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La
Salle Explorers Headlines
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are original content and may not be copied or used without prior
approval.
New
Atlantic 10 Commish Bernadette McGlade Has 2 Major Issues
to Fix
June
1, 2008 by Amanda Preston
The Gloucester City, NJ Native has been Selected
to Succeed Linda Bruno.
Bernadette
V. McGlade is
one of the most respected administrators in collegiate athletics
as she was the Associate Commissioner of
the Atlantic Coast Conference. McGlade
was hired in 1997 into the newly created position
overseeing
ACC women’s
basketball. Responsibilities included: conference
scheduling, the ACC Tournament, television
oversight and selection,
budget management and Institutional liaison with the women’s
basketball coaches. In addition, McGlade directed
the officiating program including recruitment, training
and development
of ACC basketball officials.
The
two major issues that have plagued the Atlantic 10 over
the past 8 years that must be fixed according to the
ADs are :1. the Television Contract
- has
to get
A10
Games on Basic Cable; 2. Cleanup the A10 Offices in Philadelphia
by replacing Jim Satalin and others who
did a poor job (inept/corrupt
officiating has to be addressed by removing at least 8 officials).
McGlade will be the fifth commissioner in the Atlantic 10's
32-year history when she is introduced at a Center City
news conference tomorrow. We look forward to welcoming her
as she has the qualifications to take the Atlantic 10 where
it needs to be over the next decade. She will make recommendations
on facility upgrades and will tighten academic standards
at some A10 universities (including Charlotte and Temple).
The Vision: A New State of the Art Arena by 2014 - Best
Facility in Philadelphia and the Atlantic 10
April 14, 2008 by Amanda Preston
Brother Michael McGinniss, Dr. Tom Brennan
and LaSalle Administration Need to Get On-Board For Basketball
Program to Thrive
for Next Few Decades
LaSalle must commit to
building a new 6,000 seat state-of-the-art basketball
arena in order to compete in the ultra-competitive
division one basketball for the next few decades.
The administration must find the funding - through local
corporate naming rights, local business advertising, alums
and friends of LaSalle. The new arena could be built for
under $30 million with local unions cutting costs via
educational
institution discounts, donation of certain construction
supplies by companies affiliated with alums and from naming
rights. Unlike other local universities, LaSalle has the
real estate to make this a reality.
LaSalle is the premiere Big 5 institution as the winningest
team for many decades. Unfortunately an incompetent AD
(Bob Mullen) sold the school on moving to a mid-west conference
in the mid-1990s. Losing became all too familiar for over
a decade. Doctor John Giannini put an end to the losing
streak but has admitted that going forward he needs to
have a true home-court feel and top-notch facilities,
including a new weight room, upgraded locker rooms and
a video room.
Informal surveys have indicated that LaSalle alums have
listed the following needs for the new arena:
1. seating behind the baskets;
2.
an
arena
where
most
seating you walk down to; 3. chairbacks with cupholders
except for behind the baskets where bleachers are preferred
by students; 4. an above court scoreboard with 4-sided
video feed; 5. outside corridor with local vendor
food concessions - (steak sandwich, hoagie, pizza, salad);
6. at least 6 luxury suites (center court and corners).
The ball is currently in Brother Mike and Dr. Brennan's
court - will they do what it takes to take LaSalle basketball
where it needs to be in the next 5 years?
Football
Program Ends After 11 Year Run
November 19,
2007
Exclusive by
Amanda Preston
Explorers Drop Football Effective Immediately
La Salle University has announced that it will discontinue its
football program effective immediately. Unfortunately Football
never really caught on at LaSalle as the program was never fully
funded and did not have any scholarship players. The decision
was made due mainly to mounting costs and lack of interest in
joining a partial scholarship conference such as the Pioneer
League. The
official statement from Dr. Tom Brennan, Director of Athletics
was as follows. "This was
a very difficult decision, and I announce it with a real
sense of disappointment.
La Salle instituted a non-scholarship football program in 1997
and subsequently joined the Metro Atlantic
Athletic Conference (MAAC) Football League. However, the steady
dissolution of
the MAAC Football League and the changing landscape of collegiate
football have negatively affected our program and led us to
this decision."
The decision to bring back football was made by former Athletic
Director Bob Mullen who really caused a great deal
of pain to the LaSalle sports community. He was the main person
responsible for the consecutive losing seasons of the basketball
team due
to his moving the program to a Mid-west conference. Only recently
has the basketball program started to recover. Football was
played at La Salle in the 1930's and was suspended in 1941
due to World War Two and did not not return until 1997.
Two years later La Salle joined the non-scholarship MAAC Football
League which consisted of 10 schools with similar academic
and athletic profiles.
Small Catholic Universities cannot support football unless there
is both a commitment to winning from the administration and
financial support from the alumni.
Of the 10 members: Georgetown and Duquesne decided to change
conferences, Iona and Marist have to decide whether to continue
while Fairfield,
Canisius, Siena, St. John's, and St. Peter's dropped their
football programs. The Mullen era (of bad decisions) has officially
closed.
"I
assure you that we will do everything possible to help the
coaches and student-athletes affected by this decision.
They are valued members of the La Salle family." said La Salle
President Br. Michael J. McGinniss.
Explorers
Schedule Officially Released
September
7,
2007
The Explorers open the season
with 3 of their first 5 games at home but then play
the next 7 on the road (or neutral court) before a
single home game vs. Richmond but then hit the road
for the next 3 games (only 4 of first 16 games are
at home). The good news is that 8 of the final 14 are
at Gola. The Explorers play some tough competition
with visits to Bucknell and Villanova in December and
games against Missisissippi and DePaul in the San Juan
Shootout in late December. The Explorers then open
with Florida State in 2008 on January 5th. The Explorers
open the month of February with back-to-back road games
against Xavier and George Washington and play Saint
Joe's on the road on February 18. The Explorers close
out the regular season with a game against Temple at
Gola Arena. Here is the complete schedule.
A10 Tournament in Atlantic City is 3/12 to 3/15.
All
Times ET.
Explorers
Recruiting Gems Of The Past - As Far As I Can Remember
by Jack Updated 6/23/2007
I remember going to games at the Palestra
with my Dad as a kid in the 1970's and seeing La Salle
play.
It was
exciting
and no other
experience was like it in the world. The food - hot dogs,
sodas and ice cream - was brought to the seating area by
the vendors. Streamers were thrown after the first made
basket by a Big 5 team... this was awesome for a 9 year-old
in 1974 who didn't have any idea of the significance
of
LaSalle, college basketball or the Palestra. I had the opportunity
to see Joe Bryant,
Bill Taylor and
Charlie Wise lead La Salle to a 4-0 city
series record and the Big 5 title. I also had the opportunity
to see the great Michael Brooks during his
4 year career.
It was my first exposure to sports and eventually
led me to attending LaSalle College as a freshmen in 1983.
Steve Black led that team to the NIT that
year after finishing at 3-1 in the city series tied for the
Big 5 title. When
I was a sophomore I was there in Saint Katherine's hall when
Truck Butts got the news he could not play
in the upcoming season due to a stupid NCAA rule involving
age. Me and the guys on the floor all gave him words of
encouragement as some of us felt as sick as Truck did. On
the positive side, La Salle became a University. The following
year, my
junior
year,
it was
announced
that
someone
named Lionel Simmons would breath new life
into the basketball program. In my senior year of 1987 it
became a reality as
Lionel led the team to the NIT championship game in New York.
Craig Conlin lived across the hall and me
and my roommates always gave him words of encouragement along
with a few beers.
Yes, that was me and my friends jumping
around on the USA Network
and
Channel
6 after
the
win
in the semi-final game in Madison Square Garden.
Of course I followed the team closely after graduating in
1987 and followed them through the great NCAA teams, the
bad decision to join the MCC and the ugly losses. I remember
the national media coverage of Lionel's 3,000th point game
and enjoying every minute of it as I sat in my front row
seats at the since demolished Civic Center. After Brother
Pat left as President, the Athletic Director Bob
Mullen,
did the basketball team a major wrong. He hurt the program
by putting them in
the MCC and after 3 disasterous seasons LaSalle was invited
to join the Atlantic 10 but much repair needed to be done.
LaSalle had to get a true home court and get back to recruiting
the local talent that they always got the best of.
I drummed up support and helped
Brother Burke get a new coach (Speedy Morris had gotten lazy
and was unable to produce a winning team despite some good
talent
on the team) and have the Hayman Center converted into the
present Gola Arena.
I will continue
to
encourage alums to push Brother Mike in getting us the new
arena that will be required for LaSalle basketball to once
again
thrive
in
the
upcoming years.
That is why I always have been and always will be an Explorer-for-life.
| Steve Black, Overbrook HS |
1,000 Point Scorer |
1981 recruited |
| Chip Greenberg, LaSalle
HS |
1,000 Point Scorer |
1982 recruited |
| Tim Legler, John Randolph Tucker HS, Richmond VA |
1,000 Point Scorer |
1983 recruited
1989 NBA Free Agent Signing |
| Rich Tarr, transfer from Penn State |
1,000 Point Scorer |
1983 recruited |
| Larry Koretz, Wilkes-Barre GAR HS |
1,000 Point Scorer |
1983 recruited |
Lionel
Simmons, Southern HS
#22 Retired by La Salle |
3,000 Point Scorer; 1990 National Player
of the Year |
1986 recruited
1990 NBA Lottery Pick |
| Doug
Overton, Dobbins Tech |
Assists and Steals Leader for Explorers |
1987 recruited
1991 NBA Drafted |
| Randy Woods, Ben Franklin HS |
1,000 Point Scorer |
1988 recruited
1992 NBA Drafted |
| Jack Hurd, Warwick HS in Lititz, PA |
1,000 Point Scorer |
1988 recruited |
| Kareem Townes, Southern HS |
1,925 points in only 81 games |
1991 recruited |
| Donnie Carr, Roman Catholic HS |
2,000 Point Scorer |
1996 recruited |
| Victor Thomas, St. John Neumann HS |
1,000 Point Scorer |
1997 recruited |
| Rasual Butler, Roman Catholic HS |
2,000 Point Scorer |
1998 recruited
2002 NBA Drafted |
| Julian Blanks, Erie Cathederal Prep |
1,000 Point Scorer |
1998 recruited |
| Steven Smith, Northeast HS |
Two-time A10 Player of the Year |
2001 recruited
2006 NBA Free Agent Signing |
| Jermaine Thomas, Thomas Johnson HS in Frederick,
MD |
1,000 Point Scorer |
2002 recruited |
| Darnell Harris, St. Frances HS in Baltimore, MD |
1,000 Point Scorer |
2004 recruited |
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