Hmm, he was a proven commodity who grew exponentially this past year to lead us to heights we haven't seen in years. I wouldn't be so quick to dismiss his loss.
Thank You Rick Matt and rest of staff
- Thread starter mjmaherjr
- Start date
While true, I think we more than adequately replaced his production.
classof2010
Well-known member
Thank you Father Shanley, Mike Repole along with both Funds, thank you BOD, lastly most importantly thank you Rick and Staff.
Could not agree more with redmanwest.
We lost an excellent scorer in RJ but brought in Ian Jack and Sanin both of whom averaged low double digits their first year. Their numbers should rise with a year under their belt and increased strength and maturity. Hopkins was a big time scorer at Providence with numbers just a little less than RJ. Sellers is a scorer and shooter.
Scott was not a scorer, Smith was not a scorer.
Thé flow in has been greater than thé flow out.
Last edited:
We are off topic but I have to say that I object to the "Captain Jack" moniker for Jackson. IMHO it is disrespectful to Zuby.
Obviously I know that's not where you're coming from RMN but it has been my thought each time I've seen the nickname so I'm just putting it here.
Anyway back on topic I think Shanley, Pitino & Co did an adequate job, and Repole isn't completely useless, but we all know that the lion's share of the credit has to go to Redmen Dot Com and its loyal posters who have dreamed this into existence.
I love Zuby, so in order not to be disrespectful to either Zuby or LMF I edited my post.
FEED ME SOMTO!
I love my self and even I had to laugh at this
MugCostanza
Well-known member
Interested to see Rick's quotes once Darling signs. The last two years Rick has announced when the roster was complete after the last signing of the cycle. Have to take everything Rick says with a huge grain of salt but if I remember correctly the additions to the rosters were actually done when Rick said the full team was in place.
Just catching up on Red Storm Rising and feel bad when I watch the RJ videos…great kid
Trying to figure out how all this has happened, we have to back up a few steps.
When Father Harrington was appropriately retired by the BOT in 2013, a new problem existed. Among Vincentian priests, a ready and willing qualified individual to replace him did not exist. The BOT took the bold step of hiring a layperson to assume the role. Though not a perfect hire by any means, Gempeshaw helped weather a financial storm which included a significant unanticipated drop in enrollment and a stock market correction hitting our endowment.
When Bobby G retired in 2020, the predictable hire would have been Father James Maher, at that point experienced enough after 4 years at Niagara, and a Vincentian at that. I don't know the details of whys and hows, but we were headed for another lay president, someone who checked certain boxes.
Instead the BOT made the most unusual move of reaching out to a priest of a different order, a Dominican who himself had just been fired. The reasons are worth discussing, but not here. Father Shanley was interested, experienced, and his order agreed to release him.
At 61, Shanley had gas in the tank, though his term would be shorter than most even if successful. He immediately set out to restore broken connections to big donors, which for universities, fuels a lot of development. A new health science building was backed by a low key major donor to the tune of $20 million, which included $5 million in scholarship. So humble and generous, that donor declined to put their family name on another building.
When yet another great red hope failed as men's basketball coach in 2023, the school under Shanley's direction, basically created two lists of candidates: tried and true winners, skys the limit talent; and up and coming mid major guys. Pitino was deemed off limits, but a Pitino disciple who was an nba coach with Providence ties (whose own job was in jeopardy) was a pie in the sky candidate. The rest is conjecture, but I believe when that guy turned us down, he strongly encouraged Shanley to consider CRP. Others reached out to Shanley to pitch Rick. The rest we know about.
The beverage king was also a pariah at that point but our former AD was the sole Johnny to keep a flicker of relationship alive. Shanley with new interest in Pitino, knew he needed the beverage king, who became greatly interested in helping st john's once his friend and HOF coach was hired. The stars aligned and the two formative pieces were in place.
Pitino as it has turned out, has shown us just how great a coach he is and why. He built a great infrastructure of talented assistants who are given specific roles to fulfill. His work ethic and passion even even 72 is unparalelled. He coaches x's and o's, he teaches, he does game prep. He promotes the hell out of the program, he engages donors. Oh yea, and he can sell sju and msg and the bright lights of nyc to transfers better than anyone.
So the staff, including all assistants and Matt, and our biggest donors, including a few megadonors, and the collectives are all on board.
Success begets success and in this era of open transfers, big NIL $$, as surely as the tide ruhes in and washes out, so will new and better players come in, and lesser players with eligibility wash out. Fact of life. Get over it, or find snother sport to root for.
But congrats as Mike says, to Shanley, and Rick, and every critical person that has figured out how to make this work st St John's. I suspect our success caused Nova to hire a winner who doesn't exactly fit Novas culture.
Right now we take a back seat to no one in terms of atteacting talent. With budgets soon to bust 8 figures at the wealthiest programs, we have a donor who spent $100 million on a racing stable, and that was before he bought and sold Pirate snack food or built and sold an even bigger beverage company. He now owns the future of our franchise, at a fraction of what Steve Cohen paid for the Mets.
When Father Harrington was appropriately retired by the BOT in 2013, a new problem existed. Among Vincentian priests, a ready and willing qualified individual to replace him did not exist. The BOT took the bold step of hiring a layperson to assume the role. Though not a perfect hire by any means, Gempeshaw helped weather a financial storm which included a significant unanticipated drop in enrollment and a stock market correction hitting our endowment.
When Bobby G retired in 2020, the predictable hire would have been Father James Maher, at that point experienced enough after 4 years at Niagara, and a Vincentian at that. I don't know the details of whys and hows, but we were headed for another lay president, someone who checked certain boxes.
Instead the BOT made the most unusual move of reaching out to a priest of a different order, a Dominican who himself had just been fired. The reasons are worth discussing, but not here. Father Shanley was interested, experienced, and his order agreed to release him.
At 61, Shanley had gas in the tank, though his term would be shorter than most even if successful. He immediately set out to restore broken connections to big donors, which for universities, fuels a lot of development. A new health science building was backed by a low key major donor to the tune of $20 million, which included $5 million in scholarship. So humble and generous, that donor declined to put their family name on another building.
When yet another great red hope failed as men's basketball coach in 2023, the school under Shanley's direction, basically created two lists of candidates: tried and true winners, skys the limit talent; and up and coming mid major guys. Pitino was deemed off limits, but a Pitino disciple who was an nba coach with Providence ties (whose own job was in jeopardy) was a pie in the sky candidate. The rest is conjecture, but I believe when that guy turned us down, he strongly encouraged Shanley to consider CRP. Others reached out to Shanley to pitch Rick. The rest we know about.
The beverage king was also a pariah at that point but our former AD was the sole Johnny to keep a flicker of relationship alive. Shanley with new interest in Pitino, knew he needed the beverage king, who became greatly interested in helping st john's once his friend and HOF coach was hired. The stars aligned and the two formative pieces were in place.
Pitino as it has turned out, has shown us just how great a coach he is and why. He built a great infrastructure of talented assistants who are given specific roles to fulfill. His work ethic and passion even even 72 is unparalelled. He coaches x's and o's, he teaches, he does game prep. He promotes the hell out of the program, he engages donors. Oh yea, and he can sell sju and msg and the bright lights of nyc to transfers better than anyone.
So the staff, including all assistants and Matt, and our biggest donors, including a few megadonors, and the collectives are all on board.
Success begets success and in this era of open transfers, big NIL $$, as surely as the tide ruhes in and washes out, so will new and better players come in, and lesser players with eligibility wash out. Fact of life. Get over it, or find snother sport to root for.
But congrats as Mike says, to Shanley, and Rick, and every critical person that has figured out how to make this work st St John's. I suspect our success caused Nova to hire a winner who doesn't exactly fit Novas culture.
Right now we take a back seat to no one in terms of atteacting talent. With budgets soon to bust 8 figures at the wealthiest programs, we have a donor who spent $100 million on a racing stable, and that was before he bought and sold Pirate snack food or built and sold an even bigger beverage company. He now owns the future of our franchise, at a fraction of what Steve Cohen paid for the Mets.
I've really come to appreciate Matt A for his role here. Seems to fit him perfectly. He was already a great recruiter for us under Mullin, and has taken it to another level here now. I just get the impression he is completely locked in and there is nobody that's going to outwork him when it comes to getting talent here.
100,000% also Storm Marketing themselves devote a ton of uncompensated time to NIL. Those of us who contributed even relatively small amounts gave NIL wings here and are part of the success.
They are a full time law firm and s great way to thank them is use them for any general use - real estate, estate planning, wills and trusts, liability, civil actions etc.
To a real extent, without Storm Mktg our NIL efforts would not have gotten off the ground. Flattop was dormant until Matt arrived. Ron Artest put one together that never got going. It takes a lot of legal knowledge and talent and ability to stay within ever changing rules and work with SJU.
Aside from becoming important pieces of our program, those guys did it and do it because they are huge fans and alums.
Last edited:
L J S A
Well-known member
Didn't see where else to put this since our portal page looks locked, but it is keeping with the theme of this thread since staff still working and we aren't done yet.
Was told by California guys I know that a big will definitely be stopping by this week but they are being ultra secretive other than saying he's a 5-4/4-5.
Any seniors or jucos still available?
For our Discord guys, is Trilly hinting at anyone yet?
Was told by California guys I know that a big will definitely be stopping by this week but they are being ultra secretive other than saying he's a 5-4/4-5.
Any seniors or jucos still available?
For our Discord guys, is Trilly hinting at anyone yet?
Trilly hasn't but other people in the STJ chat are also saying a big is visiting. No one has been able to suss it out yet.
L J S A
Well-known member
They just told me it's a California kid.
That might be all my begging and pleading and whining will get out of them
