Odds and lines subject to change. ), (In a 2014 interview with the Associated Press, McLain said of the SI story, It hurts me that I hurt people.), (He told AP in 2014 that he was using drugs up until 2005. Well eat pasta dinners together and talk about life and then well win because youll love each other like brothers. Both games had been tense, grinding battles, which history has lost when establishing the magnitude of the championship game upset. So Chuck Daly was right. The 1985 squad remains tight to this day. Nova opened up on the road with a 2-point win against the 9-seed University of Dayton in Dayton. Many of them are on the north side of 50, when anger takes too much effort to hold.) ), The beige suits and yellow power ties have been swapped for Bermuda shorts and golf shirts. 1980 Villanova Wildcats Roster - College Football at Sports-Reference.com We picked the top-5 players all-time for Villanova football So Chuck Daly was right. Shapland died at age 57 in April of 2013. As he walked toward his seat, he heard his name shouted. The 85 team came together in one huge chunk and then in small pieces that followed. If you or someone you know has a gambling problem, crisis counseling and referral services can be accessed by calling 1-800-GAMBLER (1-800-426-2537) (CO/IL/IN/LA/MD/MI/NJ/OH/PA/TN/WV/WY), 1-800-NEXT STEP (AZ), 1-800-522-4700 (KS/NH), 888-789-7777/visit ccpg.org (CT), 1-800-BETS OFF (IA), visit OPGR.org (OR), or 1-888-532-3500(VA). Buonaguro, who had joined Massiminos staff in 1977 when he was 24, was hired at Fairfield shortly after the 85 title game. ; and Pinckney, a solid big man from Adlai Stevenson High in the Bronx who was under-recruited. Villanova experienced very little roster turnover after the 1983-84 season. (Asked recently if that silence still remains, Martin said, I talked to Horace a few days ago. Here are the 1985 NCAA tournament leaders (number of games in parentheses): Individual scoring Kenny Walker, Kentucky (3): 25.0 points per game Individual rebounding Karl Malone, Louisiana Tech. Tim, I got your text, McLain said, exuberantly, as if he remembered me and was anxious to talk. 1 activity in drawing the community together, he said, meaning faculty, administration, students and former students. The Big East prospered in large part through media friendliness and access, but Georgetown was the exception. As the horn sounded Williams threw his arms into Eversons neck and face and then ran off. Planksy called me, seeking relief. Copyright 2000-2023 Sports Reference LLC. Logos were compiled by the amazing SportsLogos.net. 28. 1984-85 Villanova Wildcats Men's Schedule and Results Previous Season Next Season Record: 25-10 (9-7, 4th in Big East MBB ) Coach: Rollie Massimino PS/G: 68.7 (161st of 282) More School Info NCAA Champion Villanova (Men's) School History Roster & Stats Polls, Schedule & Results On this page: AP Poll Summary Schedule and Results When we won the title, the players handled themselves with class in interviews, and Rollie went on television and talked about the family atmosphere, and everybody wanted a piece of that, says Lappas. The Jake Nevin Field House is the main center of athletic activity on campus. Do they think were going to lie down for them? Offensively, says Massimino, we just tweaked a few things to make sure we got the ball to Eddie. Its a nice icebreaker around Philadelphia.), (Eleven years later, Maker says, I was still very angry then. With his team trailing Pittsburgh 40-23 at the half in Pitts Fitzgerald Field House, Massimino told his starters at halftime, Youve got two minutes to show me something, or youre coming out. He gave them three before yanking them for good. Our reasoning for presenting offensive logos. But Gary is a family member and hes had problems. But still.) This game never lets go. Lappas wanted to do his thing, he says, and separate the old stuff from the new stuff. Lappas won 174 games in nine seasons at Villanova, including the schools only Big East tournament title (in 1995). On the Saturday of Final Four weekend Villanovas befuddling array of defenses humbled Memphis State, and the Wildcats advanced to the title game with a 52-45 win. During our run, there wasnt a lot of talking on the court. First he spoke softly about former Villanova coach Al Severance, who had died that morning at age 79. We laughed together, we cried together. (As always, McLain was the complex exception. The seniors reported to preseason conditioning in the fall of 1984 with 67 wins on their rsum, yet no trophies in the case. In the spring, both the institution of college basketball and the NCAA Tournament were on the cusp of significant change. 2000 Villanova Wildcats football team From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia The 2000 Villanova Wildcats football team represented the Villanova University during the 2000 NCAA Division I-AA football season. 1984-85 Villanova Wildcats men's basketball team - Wikipedia (The social director, says Massimino.) Eligibility restrictions apply. He was hurt and angry at Plansky. Villanovas football deficits reportedly exceeded $500,000 a year in the 1970s. Here's the schedule and how you can watch all the college events. I didnt care about being liked. Its possible that Massimino could have survived all of this. This year, in anticipation of the games 30th anniversary, I returned again to the subject and conducted fresh interviews with many of the principals. Where: Franklin Field in . But not in a way that I could take action. Al Levine/NBC/NBCU Photo Bank/Getty Images. Won National Final (66-64) versus #1 Georgetown, Every Sports Reference Social Media Account, Site Last Updated: Monday, May 1, 12:49AM. Villanova NFL/AFL Players. The last sweep in this series came back in . I really enjoy it, says Massimino. Bad matchups, bad history, everything. And Villanova got its wish: The Hoyas won easily, 75-59. Plansky and Jensen chat all the time. Day 2 | Friday, Apr. Saturday, when Villanova head coach Mark Ferrante and his 3-0 Wildcats trek up to State College to take on the undefeated and No. Massimino was also angry, as if Plansky had violated the groups collective omerta. Day 1 | Thursday, Apr. Even as the Georgetown game maintains an outsized place in history, Massimino lets it goLike yesterdays wrinkled-up newspaper, he saysand holds to the relationships built in those moments. You may occasionally receive promotional content from the Los Angeles Times. Won Southeast Regional Final (56-44) versus #2 North Carolina Time heals all wounds. Several of McLains teammates used that expression in describing their relationship with their point guard. [1] It was the program's first season since 1980, as the team had been discontinued for four years due to perceived lack of financial resources to compete at the Major College (now Football Bowl Subdivision) level. Find out more. [2] The Wildcats finished the year 50.[1]. 21 Richmond and No. Football is a unique college activity that has the strong support of the alumni and the schools other friends. But I never thought he had a drug addiction. Stack says, After the article students came up to me and said, Well, everybody knew it. There was a perception that the administration knew it. On 41 of those 55 possessions, Villanova shot, was fouled or committed a turnover in less than 30 seconds. McLain says SI paid $35,000 for his words in 1987, but after hed shared the fee with Marx and paid off some debts, he had $6,000. When Massimino left Villanova after the 1991-92 season, Lappas replaced him (after Pete Gillen, then coach at Xavier, turned the job down). In his 13 years at Georgetown, Thompson had built the Hoyas into a powerhouse. McLain vaguely implicated his teammates with broad generalizations and also implied that Massimino did little to stem his drug abuse. Every coach has a gimmick. 1 seed, yet lost to North Carolina State in their second tournament game. We made a mistake, turned the ball over, and the better team did not win the game, says Patrick Ewing, whose four-year era at Georgetown ended that night. ), Editor, Time Inc. Sports Group: Paul Fichtenbaum, Interactive Web Developer: Louis Gubitosi, Premedia: Geoffrey A. Michaud, Dan Larkin and Sandra Vallejos. Villanova played a "light"[2] schedule against four NCAA Division III opponents and the United States Naval Academy JV team. BIG EAST Conference/Collegiate Images/Getty Images. I dont need this, he shouted. 2022 Football Roster - Villanova University The perception in 1981 was that this is a sport that has become far too costly to maintain, said Athletic Director Ted Aceto. Shapland died at age 57 in April of 2013.). Nineteen years. And then Coach Mass and Gary came out, arm in arm and we went out and had a little pasta. Even this reconciliation has been tenuous, though not hostile. Nineteen (Thirty) years are gone since Villanova senior forward Dwayne McClain stumbled to his knees and elbows on the floor of Rupp Arena, then cradled the last precious inbounds pass in his right arm and shot his left fist skyward as time expired. Im about to go into a meeting, but Ill be free after 5 p.m. today. Watch this complete national championship game from 1985, when one of the original Cinderella stories, Villanova, marched its way to the championship game ag. He says he wants to write a book about his life and perhaps to deliver his cautionary tale to kids. Siena named Buonaguro as his replacement, and the Saints struggled badly, going 35-59 in three seasons and never finishing higher than sixth in the MAAC. In a game that was tight and tense throughout, Ewing and the Hoyas played toughand roughbut Villanovas deliberate tempo and sensational shooting put the underdog in position to win. 1985-86 Villanova Wildcats Men's Roster and Stats Not a day passes when somebody doesnt ask him about 1985, and just last month a security guard gave him a yellowed copy of the Philadelphia Daily News from April 2, 1985. McCaffreys 2008-09 team was a No. We were very confident they would have trouble. The Villanova players then sat in the stands to watch what many observers viewed as the de facto national championship game; the Wildcats silently rooted like hell for Georgetown to defeat St. Johns, which had beaten Villanova in two competitive regular season games, but had bounced the Wildcats from the Big East Tournament in an 89-74 blowout. Just say today. It was real. Do you have a blog? No, said Martin. Ive got to get open to get that ball back, says Jackson. I felt badly, too, but I also felt that Plansky had been honest in his original assessment, and he never pulled back from that. Day 3 | Saturday, Apr. 1 on The New York Times bestseller list. A lot of fans dont know Division I from Division II. Neither interaction fully bridged the divide between them. That image sold papers and made people watch us on television., Reality lay somewhere between the media myth and the teams sweet memory. Hes still one of our brothers, and we love him dearly. Yet McLain often drops off their collective grid for long periods and when this happens, they worry together. He has been divorced for six years, but his 11-year-old daughter, Jade Alexis McLain, lives nearby in Florida and stays with McLain every other weekend. Villanova reached the regional final and played North Carolina on a Sunday afternoon in Birmingham. (It remains a tight group. In the early and mid-80s Georgetown was portrayed as the Evil Empire of college basketball. Some school's results have been altered by retroactive NCAA penalties. Along the way he lost his marriage and his naivet, yet continues to live the life of a bench soldier. We just listened and laughed. In between those last two national championships, Roland Vincent Massimino passed away at the age of 82 in the summer of 2017, when many of the Villanova Family (& all college basketball in general) came to celebrate his life. A big bowl of spags, with clam sauce. He was laughing madly as he said it, spreading his hands as if to illustrate a massive vat of pasta. Private schools are, however, something different. All but two players and every coach and manager were present. ), Sherman Oaks Notre Dame receives No. Jensens drive was a bold move by a player who had struggled all year with his psyche, even as the coaching staff tried desperately to utilize his outside shooting ability. I wear the ring and the watch from 85, he says. Georgetown was so tough and nasty and we worried about getting the ball over halfcourt. Won Southeast Regional Semifinal (46-43) versus #5 Maryland Copyright 2000-2023 Sports Reference LLC. I dont think there was a living ass in the country who didnt think we were the better team.. Even so, football is expensive there, or anywhere. Find out more. All but two players and every coach and manager were present. Despite long-tenured NBA playing and coaching careers, the main story that Villanova critics quickly recall is the admission by Gary McLain that he played the National Semifinal game against Memphis high on cocaine. Hes just guarding a superstar. Bias, who would be dead of a cocaine overdose 17 months later, finished with 30 points, and that defeat sent Villanova into a regular-season-ending tailspin that included six losses in its last 11 games. The sense of family. Old students miss all that when you dont have football. State of the Nova Nation: Bamba, Dunleavy and Moore. With two sentences McLain brought every player on the national championship team under suspicion: Some of my teammates and guys in my dorm knew I did drugs. Villanova's 10-3 record included four victories over Top 25 opponents, including No. Others have tried unsuccessfully to bring him together with Massimino. McClain drove the lane and dunked thunderously on the next Villanova possession. And in 1985, that might have been the best team I had. I should have stayed at Villanova, Massimino says.