success of coaching failures since his departure, once again, the real question was who could possibly replace Looie? Who would having a burning love for St. John's, and who would desire this job above all other jobs. Who could possibly re-ignite the fan base, and build a program that could be solid for not a season or two, but return to national prominence. Maybe no one, or maybe only one person existed who could possibly bring as much to the table as Coach C. in terms of his intangible value to SJU as ambassador Maybe no one, and maybe just one guy.
Enter Chris Mullin. A Brooklyn kid. In terms of basketball, our brightest, most shining star. A kid who owned NYC as 21 as much as Keith Hernandez, Dwight Gooden, or anyone else. A guy who is universally loved by anyone who ever saw him play at SJU. Beyond that, a guy who was raised by his mom and dad to "treat everyone the same." A regular, approachable guy. A good man.
When Chris was honored at SJU's HOF breakfast, he spoke briefly but powerfully. He said not a day goes by when he doesn't use some value or lesson he learned at St. John's. More than anyone at the helm since Looie, his burning desire is to win at SJU, for SJU. I really believe that his salary is way down his list of goals, far secondary to restoring the program to winning ways.
We won't see recruits enticed by hookers, or bags full of cash. We won't hear of recruiting scandals, or hordes of NCAA sanctions and violations. We will see fans who will initially come out, well, because it's Chris Mullin at the helm. Soon they will come simply because we win.
More than anything, though, is we have a guy who for the first time, can actually be a suitable successor for Coach C. in all ways. Not a replacement, mind you. Looie is irreplaceable because he is Looie. But maybe, just maybe, we'll say similar things about Chris some day.
When honored by SJU at the President's dinner a few years back (at Mike Francessa's last year as emcee), Mr. Carnesecca in his acceptance speech did not mention basketball even once. He did speak about how his Catholic, Vincentian education at St. John's transformed his life by setting a foundation for his ethics and values to be of service to others. It was clear that night just how special he is.
Roll this forward to last winter. A 90th birthday celebration at a modest catering hall in Queens Village. Packed house. The undertone of the evening were uttered in hushed whispers and louder outrage about how another SJU bball team had gotten off badly. The comments about Lavin, who wasn't there due to another commitment, ranged from "I don't know about Steve", to "Where is he? He should be here", to "Fire that bum." Carnesecca, who arrived after the cocktail hour looking all of 90 and frail, could feel the pitchfork and torch atmosphere.
When it came time for him to speak, he rose slowly and unsteadily. Graspin the back of his chair for balance and support, he began slowly, giving an oral history of SJU basketball. As only Looie can, he peppered in jokes about each era, his own desire to study pre-med, and his own moment of employment uncertainty when one of his teams got off badly. He candidly offered that when Jack Kaiser asked to meet with the staff, they all thought the ax was falling. Instead, the great Jack Kaiser encouraged them, and predicted they would turn it all around. He was right, and another NCAA bid ensued.
With a success of coaching failures since his departure, once again, the real question was who could possibly replace Looie? Who would having a burning love for St. John's, and who would desire this job above all other jobs. Who could possibly re-ignite the fan base, and build a program that could be solid for not a season or two, but return to national prominence. Maybe no one, or maybe only one person existed who could possibly bring as much to the table as Coach C. in terms of his intangible value to SJU as ambassador Maybe no one, and maybe just one guy.
Enter Chris Mullin. A Brooklyn kid. In terms of basketball, our brightest, most shining star. A kid who owned NYC as 21 as much as Keith Hernandez, Dwight Gooden, or anyone else. A guy who is universally loved by anyone who ever saw him play at SJU. Beyond that, a guy who was raised by his mom and dad to "treat everyone the same." A regular, approachable guy. A good man.
When Chris was honored at SJU's HOF breakfast, he spoke briefly but powerfully. He said not a day goes by when he doesn't use some value or lesson he learned at St. John's. More than anyone at the helm since Looie, his burning desire is to win at SJU, for SJU. I really believe that his salary is way down his list of goals, far secondary to restoring the program to winning ways.
We won't see recruits enticed by hookers, or bags full of cash. We won't hear of recruiting scandals, or hordes of NCAA sanctions and violations. We will see fans who will initially come out, well, because it's Chris Mullin at the helm. Soon they will come simply because we win.
More than anything, though, is we have a guy who for the first time, can actually be a suitable successor for Coach C. in all ways. Not a replacement, mind you. Looie is irreplaceable because he is Looie. But maybe, just maybe, we'll say similar things about Chris some day.
Beast of the East
Thank you for your recollections and the post was excellent.
I hope 60 Minutes lives up to your fine piece, wow.
(Chris Mullin owned a nice 'piece' of NYC; the '86 Mets owned most of NYC; college bb not the same as MLB.)
Thank you for your recollections and the post was excellent.
I hope 60 Minutes lives up to your fine piece, wow.
(Chris Mullin owned a nice 'piece' of NYC; the '86 Mets owned most of NYC; college bb not the same as MLB.)