All Things Denver, XXVIII

[Old Pio]

Re: All Things Denver, XXVIII

Pritchard almost put the school out of business and Oyer,a Syracuse football graduate, kept thinking he was going to bring back football. Nuff said. Although DU had a great hockey team my last year, there were always concerns about the cost of everything. How much were the sticks? Can we get another season out of the uniforms? What don't we need on the wish list? How do we keep the travel costs down? In the end the players never ran out of sticks and always had their equipment but it was always a battle.

Going into my last year, Marshall Johnston wanted to put in strength and agility stations (basically resistance stations) in a storage room behind the locker room. How did it get done? Marshall, some hockey staffers and some of the players built it during the summer. The walls were made by cutting up pieces of the old wood basketball floor and anchoring them into the floor. Carpet remnants were put on the floor and each agility station was anchored into the new walls. Voila, a new workout area for the players.

Compare this to the $6.3 million Pat Bowlen Training Center that opened this past year.

http://www.denverpioneers.com/ViewAr...CLID=204942367

Poor Bil Scharton (SID) must have had something approaching zero budget for his "media guides." The hockey guide was about the dimensions of Reader's Digest and ran 8 to 10 pages of offset printing, no color, darn few photos.

The larger picture here was that Pritchard and Oyer took DU from Division I to Division II, which had a cumulative very bad impact on hockey. For many years thereafter, Denver was the largest city in the country with no DI basketball program.

As I've posted before, when Pritchard's time was up he was unceremoniously fired. I still have the press release. (Paraphrasing): "Ross Prichard is no longer the chancellor of the University of Denver." No eyewash about taking another job or stepping down to engage in academic research--just outta here.

We are living in a golden age compared to what those two clowns ushered in.

[Puck Swami]

Re: All Things Denver, XXVIII

Poor Bil Scharton (SID) must have had something approaching zero budget for his "media guides." The hockey guide was about the dimensions of Reader's Digest and ran 8 to 10 pages of offset printing, no color, darn few photos.

The larger picture here was that Pritchard and Oyer took DU from Division I to Division II, which had a cumulative very bad impact on hockey. For many years thereafter, Denver was the largest city in the country with no DI basketball program.

As I've posted before, when Pritchard's time was up he was unceremoniously fired. I still have the press release. (Paraphrasing): "Ross Prichard is no longer the chancellor of the University of Denver." No eyewash about taking another job or stepping down to engage in academic research--just outta here.

We are living in a golden age compared to what those two clowns ushered in.

Going to NAIA/D-II in the late 70s was the result of terrible job of overall university financial planning and a very unsophisticated reading of the demographic and economic changes. The University was booming at over 13,000 students just after WWII, cruised through the 50s and early 60s, and boomed again when the biggest wave of the Baby Boom generation went through DU in the late 60s. DU got totally caught with their collective pants down when the Baby Boom had already crested, at the same time time the recessions of the late 70s and early 80s had devasated the country. When I was at DU in the early and mid 80s, the undergraduate enrollment had slipped to around 3500 and overall enrollment was less than 8,000. Today, undergraduate enrollment is over 5,000 and overall enrollment is between 10,000 and 11,000. Huge difference in cash flow....

[Old Pio]

Re: All Things Denver, XXVIII

Going to NAIA/D-II in the late 70s was the result of terrible job of overall university financial planning and a very unsophisticated reading of the demographic and economic changes. The University was booming at over 13,000 students just after WWII, cruised through the 50s and early 60s, and boomed again when the biggest wave of the Baby Boom generation went through DU in the late 60s. DU got totally caught with their collective pants down when the Baby Boom had already crested, at the same time time the recessions of the late 70s and early 80s had devasated the country. When I was at DU in the early and mid 80s, the undergraduate enrollment had slipped to around 3500 and overall enrollment was less than 8,000. Today, undergraduate enrollment is over 5,000 and overall enrollment is between 10,000 and 11,000. Huge difference in cash flow....

Dwight Smith will alway be a hero in my book. He stepped into the breach after the Pritchard fiasco and kept DU from sinking. And he paved the way for the Ritchie era. Despite the fact that I have some problems about a "chancellor for eternity" and the attitudes that accompany that august position, no rational person can argue that DU isn't immeasurably better off as a result of his tenure.

I don't know how close we came to closing the doors or converting into a barber college, but the fact that it was even discussed is scary. I say again, we're in a golden era now.

[Puck Swami]

Re: All Things Denver, XXVIII

I don't know how close we came to closing the doors or converting into a barber college, but the fact that it was even discussed is scary. I say again, we're in a golden era now.

Golden era, indeed.

In 1989, DU was $12 million in the hole, had borrowed money to make payroll and had deferred maintenence estimated at $45 million. It was that close to closure...The big turnaround gift was Ritchie selling his ranch for $55 mllion in the early 90s and donating the proceeds to DU, then coralling all his fellow non-alumni cable TV buddies (Daniels, Magness, Myhren, Sie, etc) to open their checkbooks, too. All of a sudden, other big donors (Newman, Sturm, Nagel, Ruffato, Nelson, Marsico, etc) all want to be part of the new momentum. Since 1997, 19 new buildings have gone up, and $500 million in new investment has been made, and DU is financially solvent with over 11,000 students. And academic selectivity has soared, too. The average incoming freshman has a 3.7 GPA and a 1150-1200 SAT now. Certainly, DU has ridden the baby boomlet, but now they are facing some interesting times again as the number of overall incoming freshmen will be demographically declining again, but DU is still getting about 12,000 freshman applications for 1,100 spots.

DU is pretty much happy at 11-12,000 students overall, but the future growth is going to come from graduate programs, where you can reap the same or more money without having to invest as much as you do with undergrads, who consume more space and services. They are also starting a capital campaign soon that will attempt to raise $500 - 600 million for the endowment. They've probably got about half of that committed already during the quiet period, but they are going to have to put the brakes on tuition hikes pretty soon or they may see some fallout. In terms of new buildings, I think you are going to see Penrose library totally revamped both inside and outside as the next big project.

[Old Pio]

Re: All Things Denver, XXVIII

Golden era, indeed.

In 1989, DU was $12 million in the hole, had borrowed money to make payroll and had deferred maintenence estimated at $45 million. It was that close to closure...The big turnaround gift was Ritchie selling his ranch for $55 mllion in the early 90s and donating the proceeds to DU, then coralling all his fellow non-alumni cable TV buddies (Daniels, Magness, Myhren, Sie, etc) to open their checkbooks, too. All of a sudden, other big donors (Newman, Sturm, Nagel, Ruffato, Nelson, Marsico, etc) all want to be part of the new momentum. Since 1997, 19 new buildings have gone up, and $500 million in new investment has been made, and DU is financially solvent with over 11,000 students. And academic selectivity has soared, too. The average incoming freshman has a 3.7 GPA and a 1150-1200 SAT now. Certainly, DU has ridden the baby boomlet, but now they are facing some interesting times again as the number of overall incoming freshmen will be demographically declining again, but DU is still getting about 12,000 freshman applications for 1,100 spots.

DU is pretty much happy at 11-12,000 students overall, but the future growth is going to come from graduate programs, where you can reap the same or more money without having to invest as much as you do with undergrads, who consume more space and services. They are also starting a capital campaign soon that will attempt to raise $500 - 600 million for the endowment. They've probably got about half of that committed already during the quiet period, but they are going to have to put the brakes on tuition hikes pretty soon or they may see some fallout. In terms of new buildings, I think you are going to see Penrose library totally revamped both inside and outside as the next big project.

Are you including the engineering school as part of "new" or already on the drawing boards? For my money, Penrose has always been an eyesore, an extremely ugly building. Any improvements there would be welcome.

[Puck Swami]

Re: All Things Denver, XXVIII

Are you including the engineering school as part of "new" or already on the drawing boards? For my money, Penrose has always been an eyesore, an extremely ugly building. Any improvements there would be welcome.

Don't know about the engineering school.

The Penrose renovation is going to totally change the place, both internally and externally. They are reviewing architects now, and I expect DU will look to rip the current place down to its bones and redesign the exteriors of the place to match the look of other campus buildings.
The interior concept is that academic libraries are really changing in the the new milennnium - the nature of research has changed and will continue to change due to the internet. Libraries are becoming more academic hubs than quiet book repositories. I think they are tring to turn Penrose into something called an "Academic Commons."

[Old Pio]

Re: All Things Denver, XXVIII

Don't know about the engineering school.

The Penrose renovation is going to totally change the place, both internally and externally. They are reviewing architects now, and I expect DU will look to rip the current place down to its bones and redesign the exteriors of the place to match the look of other campus buildings.
The interior concept is that academic libraries are really changing in the the new milennnium - the nature of research has changed and will continue to change due to the internet. Libraries are becoming more academic hubs than quiet book repositories. I think they are tring to turn Penrose into something called an "Academic Commons."

kewl. I have very warm memories about Mary Reed as a library. Especially the time I was researching a paper on Michelangelo and found a book that hadn't been checked out in 25 years! Plagiarism city.

[vizoroo]

Re: All Things Denver, XXVIII

kewl. I have very warm memories about Mary Reed as a library. Especially the time I was researching a paper on Michelangelo and found a book that hadn't been checked out in 25 years! Plagiarism city.

Didn't you wonder what really was going on in the carrels in Mary Reed?

I do remember writing a paper using Thorstein Veblen's 1899 classic, Theory of the Leisure Class as my primary source. The book itself was so old that it may have been a first edition for all I know. BTW, I got an A, but have no idea what my point of view was.

[Puck Swami]

Re: All Things Denver, XXVIII

Ah, Veblen. Conspicuous consumption and all that. I would imagine most of it still holds up 100 years later.

My favorite paper I ever wrote at DU was a 40-page paper on the DU/NCAA hockey scandal of the mid-70s, including primary research interviews with some of the key figures in the scandal - ex-DU coach Murray Armstrong, Walter Byers (who was President of the NCAA at the time) former DU Chancellor Maurice Mitchell, and Denver Post Sports Columnist Dick Connor. I remember spending hours of time poring over old microfilm (do they still use that?) in the basement of Penrose library. What amazed me was how much both sides seemed to hate each other. DU hated the NCAA for it's hypocrisy and whitewashing of legitimate, legally-recruited players, and Byers seemed determined that DU needed to be taught a lesson for not following his dictums.

[FadeToBlack&Gold]

Re: All Things Denver, XXVIII

My favorite paper I ever wrote at DU was a 40-page paper on the DU/NCAA hockey scandal of the mid-70s...

Out of curiosity, is this where the jokes about Denver and 28 year-old Canadian recruits came to pass, or does that stretch back to the late 50s and the old WIHL?

[du78]

Re: All Things Denver, XXVIII

Out of curiosity, is this where the jokes about Denver and 28 year-old Canadian recruits came to pass, or does that stretch back to the late 50s and the old WIHL?

When Murray showed up on campus in the 1950s, he recruited Canadian players from Ontario to BC. There were no 28 year old recruits, that is an urban legend. What bristled everyone, especially Minnesota, was that he was bringing in some of the top junior players who were anywhere from 18 to 21 that were better than anyone else's players. These players were legitimately eligible to play college hockey. Many of the players played for the Memorial Cup and as there were only 6 NHL teams at the time, playing in the pros was a long shot. Coming to DU to get an education was a way to continue to play hockey at the same time.

It all came to a head in the early 1970s when the NCAA declared former Major Junior players as professional and ineligible to play. However, they told all the schools with former Major Junior A Canadian players that they would have to declare the players as professionals and the players would then immediately be reinstated with no penalties. Therein lies the hypocrisy. DU was the only school that refused to do this as they felt they had followed the rules. In the grand scheme of things, DU is a small private school with little weight to throw around against the NCAA. They were not a big time football or basketball school that wielded a lot of power. Chancellor Maurice Mitchell and coach Murray Armstrong stood up for their principles against the NCAA and the school and hockey team paid for it. Their 1973 NCAA tourney win over BC and loss in the finals to Wisconsin were vacated and the two players that were named to the All-Tourney team lost their awards. Several players were eventually suspended by the NCAA for varying amounts of games and DU was barred from appearing in the NCAA tourney for two years, 1977 and 1978. Murray retired after the 1977 season. DU appealed the decision in Federal court and on the day of the first game of the last round of the 1978 WCHA playoffs against CC, the appeal was denied. DU's season would end no matter what after playing CC the two game total goals series on March 14th and 15th. The players on the #1 team in the country were extemely disappointed that they were not going to get the chance to go the NCAAs. They lost the first game 6-3 and came out Saturday night to get a win in their final game, 4-3. BU went on to win the 1978 NCAA title but the Hockey News after the national championship had been played ranked DU the #1 team in the country, a ranking all of those players are still proud of today.

BTW, MTU also had a lot of former Canadian Major Junior players but MacInness played ball with the NCAA as did all of the other coaches with such players.

[Puck Swami]

Re: All Things Denver, XXVIII

Out of curiosity, is this where the jokes about Denver and 28 year-old Canadian recruits came to pass, or does that stretch back to the late 50s and the old WIHL?

Murray Armstrong, former NHLer and coach of the Regina Pats junior team, took over the DU program in 1956, and guaranteed an NCAA champion in three years, and it took him two years. He did it through his Canadian pipeline of legally recruited talent. In those days, freshmen were not eligible for varsity competition, so Murray would sign 20 year olds who had finished the junior career in Canada, but who had not signed with a pro team. By the time they could suit up for the Pioneers' varsity, they would often be 21, and finished their three year DU careers at 24 or so. Very few of them were older than that.

Minnesota was signing 18 year olds out of Minnesota high schools, and his players were mostly 19 when they started their three year careers as Gophers. Maricucci felt the 2 year age gap between most of his guys, and most of the the older Denver players was an unfair advantage for DU.

The facts were that Mariucci was using best local players available to him as the US did not really have strong junior leagues back then, and Armstrong had no local players in Colorado, so Canada was really the only viable competitive option available to him. Armstrong could have gone to Minnesota and taken the Gophers' leftovers, but to build a program in a non-hockey area and make it viable, you need to win.

The WIHL broke up a couple of times in the late 50s over this issue, and Mariucci decided he would not play Denver in the regular season. This went on for over 10 years until the early 70s.

Eventually, Major Junior players were finally outlawed from NCAA play in 1980 after many years of struggles, scandals and court cases.

[vizoroo]

Re: All Things Denver, XXVIII

Today is 08/12/10.
There are 57 days until DU's next game.

('57--the last time DU's neighbor to the south won it all)

This is based upon 8 October for the start of the regular season
51 days until the first exhibition.

[FadeToBlack&Gold]

Re: All Things Denver, XXVIII

I figured it went something like that. Thanks for the history lesson.

[Old Pio]

Re: All Things Denver, XXVIII

I figured it went something like that. Thanks for the history lesson.

Swami's narrative was complete and correct. In my mind, it's important to remember that DU broke no NC$$ regulations. We were punished for refusing to participate in a face saving process for declaring the players involved "eligible." IIRC in our case, we were talking about two players.

In our mandatory U.S. government courses in high school, most of us were exposed to "ex post facto" laws and how America rejected the notion of making illegal today what you did yesterday. Evidently the poo bahs at the NC$$ were out of town the day that was taught.

This episode cost DU a legitimate shot at a NC and more importantly was a key factor in a 20 year decline which saw DU more often than not a mediocre or worse team. There were other factors, of course, but this retaliation by the NC$$ was critical. When this story was reported, people read about "recruiting violations" and as you might imagine, thought of grades, cars, girls, drugs, money and all the rest. None of it was true.