History of the Former Dayton-DePaul Rivalry
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History of the Former Dayton-DePaul Rivalry
by Fieldhouse Flyer » Sat May 30, 2020 7:01 am
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History of the Former Dayton-DePaul Rivalry – Part I
1. Introduction
2. Context of the Former Dayton-DePaul Rivalry
3. History of Dayton and the University of Dayton
4. History of Chicago and DePaul University
5. The Coaches
6. The Pre-Meyer Era: 1920-21 to 1941-42
7. The Ray Meyer Era: 1942-43 to 1983-84
8. The Joey Meyer Era: 1984–85 to 1996–97
9. The Post-Meyers’ Era: 1997–98 to 2004-05
10. The Big East Era: 2005-06 to Present
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1. Introduction
The former Dayton-Xavier Rivalry was nationally known for many decades, but the former Dayton-DePaul Rivalry is also an integral and important part of the history of Dayton Flyers basketball. Younger Big East fans may not appreciate that DePaul once had many great basketball teams prior to their joining the Big East, and the Blue Demons had a great rivalry with the Flyers in years gone by. The former Dayton-DePaul Rivalry had it all:
DePaul Blue Demons Men's Basketball - Wikipedia
What went wrong? - DePaul Arena Project
DePaul won their first and only college basketball national championship in 1945 by virtue of beating Bowling Green 71-54 in the 1945 National Invitation Tournament, but that proud accomplishment was tempered by the fact that many of the country’s basketball programs did not field teams for the 1944-45 season. The 8-team NIT field included Muhlenberg College (Allentown, PA) and Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (Troy, NY) and the 8-team 1945 NCAA Tournament included some lesser-known teams.
The DePaul Blue Demons have appeared in the NCAA Tournament 22 times. Their combined record is 21–25. Their appearances in the tournament from 1986–1989 have been vacated by the NCAA thus their official record is 15–21. The Blue Demons have also appeared in the National Invitation Tournament (NIT) 16 times and their combined record is 17–17.
The Dayton Flyers have appeared in the NCAA Tournament 18 times. Their combined record is 19–20. The Flyers have also appeared in the National Invitation Tournament (NIT) 24 times and their combined record is 40–22. The Flyers are three-time NIT Champions (1962, 1968, 2010), and five-time runners-up (1951, 1952, 1955, 1956, and 1958).
DePaul Blue Demons History and Records Archive – DePaul University – March 19, 2020
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2. Context of the Former Dayton-DePaul Rivalry
In order to provide perspective for the former Dayton-DePaul rivalry, it is instructive to review the number of games the two teams have played against each other, against selected common opponents, and how the two teams have fared. Note that the information below includes the 2019-20 season.
DePaul Blue Demons Record Book • All-Time Series Records – DePaul University – Updated March 19, 2020
Dayton Flyers 2019-20 Media Guide – University of Dayton – November 5, 2019
3. History of Dayton and the University of Dayton
Please see the following two threads: History of the Former Dayton-Xavier Rivalry and History of the Former Dayton-Marquette Rivalry.
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4. History of Chicago and DePaul University
1581 - Vincent de Paul was born in April 24, 1581 in the village of Pouy, in the Province of Guyenne and Gascony, the Kingdom of France, to peasant farmers. He was ordained on September 23 1600, at the age of nineteen and died on September 27, 1660.
1737 - Father Vincent de Paul was canonized in Rome by Pope Clement XII, becoming Saint Vincent de Paul.
......... Saint Vincent de Paul ........
1780’s - The first known permanent settler in Chicago was explorer Jean Baptiste Point du Sable, who is commonly known as the ‘Founder of Chicago’.
December 3, 1818 – Illinois became the 21st state.
August 12, 1833 - The Town of Chicago was organized with a population of about 200. Within seven years it grew to more than 6,000 people.
March 4, 1837 - The City of Chicago was incorporated, and for several decades was the world's fastest-growing city.
1868 - The Lincoln Park Zoo opens in Chicago.
April 29, 1870 – The Chicago Cubs played their first game.
October 8–10, 1871 - The Great Chicago Fire killed approximately 300 people, destroyed roughly 3.3 square miles of the city, and left more than 100,000 residents homeless.
1876 - Chicago became known as the ‘Windy City’ and involved Chicago's rivalry with Cincinnati.
1890’s – All four of my Irish Catholic grandparents were born in Dayton and all four were fortunate enough to have celebrated their 80th birthdays during the 1970’s. They remembered the local Wright Brothers making their historic flight in 1903, survived The Great Dayton Flood in 1913, and watched local astronaut Neil Armstrong walk on the moon in 1969. I am very blessed to have more than twenty years of memories of my grandparents, and to have heard their amazing stories about their parents (who grew up in the aftermath of the American Civil War), and their grandparents (who emigrated to the U.S. from Ireland in the late 1840’s during The Great Famine). My four grandparents had a total of 15 children and 73 grandchildren – many of whom went to the University of Dayton, Marquette University, and Notre Dame University. For whatever reasons, there are no DePaul alumni in my extended family.
May 1-October 30, 1893 – The Chicago World’s Fair takes place to celebrate the 400th anniversary of Christopher Columbus' arrival in the New World in 1492. The centerpiece of the Fair was the large water pool, represented the voyage Columbus took to the New World.
January 17, 1899 - Alphonse “Al” Capone was born in New York City to Italian immigrant parents.
1901 – The Chicago White Sox played their first game.
1903 - The St. Mary’s Institute ‘Saints’ (later becoming the Dayton Flyers) played their first intercollegiate basketball game.
1907 DePaul University adopted ‘Blue Demons’ as its nickname. At the time, the athletic teams had red uniforms with a large ‘D’ on the front. After an announcer referred to the players as the ‘D-men’, the moniker stuck and eventually evolved into ‘Demons.’ The ‘Blue’ was part of an attempt to distinguish the university's players from those of its now-defunct high school, DePaul Academy.
October, 1907 – The Chicago Cubs won their first World Series, sweeping the Detroit Tigers in four games.
October, 1908 – The Chicago Cubs won their second World Series, beating the Detroit Tigers again in five games. The Cubs would suffer a drought of 108 years until they won their third World series – in October, 2016.
The 1908 DePaul University basketball team
1911 – DePaul University began admitting women in and awarded degrees to its first female graduates in 1912. It was one of the first Catholic universities to admit female students in a co-educational setting.
April 15, 1912 – The RMS Titanic hit an iceberg in the North Atlantic at 11:40 p.m. ship's time and sunk. Of the estimated 2,224 passengers and crew aboard, more than 1,500 died.
December 18, 1913 – Ray Meyer was born in Chicago, the son of a candy wholesaler and the youngest of 10 children.
1914 – DePaul University began offering courses in Chicago's Loop, the precursor of DePaul's second primary campus.
June 28, 1914 - Archduke Franz Ferdinand, heir to the Austro-Hungarian Empire, was assassinated in Sarajevo, precipitating Wold War I.
1915 – DePaul University completed their affiliation with the Illinois College of Law University and became the DePaul University College of Law.
April 20, 1916 - The Chicago Cubs played their first home game at Wrigley Field, defeating the Cincinnati Reds 7–6 in 11 innings.
April 6, 1917 - America entered Wold War I after President Woodrow Wilson called for war on Germany on April 2, 1917.
October 2017 - The Chicago White Sox won their first Wold Series, defeating the New York Giants in six games.
Spring 1918 - The Spanish Flu Pandemic was an unusually deadly influenza pandemic lasting more than 12 months from spring 1918 to early summer 1919. It infected 500 million people and it is estimated to have killed anywhere from 17 million to 50 million people, and possibly as high as 100 million. A large factor in the worldwide occurrence of this flu was increased travel. Modern transportation systems made it easier for soldiers, sailors, and civilian travellers to spread the disease. Another factor was lies and denial by governments, leaving the population ill-prepared to handle the outbreaks.
June 28, 1919 – The Treaty of Versailles, formally ending World War I, was signed.
1919 – The Chicago Bears are founded.
October 1919 – The Black Sox Scandal erupted.
October 28, 1919 – Congress passed the National Prohibition Act, also known as the Volstead Act.
1919 - Al Capone left New York for Chicago at the invitation of Johnny Torrio, who was imported by crime boss James "Big Jim" Colosimo as an enforcer.
January 16, 1920 – Prohibition began in the United States.
1920 - St. Mary’s Institute changed its name to the 'University of Dayton'.
1920 – Page 134 of the Dayton Flyers 2019-20 Media Guide shows that DePaul University beat the University of Dayton 33-20 in the first recorded basketball game between the two schools, but does not give the date nor location of the game.
1923 – The DePaul Blue Demons played their first intercollegiate basketball game (according to their published archives). Robert L. Stevenson was the first head coach in DePaul basketball history. In his one season as coach during the 1923–24 season, he coached the Blue Demons to a record of 8–6.
January 1925 - Al Capone was ambushed, leaving him shaken but unhurt. Twelve days later, Johnny Torrio was returning from a shopping trip when he was shot several times. After recovering, he effectively resigned and handed control to Capone, age 26, who became the new boss of an organization that took in illegal breweries and a transportation network that reached to Canada, with political and law-enforcement protection. Capone used more violence to increase revenue. An establishment that refused to purchase liquor from him often got blown up, and as many as 100 people were killed in such bombings during the 1920s.
Late 1920’s – Ray Meyer fed a passion for sports at the Lawson School playground on Chicago's West Side. He dabbled in basketball there and at St. Agatha's grade school, but early on, baseball was his favorite sport.
1928-29 basketball season – the first ‘official’ game between UD and DePaul was played at DePaul. The Flyers won the game 22-18.
February 14, 1929 – Al Capone was widely assumed to have been responsible for ordering the Saint Valentine's Day Massacre in an attempt to eliminate Bugs Moran, head of the North Side Gang. Moran was the last survivor of the North Side gunmen; his succession had come about because his similarly aggressive predecessors Vincent Drucci and Hymie Weiss had been killed in the violence that followed the murder of original leader Dean O'Banion.
September, 1929 - Ray Meyer originally intended to become a priest, but after two years at Quigley Preparatory Seminary in Chicago, he enrolled at St. Patrick Academy. Part of his reason for transferring to St. Patrick Academy was his growing fascination with basketball.
October 28, 1929 - The Great Depression began with the Wall Street Crash.
March 1930 - Al Capone was listed as the number one "Public Enemy" on the unofficial Chicago Crime Commission's widely publicized list.
March 13, 1931 - Al Capone was charged with income tax evasion for 1924, in a secret grand jury. On June 5, 1931, Capone was indicted by a federal grand jury on 22 counts of income tax evasion from 1925 through 1929. A week later, Eliot Ness and his team of Untouchables inflicted major financial damage on Capone's operations, and led to his indictment on 5,000 violations of the Volstead Act (Prohibition laws).
October 17, 1931 – Al Capone was convicted on three counts of income tax evasion and was sentenced a week later to 11 years in federal prison.
1932 – Ray Meyer started at guard for the St. Patrick team that won the National Catholic Interscholastic Basketball Tournament at Loyola University.
March 6, 1933 - Chicago Mayor Anton Cermak was fatally wounded in Miami during a failed assassination attempt on President-elect Franklin D. Roosevelt.
June, 1933 – Ray Meyer graduated from St. Patrick Academy in Chicago.
September, 1933 – Ray Meyer enrolled at Northwestern University, but he left after a brief stay. "He just didn't fit in with the class of people there," his brother Ben would recall, though Meyer would later say he quit to help out financially at home. Ray Meyer’s basketball play had impressed a Notre Dame backer who persuaded Irish coach George Keogan to offer Meyer a scholarship for the next academic year.
December 5, 1933 - Repeal of Prohibition was accomplished with the ratification of the Twenty-first Amendment Under its terms, states were allowed to set their own laws for the control of alcohol.
July 22, 1934 – Gangster John Dillinger was shot and killed by three FBI Special Agents at 10:40 PM outside at Chicago's Biograph Theater on Lincoln Avenue in Lincoln Park, Chicago.
September, 1934 – Ray Meyer enrolled at Notre Dame University, receiving a basketball scholarship. ==> Notre Dame Fighting Irish Basketball.
1936-38 – Ray Meyer was Notre Dame's captain his junior and senior seasons, when the Irish had a combined 40-6 record. In 1938 he received Notre Dame's Byron V. Kanaley Award, which goes to the senior letterman who demonstrates highest academic achievement and leadership.
March, 1938 – The first National Invitational Tournament (NIT) was played, with a six-team field.
June, 1938 – Ray Meyer graduated from Notre Dame University with a bachelor's degree in sociology and took a job with the Chicago Relief Association helping Chicago's poor. He hated it.
March, 1939 – The first NCAA Tournament was played, with an eight-team field.
May 27, 1939 – Ray Meyer married Margaret Mary Delaney, whom he had coached at St. Agatha. Soon afterward he started work in the catering department at the La Salle Hotel, for whose basketball team he played in an Amateur Athletic Union league.
August, 1939 – The DePaul Blue Demons football team was eliminated as part of the financial cutbacks implemented as a result of the Great Depression.
September 1, 1939 – Germany invaded Poland, precipitating World War II.
December, 1940 – Ray Meyer was offered $1,700 to become basketball coach at Joliet Catholic High School. He held out for $100 more, and the deal fell through. Within days, however, he returned to Notre Dame to become assistant coach under George Keogan, who had become ill. He stayed two seasons, at times serving as acting head coach when Keogan's health limited his activity.
December 8, 1941 – The United States declared war on Japan.
December 11, 1941 – The United States declared war on Germany.
April 17, 1942 – Following the resignation of DePaul’s basketball coach Bill Wendt, Ray Meyer was offered and accepted the position, brining Meyer home to Chicago, where he began his only head-coaching job for a salary of $2,500.
Paul Blue Demons Basketball History and Important Dates – DePaul University – June 18, 2019
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5. The Coaches
DePaul Blue Demons Coaching History – DePaul University Archives
Chasing Ghosts: DePaul's sad journey from name brand to also-ran – ESPN - June 25, 2019
DePaul Coach (Seasons) • Overall W-L (Pct.) • Conference W-L (Pct.)
1920-21 to 1941-42: 6 coaches
1942-43 to 1983-84: Ray Meyer • 724-354 (.672) ==> Inducted into College Basketball Hall of Fame in 2006
1984–85 to 1996–97: Joey Meyer • Overall: 231-158 (.594) • Conf: 24–48 (.333)
1997–98 to 2001–02: Pat Kennedy • Overall: 67–85 (.441) • Conf: 28–52 (.350)
2002–03 to 2004–05: Dave Leitao • See 2015-16 to Present for combined records.
2005–06 to 2009–10: Jerry Wainwright • Overall: 59–80 (.424) • Conf: 20–51 (.282)
2010–11 to 2014–15: Oliver Purnell • Overall: 54–105 (.340) • Conf: 15–75 (.167)
2015-16 to Present: Dave Leitao • Overall: 106–116 (.477) • Conf: 46–74 (.383)
Dayton Coach (Seasons) • Overall W-L (Pct.) • Conference W-L (Pct.)
1903–04 to 1946-47: 15 coaches
1947-48 to 1963-64: Tom Blackburn • 352–141 (.714)
1964-65 to 1988-89: Don Donoher • 437–275 (.614) ==> Inducted into College Basketball Hall of Fame in 2015
1989-90 to 1993-94: Jim O'Brien • Overall: 61–87 (.412) • Conf: 27–37 (.422)
1994-95 to 2002-03: Oliver Purnell • Overall: 155–116 (.572) • Conf: 61–69 (.469)
2003-04 to 2010-11: Brian Gregory • Overall: 172–94 (.647) • Conf: 70–58 (.547)
2011-12 to 2016-17: Archie Miller • Overall: 139–63 (.688) • Conf: 68–34 (.667)
2017-18 to Present: Anthony Grant • Overall: 64–31 (.674)• Conf: 39–15 (.722)
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6. The Pre-Meyers Era: 1920-21 to 1941-42
Dayton Flyers 2019-20 Media Guide – Page 134 – University of Dayton – November 5, 2019
1920-21 • unknown • Lost 20-33.
1928-29 • at DePaul • Won 22-18.
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7. The Ray Meyer Era: 1942-43 to 1983-84
7.1 Selected DePaul and Dayton Season Summaries and Coaching Records 1942-1954
7.2 1955 - The NCAA Tournament Becomes More Prestigious than the NIT
7.3 Selected DePaul and Dayton Season Summaries and Coaching Records 1955-1984
7.4 Dayton vs. DePaul Game Results 1942-1984
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7.1 Selected DePaul and Dayton Season Summaries and Coaching Records 1942-1954
Season • Team • Coach (W-L Record) • Postseason • No. of Teams in Tournament Fields
1942–43 • DePaul • Ray Meyer (19–5) • NCAA Final Four • [8 NIT teams + 8 NCAA teams = 16 post-season tournament teams]
1943–44 • DePaul • Ray Meyer (22–4) • NIT Runner Up • [8 NIT + 8 NCAA = 16]
1944–45 • DePaul • Ray Meyer (21–3) • NIT Champions • [8 NIT + 8 NCAA = 16]
1947 • Tom Blackburn was named as the new coach of the Dayton Flyers.
1947–48 • DePaul • Ray Meyer (22–8) • NIT Semifinals • [8 NIT + 8 NCAA = 16]
1950–51 • Dayton • Tom Blackburn (27–5) • NIT Runner Up • [12 NIT + 16 NCAA = 28]
1951–52 • Dayton • Tom Blackburn (28–5) • NIT Runner Up • [12 NIT + 16 NCAA = 28]
1951–52 • Dayton • Tom Blackburn (28–5) • NCAA Sweet Sixteen • [12 NIT + 16 NCAA = 28]
1952–53 • DePaul • Ray Meyer (19–9) • NCAA Sweet Sixteen • [12 NIT + 22 NCAA = 34]
1953–54 • Dayton • Tom Blackburn (25–7) • NIT Quarterfinals • [12 NIT + 24 NCAA = 36]
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7.2 1955 – The NCAA Tournament Becomes More Prestigious than the NIT
The NIT Was Awesome Until the NCAA Ruined Basketball – OZY – January 16, 2018
7.3 Selected DePaul and Dayton Season Summaries and Coaching Records 1955-1984
Season • Team • Coach (W-L Record) • Postseason • No. of Teams in Tournament Fields
1954–55 • Dayton • Tom Blackburn (25–4) • NIT Runner Up • [12 NIT + 24 NCAA = 36]
1955–56 • DePaul • Ray Meyer (16–8) • NCAA First Round • [12 NIT + 25 NCAA = 37]
1955–56 • Dayton • Tom Blackburn (25–4) • NIT Runner Up• [12 NIT + 25 NCAA = 37]
1956–57 • Dayton • Tom Blackburn (19–9) • NIT Quarterfinals • [12 NIT + 23 NCAA = 35]
1957–58 • Dayton • Tom Blackburn (25–4) • NIT Runner Up • [12 NIT + 24 NCAA = 36]
1958–59 • DePaul • Ray Meyer (13–11) • NCAA Sweet Sixteen • [12 NIT + 23 NCAA = 35]
1959–60 • DePaul • Ray Meyer (17–7) • NCAA Sweet Sixteen • [12 NIT + 25 NCAA = 37]
1959–60 • Dayton • Tom Blackburn (21–7) • NIT Quarterfinals • [12 NIT + 25 NCAA = 37]
1960–61 • DePaul • Ray Meyer (17–8) • NIT Quarterfinals • [12 NIT + 24 NCAA = 36 ]
1960–61 • Dayton • Tom Blackburn (20–9) • NIT Final Four • [12 NIT + 24 NCAA = 36 ]
1961–62 • Dayton • Tom Blackburn (24–6) • NIT Champions • [12 NIT + 25 NCAA = 37]
1962–63 • DePaul • Ray Meyer (15–8) • NIT Quarterfinals • [12 NIT + 25 NCAA = 37]
1963–64 • DePaul • Ray Meyer (21–4) • NIT Quarterfinals • [12 NIT + 25 NCAA = 37]
1964–65 • DePaul • Ray Meyer (17–10) • NCAA Sweet Sixteen • [14 NIT + 25 NCAA = 39]
1964–65 • Dayton • Don Donoher (22–7) • NCAA Sweet Sixteen • [14 NIT + 25 NCAA = 39]
1965–66 • DePaul • Ray Meyer (18–8) • NIT First Round • [14 NIT + 22 NCAA = 36]
1965–66 • Dayton • Don Donoher (23–6) • NCAA Sweet Sixteen • [14 NIT + 22 NCAA = 36]
1966–67 • Dayton • Don Donoher (25–6) • NCAA Runner-up • [14 NIT + 23 NCAA = 37]
1967–68 • Dayton • Don Donoher (21–9) • NIT Champions • [16 NIT + 23 NCAA = 39]
1968–69 • Dayton • Don Donoher (20–7) • NCAA First Round • [16 NIT + 25 NCAA = 41]
1969–70 • Dayton • Don Donoher (19–8) • NCAA First Round • [16 NIT + 25 NCAA = 41]
1970–71 • Dayton • Don Donoher (18–9) • NIT First round • [16 NIT + 25 NCAA = 41]
1973–74 • Dayton • Don Donoher (20–9) • NCAA Sweet Sixteen • [16 NIT + 25 NCAA = 41]
1975–76 • DePaul • Ray Meyer (20–9) • NCAA Sweet Sixteen • [12 NIT + 32 NCAA = 48]
1977–78 • DePaul • Ray Meyer (27–3) • NCAA Elite Eight • [16 NIT + 32 NCAA = 48]
1977–78 • Dayton • Don Donoher (19–10) • NIT Quarterfinals • [16 NIT + 32 NCAA = 48]
1978–79 • DePaul • Ray Meyer (26–6) • NCAA #2 Seed - Final Four • [24 NIT + 40 NCAA = 64]
1978–79 • Dayton • Don Donoher (19–10) • NIT Second round • [24 NIT + 40 NCAA = 64]
1979–80 • DePaul • Ray Meyer (26–2) • NCAA #1 Seed - Second Round • [32 NIT + 48 NCAA = 80]
1980–81 • DePaul • Ray Meyer (27–2) • NCAA #1 Seed - Second Round • [32 NIT + 48 NCAA = 80]
1980–81 • Dayton • Don Donoher (18–11) • NIT Second round • [32 NIT + 48 NCAA = 80]
1981–82 • DePaul • Ray Meyer (26–2) • NCAA #1 Seed - Second Round • [32 NIT + 48 NCAA = 80]
1981–82 • Dayton • Don Donoher (21–9) • NIT Quarterfinals • [32 NIT + 48 NCAA = 80]
1982–83 • DePaul • Ray Meyer (21–12) • NIT Runner Up • [32 NIT + 52 NCAA = 84]
1983–84 • DePaul • Ray Meyer (27–3) • NCAA #1 Seed - Second Round • [32 NIT + 53 NCAA = 85]
1983–84 • Dayton • Don Donoher (21–11) • NCAA Elite Eight • [32 NIT + 53 NCAA = 85]
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7.4 Dayton vs. DePaul Game Results 1942-1984
Game Results: Red font: Dayton win/DePaul loss • Blue font: DePaul win/Dayton loss
Dec 8, 1956 • Alumni Hall • Lost 59-67.
Jan 30, 1957 • UD Fieldhouse • Won 75-58. Attendance: 5,808
Jan 4, 1958 • Alumni Hall • Won 69-60.
Feb 12, 1958 • UD Fieldhouse • AP #14 Dayton Won 62-53. Attendance: 5,808
Jan 10, 1959 • Alumni Hall • Won 62-60.
Feb 11, 1959 • UD Fieldhouse • Won 88-69. Attendance: 5,808
Feb 17, 1960 • Alumni Hall • Lost 66-70.
Mar 5, 1960 • Alumni Hall • Won 67-66.
Jan 7, 1961 • UD Fieldhouse • Lost 64-75. Attendance: 5,808
Mar 4, 1961 • Alumni Hall • Lost 83-84.
Jan 27, 1962 • Alumni Hall • Won 90-88, 2OT.
Mar 10, 1962 • UD Fieldhouse • Won 77-61. Attendance: 5,808
Jan 19, 1963 • UD Fieldhouse • Won 57-56. Attendance: 5,808
Mar 9, 1963 • Alumni Hall • Lost 66-68.
Jan 18, 1964 • Alumni Hall • Lost 83-89.
March 6, 1964 - 58-year-old Tom Blackburn died of cancer.
March 6, 1964 - 32-year old Don Donoher was named the Dayton Flyers’ new head coach - only hours after Tom Blackburn’s death.
March 7, 1964 - AP Poll # 8 DePaul beat Dayton 79-73 at UD Fieldhouse in Don Donoher’s debut as an NCAA head coach. Attendance: 5,808
Jan 16, 1965 • UD Fieldhouse • Lost 59-63. Attendance: 5,808
Mar 6, 1965 • Alumni Hall • Won 71-64. Attendance: 4,017
Mar 13, 1965 • NCAA TOURNAMENT • Memorial Coliseum • Won 75-69. Attendance: 10,500
Jan 8, 1966 • Alumni Hall • Won 81-70. Attendance: 4,541
Feb 26, 1966 • UD Fieldhouse • Won 76-73. Attendance: 5,808
Jan 21, 1967 • UD Fieldhouse • Won 81-65. Attendance: 5,882
Mar 4, 1967 • Alumni Hall • Lost 79-84. Attendance: 4,362
Jan 20, 1968 • UD Fieldhouse • Lost 65-70. Attendance: 5,882
Feb 17, 1968 • Alumni Hall • Won 70-58. Attendance: 3,017
Jan 18, 1969 • Alumni Hall • Won 86-83. Attendance: 3,648
Mar 1, 1969 • UD Fieldhouse • Won 63-57. Attendance: 5,882
Jan 17, 1970 • UD Arena • Won 79-75. Attendance: 13,450
Feb 21, 1970 • Alumni Hall • Won 74-63. Attendance: 3,920
Jan 16, 1971 • Alumni Hall • Won 76-71. Attendance: 3,201
Feb 20, 1971 UD Arena • Won 92-60. Attendance: 13,150
Jan 15, 1972 • UD Arena • Lost 72-75. Attendance: 12,684
Jan 27, 1973 • Alumni Hall • Won 82-74. Attendance: 4,212
Jan 26, 1974 • UD Arena • Won 85-71. Attendance: 11,856
Jan 25, 1975 • Alumni Hall • Lost 80-86. Attendance: 4,260
Jan 31, 1976 • Alumni Hall • Lost 72-84. Attendance: 3,739
Jan 22, 1977 • UD Arena • Lost 67-74. Attendance: 12,180
Jan 21, 1978 • Alumni Hall • Lost 70-74 to AP #5 DePaul. Attendance: 5,115
Jan 20, 1979 • UD Arena • Won 68-64 OT. Attendance: 12,921
Feb 9, 1980 • Alumni Hall • Lost 63-65 to AP #1 DePaul. Attendance: 5,498
Mar 4, 1981 • UD Arena • Lost 64-84 to AP #2 DePaul. Attendance: 13,455
Jan 9, 1982 • Rosemont Horizon • Lost 69-71 to AP #5 DePaul. Attendance: 12,320
Jan 21, 1983 • Rosemont Horizon • Lost 52-56. Attendance: 12,339
Mar 12, 1983 • UD Arena • Won 80-71 Attendance: 11,411
Feb 18, 1984 • UD Arena • Won 72-71 Attendance: 12,723
Feb 22, 1984 • Rosemont Horizon • Lost 59-79 to AP # 5 DePaul. Attendance: 13,027
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8. The Joey Meyer Era: 1984–85 to 1996–97
Jan 26, 1985 • UD Arena • Won 65-64 over AP # 5 DePaul. Attendance: 13,495
Feb 6, 1985 Rosemont Horizon • Won 67-63 over AP #18 DePaul. Attendance: 16,803
Jan 4, 1986 • Rosemont Horizon • Lost 52-66. Attendance: 12,731
Feb 1, 1986 • UD Arena • Won 77-64. Attendance: 12,893
Jan 3, 1987 • UD Arena • Lost 64-80 to AP # 7 DePaul. Attendance: 12,452
Feb 7, 1987 • Rosemont Horizon • Lost 65-88 to AP #5 DePaul. Attendance: 14,280
Jan 14, 1988 • Rosemont Horizon • Won 79-72. Attendance: 10,935
Mar 1, 1988 • UD Arena • Lost 77-92. Attendance: 11,740
Feb 7, 1989 UD Arena • Lost 50-78. Attendance: 11,248
Dec 20, 1989 • Rosemont Horizon • Won 86-73. Attendance: 8,405
Jan 3, 1991 • UD Arena • Lost 73-81. Attendance: 11,633
Jan 3, 1994 • UD Arena • Lost 86-98. Attendance: 10,241
Feb 17, 1994 • Rosemont Horizon • Lost 77-100. Attendance: 6,748
Feb 5, 1995 • UD Arena • Lost 71-85. Attendance: 10,194
Mar 4, 1995 • Rosemont Horizon • Lost 78-103. Attendance: 7,469
Dec 30, 1996 • UD Arena • Won 71-49. Attendance: 11,604
1984–85 • DePaul • Joey Meyer (19–10) • NCAA First Round • [32 NIT + 64 NCAA = 96]
1984–85 • Dayton • Don Donoher (19–10) • NCAA First Round • [32 NIT + 64 NCAA = 96]
1985–86 • DePaul • Joey Meyer (18–13) • NCAA Sweet Sixteen • [32 NIT + 64 NCAA = 96]
1985–86 • Dayton • Don Donoher (17–13) • NIT First round • [32 NIT + 64 NCAA = 96]
1986–87 • DePaul • Joey Meyer (28–3) • NCAA Sweet Sixteen • [32 NIT + 64 NCAA = 96]
1987–88 • DePaul • Joey Meyer (22–8) • NCAA Second Round • [32 NIT + 64 NCAA = 96]
1988–89 • DePaul • Joey Meyer (21–12) • NCAA Second Round • [32 NIT + 64 NCAA = 96]
1989–90 • DePaul • Joey Meyer (20–15) • NIT Quarterfinals • [32 NIT + 64 NCAA = 96]
1990–91 • DePaul • Joey Meyer (20–9) • NCAA First Round • [32 NIT + 64 NCAA = 96]
1991–92 • DePaul • Joey Meyer (20–9) • NCAA First Round • [32 NIT + 64 NCAA = 96]
1993–94 • DePaul • Joey Meyer (16–12) • NIT First Round • [32 NIT + 64 NCAA = 96]
1994–95 • DePaul • Joey Meyer (17–11) • NIT First Round • [32 NIT + 64 NCAA = 96]
Depaul Fires Coach Joey Meyer - The Chicago Tribune – April 28, 1997
9. The Post-Meyers’ Era: 1997–98 to 2004-05
Dec 23, 1997 • Rosemont Horizon • Won 70-57. Attendance: 3,395
Dec 30, 1998 • UD Arena • Won 70-59. Attendance: 11,641
Mar 18, 2004 • NCAA TOURNAMENT • HSBC Arena • Lost 69-76 2OT. Attendance: 18,698
Dec 1, 2004 • Allstate Arena • Lost 59-70. Attendance: 8,787
1997–98 • Dayton • Oliver Purnell (21–12) • NIT Second round • [32 NIT + 64 NCAA = 96]
1998–99 • DePaul • Pat Kennedy (18–13) • NIT Second Round • [32 NIT + 64 NCAA = 96]
1999–00 • DePaul • Pat Kennedy (21–12) • NCAA First Round • [32 NIT + 64 NCAA = 96]
1999–2000 • Dayton • Oliver Purnell (22–9) • NCAA First Round • [32 NIT + 64 NCAA = 96]
2000–01 • Dayton • Oliver Purnell (21–13) • NIT First Round • [32 NIT + 65 NCAA = 97]
2001–02 • Dayton • Oliver Purnell (21–11) • NIT First Round • [40 NIT + 65 NCAA = 105]
2002–03 • DePaul • Dave Leitao (16–13) • NIT First Round • [40 NIT + 65 NCAA = 105]
2002–03 • Dayton • Oliver Purnell (24–6) • NCAA First Round • [40 NIT + 65 NCAA = 105]
2003–04 • DePaul • Dave Leitao (22–10) • NCAA Second Round • [40 NIT + 65 NCAA = 105]
2004–05 • DePaul • Dave Leitao (20–11) • NIT Second Round • [40 NIT + 65 NCAA = 105]
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10. The Big East Era: 2005-06 to Present
It's Official: DePaul To Join BIG EAST Conference – DePaul University – November 4, 2003
Dec 10, 2005 • UD Arena • DePaul 61, Dayton 54 Attendance: 12,302
DePaul Blue Demons Coaches’ Records in the Big East Conference
2005–06 • DePaul • Jerry Wainwright • 12–15 (5–11) • T-13th
2006–07 • DePaul • Jerry Wainwright • 20–14 (9–7) • 8th • NIT Quarterfinals • [40 NIT + 65 NCAA = 97]
2007–08 • DePaul • Jerry Wainwright • 11–19 (6–12) • 13th
2008–09 • DePaul • Jerry Wainwright • 9–24 (0–18) • 16th/Last
2009–10 • DePaul • Jerry Wainwright • 8–23 (1–17) • 16th/Last
2010–11 • DePaul • Oliver Purnell • 7–24 (1–17) • 16th/Last
2011–12 • DePaul • Oliver Purnell • 12–19 (3–15) • 16th/Last
2012–13 • DePaul • Oliver Purnell • 11–21 (2–16) • 15th/Last
2013–14 • DePaul • Oliver Purnell • 12–21 (3–15) • 10th/Last
2014–15 • DePaul • Oliver Purnell • 12–20 (6–12) • 7th
2015–16 • DePaul • Dave Leitao • 9–22 (3–15) • 9th
2016–17 • DePaul • Dave Leitao • 9–23 (2–16) • 10th/Last
2017–18 • DePaul • Dave Leitao • 11-20 (4-14) • T-9th/Last
2018–19 • DePaul • Dave Leitao • 19-17 (7-11) • T-8th/Last • CBI Runner Up
2019–20 • DePaul • Dave Leitao •16-16 (3-15) • 10th/Last
History of the Former Dayton-DePaul Rivalry – Part I
1. Introduction
2. Context of the Former Dayton-DePaul Rivalry
3. History of Dayton and the University of Dayton
4. History of Chicago and DePaul University
5. The Coaches
6. The Pre-Meyer Era: 1920-21 to 1941-42
7. The Ray Meyer Era: 1942-43 to 1983-84
8. The Joey Meyer Era: 1984–85 to 1996–97
9. The Post-Meyers’ Era: 1997–98 to 2004-05
10. The Big East Era: 2005-06 to Present
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1. Introduction
The former Dayton-Xavier Rivalry was nationally known for many decades, but the former Dayton-DePaul Rivalry is also an integral and important part of the history of Dayton Flyers basketball. Younger Big East fans may not appreciate that DePaul once had many great basketball teams prior to their joining the Big East, and the Blue Demons had a great rivalry with the Flyers in years gone by. The former Dayton-DePaul Rivalry had it all:
DePaul Blue Demons Men's Basketball - Wikipedia
Ray Meyer coached at DePaul for over 40 years, from 1942 to 1984. After going to the Final Four of the 1979 NCAA Division I Basketball Tournament, Meyer's team was the No. 1 seed in its regional three years in a row in 1980, 1981 and 1982. Success continued with multiple NCAA appearances under his son, Joey Meyer, throughout the 1980s.
DePaul was independent for much of its basketball history. DePaul joined the Great Midwest Conference in 1991 which later merged with the Metro Conference in 1995 to become Conference USA, in which DePaul was a member through 2005. DePaul left for the Big East Conference for the 2005–06 season, and remained a member of the reconfigured Big East in 2013.
Lack of Success since 1989
Since the 1989-90 season, DePaul has won one NCAA tournament game in the 29 seasons that have transpired. DePaul has not qualified for the NCAA Tournament since the 2003-04 season, and has been to only two NCAA Tournaments since 1991-92. The Blue Demons have not been to postseason play at all since 2006-07. DePaul has finished last in the Big East eight of the past ten seasons concluding with a tie for last in the 2017-18 season.
What went wrong? - DePaul Arena Project
From 1981-1986 DePaul was in the Top 25 year in and year out for home game attendance and most of the years they were Top Ten in fans, but what happened to those days? When Legendary coach Ray Meyer retired in 1984 after 42 seasons of coaching DePaul basketball, his son Joey Meyer stepped in and did pretty well, taking the team to the post season 7 out of his first 8 seasons at DePaul. Times would not be good though from 1986-1989 the Demons got caught for multiple NCAA violations and had to vacate all NCAA tournament appearances and wins. Attendance took a turn for the worst during this time of woe and has not recovered since.
DePaul won their first and only college basketball national championship in 1945 by virtue of beating Bowling Green 71-54 in the 1945 National Invitation Tournament, but that proud accomplishment was tempered by the fact that many of the country’s basketball programs did not field teams for the 1944-45 season. The 8-team NIT field included Muhlenberg College (Allentown, PA) and Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (Troy, NY) and the 8-team 1945 NCAA Tournament included some lesser-known teams.
The DePaul Blue Demons have appeared in the NCAA Tournament 22 times. Their combined record is 21–25. Their appearances in the tournament from 1986–1989 have been vacated by the NCAA thus their official record is 15–21. The Blue Demons have also appeared in the National Invitation Tournament (NIT) 16 times and their combined record is 17–17.
The Dayton Flyers have appeared in the NCAA Tournament 18 times. Their combined record is 19–20. The Flyers have also appeared in the National Invitation Tournament (NIT) 24 times and their combined record is 40–22. The Flyers are three-time NIT Champions (1962, 1968, 2010), and five-time runners-up (1951, 1952, 1955, 1956, and 1958).
DePaul Blue Demons History and Records Archive – DePaul University – March 19, 2020
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2. Context of the Former Dayton-DePaul Rivalry
In order to provide perspective for the former Dayton-DePaul rivalry, it is instructive to review the number of games the two teams have played against each other, against selected common opponents, and how the two teams have fared. Note that the information below includes the 2019-20 season.
DePaul Blue Demons Record Book • All-Time Series Records – DePaul University – Updated March 19, 2020
No. of Games Played – Opponent (All-Time W-L) • First Game • Last Game
127 – Marquette (48-79) • 1917-18 • 2019-20
106 - Notre Dame (44-62) • 1911-12 • 2018-19
69 - Dayton (34-35) • 1920-21 • 2005-06
61 - Saint Louis (34-27) • 1924-25 • 2008-09
46 - St. John’s (20-26) • 1931-32 • 2019-20
44 – Providence (12-32) • 1960-61 • 2019-20
43 – Georgetown (11-32) • 1941-42 • 2019-20
38 – Creighton (16-22) • 1937-38 • 2019-20
38 – Villanova (8-30) • 1938-39 • 2019-20
27 – Xavier (11-16) • 1938-39 • 2019-20
26 - Seton Hall (8-18) • 1941-42 • 2019-20
20 – Butler (7-13) • 1938-39 • 2019-20
11 – UConn (1-10) • 2003-04 • 2012-13
Dayton Flyers 2019-20 Media Guide – University of Dayton – November 5, 2019
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Page 132: Dayton vs. Big East Conference Teams: 175-166 • Pages 133-143: ALL-TIME SERIES RESULTS
No. of Games Played – Opponent (All-Time W-L) • First Game • Last Game
160 – Xavier (84-76) • 1920-21 • 2015-16
69 - DePaul (35-34) • 1920-21 • 2005-06
64 - Saint Louis* (36-28) • 1951-52 • 2018-19
41 - Notre Dame (13-28) • 1908-09 • 1994-95
35 – Marquette (14-21) • 1966-67 • 2008-09
24 – Butler (11-13) • 1924-25 • 2012-13
11 – Creighton (7-4) • 1960-61 • 2009-10
11 - Seton Hall (7-4) • 1948-49 • 2011-12
10 - St. John’s (5-5) • 1939-40 • 1973-74
10 – Villanova (5-5) • 1952-53 • 2009-10
8 – Providence (6-2) • 1962-63 • 2014-15
3 – Georgetown (1-2) • 1951-52 • 1983-84
3 – UConn (2-1) • 1981-82 • 2014-15
* Includes UD’s two wins over Saint Louis on January 18, 2020 and February 8, 2020.
3. History of Dayton and the University of Dayton
Please see the following two threads: History of the Former Dayton-Xavier Rivalry and History of the Former Dayton-Marquette Rivalry.
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4. History of Chicago and DePaul University
1581 - Vincent de Paul was born in April 24, 1581 in the village of Pouy, in the Province of Guyenne and Gascony, the Kingdom of France, to peasant farmers. He was ordained on September 23 1600, at the age of nineteen and died on September 27, 1660.
1737 - Father Vincent de Paul was canonized in Rome by Pope Clement XII, becoming Saint Vincent de Paul.
......... Saint Vincent de Paul ........
1780’s - The first known permanent settler in Chicago was explorer Jean Baptiste Point du Sable, who is commonly known as the ‘Founder of Chicago’.
December 3, 1818 – Illinois became the 21st state.
August 12, 1833 - The Town of Chicago was organized with a population of about 200. Within seven years it grew to more than 6,000 people.
March 4, 1837 - The City of Chicago was incorporated, and for several decades was the world's fastest-growing city.
1868 - The Lincoln Park Zoo opens in Chicago.
April 29, 1870 – The Chicago Cubs played their first game.
The professional baseball team known as the ‘Chicago Cubs’ for the last 115 years began in the late 1860’s and was officially known as ‘The Chicago Base Ball Club’. It was common at the time for sportswriters to refer to teams by their uniform colors, and it happens that Chicago's club, which, adopted white and were immediately tagged by reporters as ‘White Stockings’. On April 29, 1870, the ‘Chicago White Stockings’ played their first game against the Union Club of St. Louis, and soundly defeated the Unions 7–1.
During the 1875 season, the White Stockings president William Hulbert poached Cap Anson from Philadelphia Athletics. Anson's mark was so deep that by the mid-1890s sportswriters had dropped the ‘White Stockings’ name in favor of the ‘Chicago Colts’, or more commonly, ‘Anson's Colts’. The ‘Colts’ name remained in circulation through the 1905 season. The name ’Cubs’ first appeared in print in 1902 and gained popularity over the next four years, before becoming the sole nickname in 1906.
October 8–10, 1871 - The Great Chicago Fire killed approximately 300 people, destroyed roughly 3.3 square miles of the city, and left more than 100,000 residents homeless.
1876 - Chicago became known as the ‘Windy City’ and involved Chicago's rivalry with Cincinnati.
1890’s – All four of my Irish Catholic grandparents were born in Dayton and all four were fortunate enough to have celebrated their 80th birthdays during the 1970’s. They remembered the local Wright Brothers making their historic flight in 1903, survived The Great Dayton Flood in 1913, and watched local astronaut Neil Armstrong walk on the moon in 1969. I am very blessed to have more than twenty years of memories of my grandparents, and to have heard their amazing stories about their parents (who grew up in the aftermath of the American Civil War), and their grandparents (who emigrated to the U.S. from Ireland in the late 1840’s during The Great Famine). My four grandparents had a total of 15 children and 73 grandchildren – many of whom went to the University of Dayton, Marquette University, and Notre Dame University. For whatever reasons, there are no DePaul alumni in my extended family.
Wikipedia wrote:
1789 • Georgetown University is founded • Catholic (Jesuit)
1818 • Saint Louis University is founded • Catholic (Jesuit)
1831 • Xavier University is founded • Catholic (Jesuit)
1842 • Villanova University is founded • Catholic (Augustinian)
1842 • Notre Dame University is founded • Catholic (Holy Cross)
1850 • University of Dayton is founded • Catholic (Marianist)
1851 • Northwestern University is founded • Private
1855 • Butler University is founded • Private (Christian)
1856 • Seton Hall University is founded • Catholic (Diocesan)
1870 • Loyola University Chicago is founded • Catholic (Jesuit)
1870 • St. John's University is founded • Catholic (Vincentian)
1878 • Creighton University is founded • Catholic (Jesuit)
1881 • Marquette University is founded • Catholic (Jesuit)
1881 • University of Connecticut is founded • Public
1890 • University of Chicago is founded • Private
1898 • DePaul College is founded • Catholic (Vincentian)
1907 • The college is re-chartered as ’DePaul University’
1917 • Providence College is founded • Catholic (Dominican)
1998 • DePaul University became the largest Catholic university by enrollment in the United States.
May 1-October 30, 1893 – The Chicago World’s Fair takes place to celebrate the 400th anniversary of Christopher Columbus' arrival in the New World in 1492. The centerpiece of the Fair was the large water pool, represented the voyage Columbus took to the New World.
January 17, 1899 - Alphonse “Al” Capone was born in New York City to Italian immigrant parents.
1901 – The Chicago White Sox played their first game.
The Chicago White Sox are a Major League Baseball team based on the South Side of Chicago. They are one of eight charter members of the American League, having played in Chicago since the inaugural 1901 season.
1903 - The St. Mary’s Institute ‘Saints’ (later becoming the Dayton Flyers) played their first intercollegiate basketball game.
1907 DePaul University adopted ‘Blue Demons’ as its nickname. At the time, the athletic teams had red uniforms with a large ‘D’ on the front. After an announcer referred to the players as the ‘D-men’, the moniker stuck and eventually evolved into ‘Demons.’ The ‘Blue’ was part of an attempt to distinguish the university's players from those of its now-defunct high school, DePaul Academy.
October, 1907 – The Chicago Cubs won their first World Series, sweeping the Detroit Tigers in four games.
October, 1908 – The Chicago Cubs won their second World Series, beating the Detroit Tigers again in five games. The Cubs would suffer a drought of 108 years until they won their third World series – in October, 2016.
The 1908 DePaul University basketball team
1911 – DePaul University began admitting women in and awarded degrees to its first female graduates in 1912. It was one of the first Catholic universities to admit female students in a co-educational setting.
April 15, 1912 – The RMS Titanic hit an iceberg in the North Atlantic at 11:40 p.m. ship's time and sunk. Of the estimated 2,224 passengers and crew aboard, more than 1,500 died.
December 18, 1913 – Ray Meyer was born in Chicago, the son of a candy wholesaler and the youngest of 10 children.
1914 – DePaul University began offering courses in Chicago's Loop, the precursor of DePaul's second primary campus.
June 28, 1914 - Archduke Franz Ferdinand, heir to the Austro-Hungarian Empire, was assassinated in Sarajevo, precipitating Wold War I.
1915 – DePaul University completed their affiliation with the Illinois College of Law University and became the DePaul University College of Law.
April 20, 1916 - The Chicago Cubs played their first home game at Wrigley Field, defeating the Cincinnati Reds 7–6 in 11 innings.
April 6, 1917 - America entered Wold War I after President Woodrow Wilson called for war on Germany on April 2, 1917.
October 2017 - The Chicago White Sox won their first Wold Series, defeating the New York Giants in six games.
Spring 1918 - The Spanish Flu Pandemic was an unusually deadly influenza pandemic lasting more than 12 months from spring 1918 to early summer 1919. It infected 500 million people and it is estimated to have killed anywhere from 17 million to 50 million people, and possibly as high as 100 million. A large factor in the worldwide occurrence of this flu was increased travel. Modern transportation systems made it easier for soldiers, sailors, and civilian travellers to spread the disease. Another factor was lies and denial by governments, leaving the population ill-prepared to handle the outbreaks.
June 28, 1919 – The Treaty of Versailles, formally ending World War I, was signed.
1919 – The Chicago Bears are founded.
October 1919 – The Black Sox Scandal erupted.
The Black Sox Scandal was a Major League Baseball game-fixing scandal in which eight members of the Chicago White Sox were accused of throwing the 1919 World Series against the Cincinnati Reds in exchange for money from a gambling syndicate led by Arnold Rothstein, Aiden Clayton, and Aaron Nelson.
October 28, 1919 – Congress passed the National Prohibition Act, also known as the Volstead Act.
1919 - Al Capone left New York for Chicago at the invitation of Johnny Torrio, who was imported by crime boss James "Big Jim" Colosimo as an enforcer.
January 16, 1920 – Prohibition began in the United States.
1920 - St. Mary’s Institute changed its name to the 'University of Dayton'.
1920 – Page 134 of the Dayton Flyers 2019-20 Media Guide shows that DePaul University beat the University of Dayton 33-20 in the first recorded basketball game between the two schools, but does not give the date nor location of the game.
1923 – The DePaul Blue Demons played their first intercollegiate basketball game (according to their published archives). Robert L. Stevenson was the first head coach in DePaul basketball history. In his one season as coach during the 1923–24 season, he coached the Blue Demons to a record of 8–6.
January 1925 - Al Capone was ambushed, leaving him shaken but unhurt. Twelve days later, Johnny Torrio was returning from a shopping trip when he was shot several times. After recovering, he effectively resigned and handed control to Capone, age 26, who became the new boss of an organization that took in illegal breweries and a transportation network that reached to Canada, with political and law-enforcement protection. Capone used more violence to increase revenue. An establishment that refused to purchase liquor from him often got blown up, and as many as 100 people were killed in such bombings during the 1920s.
Late 1920’s – Ray Meyer fed a passion for sports at the Lawson School playground on Chicago's West Side. He dabbled in basketball there and at St. Agatha's grade school, but early on, baseball was his favorite sport.
1928-29 basketball season – the first ‘official’ game between UD and DePaul was played at DePaul. The Flyers won the game 22-18.
February 14, 1929 – Al Capone was widely assumed to have been responsible for ordering the Saint Valentine's Day Massacre in an attempt to eliminate Bugs Moran, head of the North Side Gang. Moran was the last survivor of the North Side gunmen; his succession had come about because his similarly aggressive predecessors Vincent Drucci and Hymie Weiss had been killed in the violence that followed the murder of original leader Dean O'Banion.
September, 1929 - Ray Meyer originally intended to become a priest, but after two years at Quigley Preparatory Seminary in Chicago, he enrolled at St. Patrick Academy. Part of his reason for transferring to St. Patrick Academy was his growing fascination with basketball.
October 28, 1929 - The Great Depression began with the Wall Street Crash.
March 1930 - Al Capone was listed as the number one "Public Enemy" on the unofficial Chicago Crime Commission's widely publicized list.
March 13, 1931 - Al Capone was charged with income tax evasion for 1924, in a secret grand jury. On June 5, 1931, Capone was indicted by a federal grand jury on 22 counts of income tax evasion from 1925 through 1929. A week later, Eliot Ness and his team of Untouchables inflicted major financial damage on Capone's operations, and led to his indictment on 5,000 violations of the Volstead Act (Prohibition laws).
October 17, 1931 – Al Capone was convicted on three counts of income tax evasion and was sentenced a week later to 11 years in federal prison.
1932 – Ray Meyer started at guard for the St. Patrick team that won the National Catholic Interscholastic Basketball Tournament at Loyola University.
March 6, 1933 - Chicago Mayor Anton Cermak was fatally wounded in Miami during a failed assassination attempt on President-elect Franklin D. Roosevelt.
June, 1933 – Ray Meyer graduated from St. Patrick Academy in Chicago.
September, 1933 – Ray Meyer enrolled at Northwestern University, but he left after a brief stay. "He just didn't fit in with the class of people there," his brother Ben would recall, though Meyer would later say he quit to help out financially at home. Ray Meyer’s basketball play had impressed a Notre Dame backer who persuaded Irish coach George Keogan to offer Meyer a scholarship for the next academic year.
December 5, 1933 - Repeal of Prohibition was accomplished with the ratification of the Twenty-first Amendment Under its terms, states were allowed to set their own laws for the control of alcohol.
July 22, 1934 – Gangster John Dillinger was shot and killed by three FBI Special Agents at 10:40 PM outside at Chicago's Biograph Theater on Lincoln Avenue in Lincoln Park, Chicago.
September, 1934 – Ray Meyer enrolled at Notre Dame University, receiving a basketball scholarship. ==> Notre Dame Fighting Irish Basketball.
1936-38 – Ray Meyer was Notre Dame's captain his junior and senior seasons, when the Irish had a combined 40-6 record. In 1938 he received Notre Dame's Byron V. Kanaley Award, which goes to the senior letterman who demonstrates highest academic achievement and leadership.
March, 1938 – The first National Invitational Tournament (NIT) was played, with a six-team field.
June, 1938 – Ray Meyer graduated from Notre Dame University with a bachelor's degree in sociology and took a job with the Chicago Relief Association helping Chicago's poor. He hated it.
March, 1939 – The first NCAA Tournament was played, with an eight-team field.
May 27, 1939 – Ray Meyer married Margaret Mary Delaney, whom he had coached at St. Agatha. Soon afterward he started work in the catering department at the La Salle Hotel, for whose basketball team he played in an Amateur Athletic Union league.
August, 1939 – The DePaul Blue Demons football team was eliminated as part of the financial cutbacks implemented as a result of the Great Depression.
September 1, 1939 – Germany invaded Poland, precipitating World War II.
December, 1940 – Ray Meyer was offered $1,700 to become basketball coach at Joliet Catholic High School. He held out for $100 more, and the deal fell through. Within days, however, he returned to Notre Dame to become assistant coach under George Keogan, who had become ill. He stayed two seasons, at times serving as acting head coach when Keogan's health limited his activity.
December 8, 1941 – The United States declared war on Japan.
December 11, 1941 – The United States declared war on Germany.
April 17, 1942 – Following the resignation of DePaul’s basketball coach Bill Wendt, Ray Meyer was offered and accepted the position, brining Meyer home to Chicago, where he began his only head-coaching job for a salary of $2,500.
Paul Blue Demons Basketball History and Important Dates – DePaul University – June 18, 2019
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5. The Coaches
DePaul Blue Demons Coaching History – DePaul University Archives
Chasing Ghosts: DePaul's sad journey from name brand to also-ran – ESPN - June 25, 2019
DePaul Blue Demons
Icon: Ray Meyer • Seasons coached: 1942-1984
Key accomplishments: 13 NCAA tournaments, 2 NCAA Final Fours (1943, 1979), 1 NIT championship (1945)
Ranking the Ray Meyer Chasers:
DePaul Coach (Seasons) • Overall W-L (Pct.) • Conference W-L (Pct.)
1920-21 to 1941-42: 6 coaches
1942-43 to 1983-84: Ray Meyer • 724-354 (.672) ==> Inducted into College Basketball Hall of Fame in 2006
1984–85 to 1996–97: Joey Meyer • Overall: 231-158 (.594) • Conf: 24–48 (.333)
1997–98 to 2001–02: Pat Kennedy • Overall: 67–85 (.441) • Conf: 28–52 (.350)
2002–03 to 2004–05: Dave Leitao • See 2015-16 to Present for combined records.
2005–06 to 2009–10: Jerry Wainwright • Overall: 59–80 (.424) • Conf: 20–51 (.282)
2010–11 to 2014–15: Oliver Purnell • Overall: 54–105 (.340) • Conf: 15–75 (.167)
2015-16 to Present: Dave Leitao • Overall: 106–116 (.477) • Conf: 46–74 (.383)
Dayton Coach (Seasons) • Overall W-L (Pct.) • Conference W-L (Pct.)
1903–04 to 1946-47: 15 coaches
1947-48 to 1963-64: Tom Blackburn • 352–141 (.714)
1964-65 to 1988-89: Don Donoher • 437–275 (.614) ==> Inducted into College Basketball Hall of Fame in 2015
1989-90 to 1993-94: Jim O'Brien • Overall: 61–87 (.412) • Conf: 27–37 (.422)
1994-95 to 2002-03: Oliver Purnell • Overall: 155–116 (.572) • Conf: 61–69 (.469)
2003-04 to 2010-11: Brian Gregory • Overall: 172–94 (.647) • Conf: 70–58 (.547)
2011-12 to 2016-17: Archie Miller • Overall: 139–63 (.688) • Conf: 68–34 (.667)
2017-18 to Present: Anthony Grant • Overall: 64–31 (.674)• Conf: 39–15 (.722)
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6. The Pre-Meyers Era: 1920-21 to 1941-42
Dayton Flyers 2019-20 Media Guide – Page 134 – University of Dayton – November 5, 2019
1920-21 • unknown • Lost 20-33.
1928-29 • at DePaul • Won 22-18.
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7. The Ray Meyer Era: 1942-43 to 1983-84
7.1 Selected DePaul and Dayton Season Summaries and Coaching Records 1942-1954
7.2 1955 - The NCAA Tournament Becomes More Prestigious than the NIT
7.3 Selected DePaul and Dayton Season Summaries and Coaching Records 1955-1984
7.4 Dayton vs. DePaul Game Results 1942-1984
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7.1 Selected DePaul and Dayton Season Summaries and Coaching Records 1942-1954
Season • Team • Coach (W-L Record) • Postseason • No. of Teams in Tournament Fields
1942–43 • DePaul • Ray Meyer (19–5) • NCAA Final Four • [8 NIT teams + 8 NCAA teams = 16 post-season tournament teams]
1943–44 • DePaul • Ray Meyer (22–4) • NIT Runner Up • [8 NIT + 8 NCAA = 16]
1944–45 • DePaul • Ray Meyer (21–3) • NIT Champions • [8 NIT + 8 NCAA = 16]
1947 • Tom Blackburn was named as the new coach of the Dayton Flyers.
1947–48 • DePaul • Ray Meyer (22–8) • NIT Semifinals • [8 NIT + 8 NCAA = 16]
1950–51 • Dayton • Tom Blackburn (27–5) • NIT Runner Up • [12 NIT + 16 NCAA = 28]
1951–52 • Dayton • Tom Blackburn (28–5) • NIT Runner Up • [12 NIT + 16 NCAA = 28]
1951–52 • Dayton • Tom Blackburn (28–5) • NCAA Sweet Sixteen • [12 NIT + 16 NCAA = 28]
1952–53 • DePaul • Ray Meyer (19–9) • NCAA Sweet Sixteen • [12 NIT + 22 NCAA = 34]
1953–54 • Dayton • Tom Blackburn (25–7) • NIT Quarterfinals • [12 NIT + 24 NCAA = 36]
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7.2 1955 – The NCAA Tournament Becomes More Prestigious than the NIT
The NIT Was Awesome Until the NCAA Ruined Basketball – OZY – January 16, 2018
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------When selecting its field, NIT organizers had a simple goal: Put the nation’s best teams in a single elimination competition — no matter where the selected schools were located.
“In those years, the NIT was a more prestigious tournament than the NCAA,” former DePaul head coach Ray Meyer wrote in his autobiography Coach. “It was played in New York, while the NCAA was played on scattered campuses in smaller towns. The schools took home thousands of dollars as their share of the gate receipts for playing in Madison Square Garden. In the NCAA eliminations, they were lucky to make expenses. So the NIT meant a lot more to a struggling private school like DePaul.”
7.3 Selected DePaul and Dayton Season Summaries and Coaching Records 1955-1984
Season • Team • Coach (W-L Record) • Postseason • No. of Teams in Tournament Fields
1954–55 • Dayton • Tom Blackburn (25–4) • NIT Runner Up • [12 NIT + 24 NCAA = 36]
1955–56 • DePaul • Ray Meyer (16–8) • NCAA First Round • [12 NIT + 25 NCAA = 37]
1955–56 • Dayton • Tom Blackburn (25–4) • NIT Runner Up• [12 NIT + 25 NCAA = 37]
1956–57 • Dayton • Tom Blackburn (19–9) • NIT Quarterfinals • [12 NIT + 23 NCAA = 35]
1957–58 • Dayton • Tom Blackburn (25–4) • NIT Runner Up • [12 NIT + 24 NCAA = 36]
1958–59 • DePaul • Ray Meyer (13–11) • NCAA Sweet Sixteen • [12 NIT + 23 NCAA = 35]
1959–60 • DePaul • Ray Meyer (17–7) • NCAA Sweet Sixteen • [12 NIT + 25 NCAA = 37]
1959–60 • Dayton • Tom Blackburn (21–7) • NIT Quarterfinals • [12 NIT + 25 NCAA = 37]
1960–61 • DePaul • Ray Meyer (17–8) • NIT Quarterfinals • [12 NIT + 24 NCAA = 36 ]
1960–61 • Dayton • Tom Blackburn (20–9) • NIT Final Four • [12 NIT + 24 NCAA = 36 ]
1961–62 • Dayton • Tom Blackburn (24–6) • NIT Champions • [12 NIT + 25 NCAA = 37]
1962–63 • DePaul • Ray Meyer (15–8) • NIT Quarterfinals • [12 NIT + 25 NCAA = 37]
1963–64 • DePaul • Ray Meyer (21–4) • NIT Quarterfinals • [12 NIT + 25 NCAA = 37]
1964–65 • DePaul • Ray Meyer (17–10) • NCAA Sweet Sixteen • [14 NIT + 25 NCAA = 39]
1964–65 • Dayton • Don Donoher (22–7) • NCAA Sweet Sixteen • [14 NIT + 25 NCAA = 39]
1965–66 • DePaul • Ray Meyer (18–8) • NIT First Round • [14 NIT + 22 NCAA = 36]
1965–66 • Dayton • Don Donoher (23–6) • NCAA Sweet Sixteen • [14 NIT + 22 NCAA = 36]
1966–67 • Dayton • Don Donoher (25–6) • NCAA Runner-up • [14 NIT + 23 NCAA = 37]
1967–68 • Dayton • Don Donoher (21–9) • NIT Champions • [16 NIT + 23 NCAA = 39]
1968–69 • Dayton • Don Donoher (20–7) • NCAA First Round • [16 NIT + 25 NCAA = 41]
1969–70 • Dayton • Don Donoher (19–8) • NCAA First Round • [16 NIT + 25 NCAA = 41]
1970–71 • Dayton • Don Donoher (18–9) • NIT First round • [16 NIT + 25 NCAA = 41]
1973–74 • Dayton • Don Donoher (20–9) • NCAA Sweet Sixteen • [16 NIT + 25 NCAA = 41]
1975–76 • DePaul • Ray Meyer (20–9) • NCAA Sweet Sixteen • [12 NIT + 32 NCAA = 48]
1977–78 • DePaul • Ray Meyer (27–3) • NCAA Elite Eight • [16 NIT + 32 NCAA = 48]
1977–78 • Dayton • Don Donoher (19–10) • NIT Quarterfinals • [16 NIT + 32 NCAA = 48]
1978–79 • DePaul • Ray Meyer (26–6) • NCAA #2 Seed - Final Four • [24 NIT + 40 NCAA = 64]
1978–79 • Dayton • Don Donoher (19–10) • NIT Second round • [24 NIT + 40 NCAA = 64]
1979–80 • DePaul • Ray Meyer (26–2) • NCAA #1 Seed - Second Round • [32 NIT + 48 NCAA = 80]
1980–81 • DePaul • Ray Meyer (27–2) • NCAA #1 Seed - Second Round • [32 NIT + 48 NCAA = 80]
1980–81 • Dayton • Don Donoher (18–11) • NIT Second round • [32 NIT + 48 NCAA = 80]
1981–82 • DePaul • Ray Meyer (26–2) • NCAA #1 Seed - Second Round • [32 NIT + 48 NCAA = 80]
1981–82 • Dayton • Don Donoher (21–9) • NIT Quarterfinals • [32 NIT + 48 NCAA = 80]
1982–83 • DePaul • Ray Meyer (21–12) • NIT Runner Up • [32 NIT + 52 NCAA = 84]
1983–84 • DePaul • Ray Meyer (27–3) • NCAA #1 Seed - Second Round • [32 NIT + 53 NCAA = 85]
1983–84 • Dayton • Don Donoher (21–11) • NCAA Elite Eight • [32 NIT + 53 NCAA = 85]
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7.4 Dayton vs. DePaul Game Results 1942-1984
Game Results: Red font: Dayton win/DePaul loss • Blue font: DePaul win/Dayton loss
Dec 8, 1956 • Alumni Hall • Lost 59-67.
Jan 30, 1957 • UD Fieldhouse • Won 75-58. Attendance: 5,808
Jan 4, 1958 • Alumni Hall • Won 69-60.
Feb 12, 1958 • UD Fieldhouse • AP #14 Dayton Won 62-53. Attendance: 5,808
Jan 10, 1959 • Alumni Hall • Won 62-60.
Feb 11, 1959 • UD Fieldhouse • Won 88-69. Attendance: 5,808
Feb 17, 1960 • Alumni Hall • Lost 66-70.
Mar 5, 1960 • Alumni Hall • Won 67-66.
Jan 7, 1961 • UD Fieldhouse • Lost 64-75. Attendance: 5,808
Mar 4, 1961 • Alumni Hall • Lost 83-84.
Jan 27, 1962 • Alumni Hall • Won 90-88, 2OT.
Mar 10, 1962 • UD Fieldhouse • Won 77-61. Attendance: 5,808
Jan 19, 1963 • UD Fieldhouse • Won 57-56. Attendance: 5,808
Mar 9, 1963 • Alumni Hall • Lost 66-68.
Jan 18, 1964 • Alumni Hall • Lost 83-89.
March 6, 1964 - 58-year-old Tom Blackburn died of cancer.
March 6, 1964 - 32-year old Don Donoher was named the Dayton Flyers’ new head coach - only hours after Tom Blackburn’s death.
Don Donoher played three years of varsity basketball for Coach Tom Blackburn at the University of Dayton. Following graduation from Dayton in 1954, Donoher served a two-year enlistment in the United States Army. Returning to Dayton after the end of his service, Donoher accepted a part-time basketball scout position offered by Blackburn. In February 1963, Blackburn made Donoher the University's first full-time assistant coach.
Blackburn had been suffering from cancer for most of the 1963-64 season. On March 6, 1964, Tom Blackburn died from cancer – just 26 hours before the season finally against rival DePaul - and Don Donoher was formally named his successor. However, Dayton credits the entire 1963-64 season to Blackburn.
March 7, 1964 - AP Poll # 8 DePaul beat Dayton 79-73 at UD Fieldhouse in Don Donoher’s debut as an NCAA head coach. Attendance: 5,808
Jan 16, 1965 • UD Fieldhouse • Lost 59-63. Attendance: 5,808
Mar 6, 1965 • Alumni Hall • Won 71-64. Attendance: 4,017
Mar 13, 1965 • NCAA TOURNAMENT • Memorial Coliseum • Won 75-69. Attendance: 10,500
Jan 8, 1966 • Alumni Hall • Won 81-70. Attendance: 4,541
Feb 26, 1966 • UD Fieldhouse • Won 76-73. Attendance: 5,808
Jan 21, 1967 • UD Fieldhouse • Won 81-65. Attendance: 5,882
Mar 4, 1967 • Alumni Hall • Lost 79-84. Attendance: 4,362
Jan 20, 1968 • UD Fieldhouse • Lost 65-70. Attendance: 5,882
Feb 17, 1968 • Alumni Hall • Won 70-58. Attendance: 3,017
Jan 18, 1969 • Alumni Hall • Won 86-83. Attendance: 3,648
Mar 1, 1969 • UD Fieldhouse • Won 63-57. Attendance: 5,882
Jan 17, 1970 • UD Arena • Won 79-75. Attendance: 13,450
Feb 21, 1970 • Alumni Hall • Won 74-63. Attendance: 3,920
Jan 16, 1971 • Alumni Hall • Won 76-71. Attendance: 3,201
Feb 20, 1971 UD Arena • Won 92-60. Attendance: 13,150
Jan 15, 1972 • UD Arena • Lost 72-75. Attendance: 12,684
Jan 27, 1973 • Alumni Hall • Won 82-74. Attendance: 4,212
Jan 26, 1974 • UD Arena • Won 85-71. Attendance: 11,856
Jan 25, 1975 • Alumni Hall • Lost 80-86. Attendance: 4,260
Jan 31, 1976 • Alumni Hall • Lost 72-84. Attendance: 3,739
Jan 22, 1977 • UD Arena • Lost 67-74. Attendance: 12,180
Jan 21, 1978 • Alumni Hall • Lost 70-74 to AP #5 DePaul. Attendance: 5,115
Jan 20, 1979 • UD Arena • Won 68-64 OT. Attendance: 12,921
Feb 9, 1980 • Alumni Hall • Lost 63-65 to AP #1 DePaul. Attendance: 5,498
Mar 4, 1981 • UD Arena • Lost 64-84 to AP #2 DePaul. Attendance: 13,455
Jan 9, 1982 • Rosemont Horizon • Lost 69-71 to AP #5 DePaul. Attendance: 12,320
Jan 21, 1983 • Rosemont Horizon • Lost 52-56. Attendance: 12,339
Mar 12, 1983 • UD Arena • Won 80-71 Attendance: 11,411
Feb 18, 1984 • UD Arena • Won 72-71 Attendance: 12,723
Feb 22, 1984 • Rosemont Horizon • Lost 59-79 to AP # 5 DePaul. Attendance: 13,027
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8. The Joey Meyer Era: 1984–85 to 1996–97
Jan 26, 1985 • UD Arena • Won 65-64 over AP # 5 DePaul. Attendance: 13,495
Feb 6, 1985 Rosemont Horizon • Won 67-63 over AP #18 DePaul. Attendance: 16,803
Jan 4, 1986 • Rosemont Horizon • Lost 52-66. Attendance: 12,731
Feb 1, 1986 • UD Arena • Won 77-64. Attendance: 12,893
Jan 3, 1987 • UD Arena • Lost 64-80 to AP # 7 DePaul. Attendance: 12,452
Feb 7, 1987 • Rosemont Horizon • Lost 65-88 to AP #5 DePaul. Attendance: 14,280
Jan 14, 1988 • Rosemont Horizon • Won 79-72. Attendance: 10,935
Mar 1, 1988 • UD Arena • Lost 77-92. Attendance: 11,740
Feb 7, 1989 UD Arena • Lost 50-78. Attendance: 11,248
Dec 20, 1989 • Rosemont Horizon • Won 86-73. Attendance: 8,405
Jan 3, 1991 • UD Arena • Lost 73-81. Attendance: 11,633
Jan 3, 1994 • UD Arena • Lost 86-98. Attendance: 10,241
Feb 17, 1994 • Rosemont Horizon • Lost 77-100. Attendance: 6,748
Feb 5, 1995 • UD Arena • Lost 71-85. Attendance: 10,194
Mar 4, 1995 • Rosemont Horizon • Lost 78-103. Attendance: 7,469
Dec 30, 1996 • UD Arena • Won 71-49. Attendance: 11,604
1984–85 • DePaul • Joey Meyer (19–10) • NCAA First Round • [32 NIT + 64 NCAA = 96]
1984–85 • Dayton • Don Donoher (19–10) • NCAA First Round • [32 NIT + 64 NCAA = 96]
1985–86 • DePaul • Joey Meyer (18–13) • NCAA Sweet Sixteen • [32 NIT + 64 NCAA = 96]
1985–86 • Dayton • Don Donoher (17–13) • NIT First round • [32 NIT + 64 NCAA = 96]
1986–87 • DePaul • Joey Meyer (28–3) • NCAA Sweet Sixteen • [32 NIT + 64 NCAA = 96]
1987–88 • DePaul • Joey Meyer (22–8) • NCAA Second Round • [32 NIT + 64 NCAA = 96]
1988–89 • DePaul • Joey Meyer (21–12) • NCAA Second Round • [32 NIT + 64 NCAA = 96]
1989–90 • DePaul • Joey Meyer (20–15) • NIT Quarterfinals • [32 NIT + 64 NCAA = 96]
1990–91 • DePaul • Joey Meyer (20–9) • NCAA First Round • [32 NIT + 64 NCAA = 96]
1991–92 • DePaul • Joey Meyer (20–9) • NCAA First Round • [32 NIT + 64 NCAA = 96]
1993–94 • DePaul • Joey Meyer (16–12) • NIT First Round • [32 NIT + 64 NCAA = 96]
1994–95 • DePaul • Joey Meyer (17–11) • NIT First Round • [32 NIT + 64 NCAA = 96]
Depaul Fires Coach Joey Meyer - The Chicago Tribune – April 28, 1997
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------While Ray Meyer guided the Demons to a 724-354 record, his son's teams struggled in recent years. They lost their last 13 games last season to finish 3-23. That came on the heels of an 11-18 mark the previous season.
9. The Post-Meyers’ Era: 1997–98 to 2004-05
Dec 23, 1997 • Rosemont Horizon • Won 70-57. Attendance: 3,395
Dec 30, 1998 • UD Arena • Won 70-59. Attendance: 11,641
Mar 18, 2004 • NCAA TOURNAMENT • HSBC Arena • Lost 69-76 2OT. Attendance: 18,698
Dec 1, 2004 • Allstate Arena • Lost 59-70. Attendance: 8,787
1997–98 • Dayton • Oliver Purnell (21–12) • NIT Second round • [32 NIT + 64 NCAA = 96]
1998–99 • DePaul • Pat Kennedy (18–13) • NIT Second Round • [32 NIT + 64 NCAA = 96]
1999–00 • DePaul • Pat Kennedy (21–12) • NCAA First Round • [32 NIT + 64 NCAA = 96]
1999–2000 • Dayton • Oliver Purnell (22–9) • NCAA First Round • [32 NIT + 64 NCAA = 96]
2000–01 • Dayton • Oliver Purnell (21–13) • NIT First Round • [32 NIT + 65 NCAA = 97]
2001–02 • Dayton • Oliver Purnell (21–11) • NIT First Round • [40 NIT + 65 NCAA = 105]
2002–03 • DePaul • Dave Leitao (16–13) • NIT First Round • [40 NIT + 65 NCAA = 105]
2002–03 • Dayton • Oliver Purnell (24–6) • NCAA First Round • [40 NIT + 65 NCAA = 105]
2003–04 • DePaul • Dave Leitao (22–10) • NCAA Second Round • [40 NIT + 65 NCAA = 105]
2004–05 • DePaul • Dave Leitao (20–11) • NIT Second Round • [40 NIT + 65 NCAA = 105]
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10. The Big East Era: 2005-06 to Present
It's Official: DePaul To Join BIG EAST Conference – DePaul University – November 4, 2003
NEW YORK - The BIG EAST Conference announced that five institutions have accepted invitations for membership into the league. Those schools are: University of Cincinnati, DePaul University, University of Louisville, Marquette University, and the University of South Florida. The additions were authorized by a vote of the league’s Presidents.
“DePaul has capitalized on an extraordinary opportunity to join the BIG EAST and we look forward to the rivalries we will develop in this new league”, said the Rev. John P. Minogue, C.M., president of DePaul. “have great respect for the leadership and the universities in Conference USA. We have made many good friends there, and we wish the conference well as it pursues its own destiny.”
“I am excited for student-athletes, coaches, alumni and fans”, said Jean Lenti Ponsetto, DePaul’s Director of Athletics. “This invitation to the BIG EAST allows us to renew rivalries with some old friends and positions DePaul to compete against institutions who share similar philosophies both academically and athletically.” All five universities, which currently compete in Conference USA, will begin BIG EAST Conference play in the 2005-06 academic year.
Dec 10, 2005 • UD Arena • DePaul 61, Dayton 54 Attendance: 12,302
DePaul Blue Demons Coaches’ Records in the Big East Conference
2005–06 • DePaul • Jerry Wainwright • 12–15 (5–11) • T-13th
2006–07 • DePaul • Jerry Wainwright • 20–14 (9–7) • 8th • NIT Quarterfinals • [40 NIT + 65 NCAA = 97]
2007–08 • DePaul • Jerry Wainwright • 11–19 (6–12) • 13th
2008–09 • DePaul • Jerry Wainwright • 9–24 (0–18) • 16th/Last
2009–10 • DePaul • Jerry Wainwright • 8–23 (1–17) • 16th/Last
2010–11 • DePaul • Oliver Purnell • 7–24 (1–17) • 16th/Last
2011–12 • DePaul • Oliver Purnell • 12–19 (3–15) • 16th/Last
2012–13 • DePaul • Oliver Purnell • 11–21 (2–16) • 15th/Last
2013–14 • DePaul • Oliver Purnell • 12–21 (3–15) • 10th/Last
2014–15 • DePaul • Oliver Purnell • 12–20 (6–12) • 7th
2015–16 • DePaul • Dave Leitao • 9–22 (3–15) • 9th
2016–17 • DePaul • Dave Leitao • 9–23 (2–16) • 10th/Last
2017–18 • DePaul • Dave Leitao • 11-20 (4-14) • T-9th/Last
2018–19 • DePaul • Dave Leitao • 19-17 (7-11) • T-8th/Last • CBI Runner Up
2019–20 • DePaul • Dave Leitao •16-16 (3-15) • 10th/Last
Dayton Flyers . . . UD Fieldhouse (1950 – 1969) . . . UD Arena (1969 – Present) . . . Transform UD Arena
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Fieldhouse Flyer - Posts: 1389
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Re: History of the Former Dayton-DePaul Rivalry
by Fieldhouse Flyer » Sat May 30, 2020 9:36 am
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History of the Former Dayton-DePaul Rivalry – Part II
In Part II of the former rivalry, I will explore a number of topics worthy of a closer look, focussing on the Ray Meyer Era.
11. The Effect of World War II on College Basketball
12. The 1942-43 Season: Ray Meyer and George Mikan Begin a Basketball Legend at DePaul
13. All-American Players
14. The NCAA Tournament: Snake-bitten as No. 1 Seeds
15. The 1978-79 Season: Mark Aguirre Enrols at DePaul and the Good Times Roll
16. The 1983-84 Season: Ray Meyer Retires
17. The 2005-06 Season: DePaul Joins the Big East Conference
18. Wintrust Arena at McCormick Square
19. Taking Stock on May 30, 2020
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11. The Effect of World War II on College Basketball
First Peacetime Draft Enacted Just Before World War II – The United States Department of Defense
American troops approaching Omaha Beach during the invasion of Normandy on D-Day, 6 June 1944.
I was disappointed that I was unable to find an article or listing that addressed this topic in sufficient detail to quote, so I used Wikipedia’s articles for each of the teams listed below to compile the following information:
Butler: did not play 1943-44 season nor 1944-45 season
Creighton: did not play 1943-44 season, 1944-45 season, nor 1945-46 season
Dayton: did not play 1944-45 season
DePaul: fielded teams during World War II
Georgetown: did not play 1943-44 season nor 1944-45 season
Marquette: fielded teams during World War II
Providence: did not play 1943-44 season
Seton Hall: did not play 1943-44 season nor 1944-45 season
St. John’s: fielded teams during World War II
UConn: fielded teams during World War II
Villanova: fielded teams during World War II
Xavier: did not play 1943-44 season nor 1944-45 season
National Invitational Tournament (NIT) and NCAA Tournament: took place as usual, but many schools with ‘good’ basketball teams in the 1941-42 and 1942-43 seasons did not field teams until the 1945-46 season.
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12. The 1942-43 Season: Ray Meyer and George Mikan Begin a Basketball Legend at DePaul
In 1940, DePaul alumnus Bill Wendt was named coach of the Blue Demons and led them to a 13-8 record in 1940-41, and a 10-12 record in 1941-42.
Following the conclusion of the season, Bill Wendt resigned and was succeeded by 28-year old Ray Meyer in a hiring that would change the fortunes of DePaul basketball for the next four decades, and change the game of basketball forever.
George Mikan was born in Joliet, Illinois. As a boy, he shattered one of his knees so badly that he was kept in bed for a year and a half. Mikan did not seem destined to become an athlete. When Mikan entered Chicago's DePaul University in 1942, he stood 6' 10", weighed 245 pounds, moved awkwardly because of his frame, and wore thick glasses for his nearsightedness. Shortly thereafter, Mikan met rookie DePaul basketball coach Ray Meyer, who saw potential in the bright and intelligent, but also clumsy and shy, freshman.
Put into perspective, Ray Meyer's thoughts were revolutionary, because at the time it was believed that tall players were too awkward to ever play basketball well. In the following months, Meyer transformed Mikan into a confident, aggressive player who took pride in his height rather than being ashamed of it. Meyer and Mikan worked out intensively, and Mikan learned how to make hook shots accurately with either hand. In addition, Meyer made Mikan punch a speed bag, take dancing lessons, and jump rope to make him a complete athlete.
George Mikan dominated his peers from the start of his college games at DePaul. He intimidated opponents with his size and strength, was unstoppable on offense with his hook shot, and soon established a reputation as one of the hardest and grittiest players in the league, often playing through injuries and punishing opposing centers with hard fouls. In addition, Mikan also surprised the basketball world with his unique ability of goaltending, i.e. jumping so high that he swatted the ball away before it could pass the hoop. In today's basketball, touching the ball after it reaches its apex is a violation, but in Mikan's time it was legal because people thought it was impossible anyone could reach that high. "We would set up a zone defense that had four men around the key and I guarded the basket", Mikan later recalled his DePaul days. "When the other team took a shot, I'd just go up and tap it out." As a consequence, the NCAA, and later the NBA, outlawed goaltending.
Mikan was named the Helms NCAA College Player of the Year in 1944 and 1945 and was an All-American three times. In 1945, he led DePaul to the NIT title, which at that time was the college basketball national championship tournament. Mikan led the nation in scoring with 23.9 points per game in 1944–45 and 23.1 in 1945–46. When DePaul won the 1945 NIT, Mikan was named Most Valuable Player for scoring 120 points in three games, including 53 points in a 97–53 win over Rhode Island; his 53-point total equalled the score of the entire Rhode Island team.
………… George Mikan in 1945 …………
George Mikan – DePaul University Archives • Ray Meyer – DePaul University Archives
1943 NCAA Tournament
1944 National Invitation Tournament
History of NCAA Basketball Rule Changes
1945 National Invitation Tournament
13. All-American Players
DePaul Record Book: All-Americans – DePaul University – June 7, 2019
Dayton Flyers 2019-20 Media Guide Page 59: All-American Flyers – University of Dayton – November 5, 2019
Obi Toppin Named 2020 Wooden Player Of The Year – University of Dayton – April 7, 2020
1943 - George Mikan
1944 - George Mikan
1945 - George Mikan
1946 - George Mikan
1948 - Ed Mikan
1951 - Don Meineke
1952 - Don Meineke
1955 - John Horan
1956 - Bill Uhl, Ron Sobieszczyk
1957 - Richard Heise
1961 - Howie Carl
1962 - Bill Chmielewski
1962 - Garry Roggenburk
1966 - Henry Finkel
1967 - Don May
1968 - Don May
1978 - Dave Corzine
1979 - Mark Aguirre, Jim Paxson Jr., Gary Garland
1980 - Mark Aguirre
1981 - Mark Aguirre, Clyde Bradshaw
1982 - Terry Cummings
1987 - Dallas Comegys
1988 - Rod Strickland
2020 - Obi Toppin
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14. The NCAA Tournament: Snake-bitten as No. 1 Seeds
The first NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament was held in March 1939, but another 40 years would go by until the NCAA began seeding the teams selected for the Tournament field in 1979.
Most unfortunately for the coaches, players, and fans of DePaul and Dayton, both teams have been snake-bitten as No. 1 Seeds.
DePaul Blue Demons in the NCAA Tournament
Dayton Flyers in the NCAA Tournament
Dayton has never been seeded No. 1 in the NCAA Tournament. The Flyers’ best seeding was in the 2003 Tournament, when they were awarded a #4 seed but lost their First Round game to #13 Tulsa 84-71. But the Flyer Faithful were eagerly awaiting Dayton’s first #1 seed in the 2020 NCAA Tournament when the coronavirus abruptly ended the college basketball season on March 12, 2020. Snake-bitten again.
The 2020 Final Bracket Matrix – Averages of 97 Final Brackets
While it is generally unwise to count one’s chickens before they hatch, the AP #3 Dayton Flyers had an overall record of 29-2, a conference record of 18-0, and were odds-on favorite to win the cancelled 2020 Atlantic 10 Tournament, as no other A10 team received as much as a single vote in the AP Poll or Coaches’ Poll. The NCAA records for the aborted 2019-20 season will show that the Dayton Flyers were regular-season Atlantic 10 champions, and nothing more. But the Flyer Faithful know that the Dayton Flyers were well on track to record their first 30+ win season, and much, much more.
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15. The 1978-79 Season: Mark Aguirre Enrols at DePaul and the Good Times Roll
Here’s some mood music for Chapter 15: Let the Good Times Roll – B.B. King live music video
1978–79 DePaul Blue Demons Men's Basketball Team - Wikipedia
1979 NCAA Basketball Tournament
1978-79 DePaul Blue Demons Roster and Stats - SportsReference.com
1978-79 DePaul Blue Demons Schedule and Results - SportsReference.com
Mark Aguirre Stats – 1978-79 to 1980-81 - SportsReference.com
Mark Aguirre - Wikipedia • Mark Aguirre – DePaul University Archives
1979 Final AP Men's Basketball Poll
1980 Final AP Men's Basketball Poll
1981 Final AP Men's Basketball Poll
16. The 1983-84 Season: Ray Meyer Retires
The Dayton Flyers did not appear in the AP Poll during the 1983-84 season, but DePaul was ranked #18 in the Preseason AP Poll and moved up to #2 on January 16, 1984:
DePaul 1984 AP Poll Men's Basketball Rankings – November 28, 1983 to March 12, 1984
1983-84 DePaul Blue Demons Roster and Stats - SportsReference.com
1983-84 DePaul Blue Demons Schedule and Results - SportsReference.com
The Bue Demons won the first 16 games of their 1983-84 schedule, including impressive victories over #3 Georgetown, #7 Purdue, at Creighton, at #15 UCLA, and at Notre Dame on Saturday, February 11, 1984.
On Saturday, February 18, 1984 DePaul (18-1) was ranked #3 in the AP Poll and arrived at UD Arena to face the Flyers (14-8).
Dayton Upsets DePaul on Last-second Shot, 72-71 - The New York Times – February 19, 1984
UD LEGENDS SERIES: THE 18 GREATEST GAMES IN UD ARENA HISTORY – University of Dayton - November 11, 2005
"The Shot" - Youtube video - University of Dayton Arena - February 18, 1984
"The Shot" 30 Years Later - Youtube video – Fox News – March 21, 2014
On Wednesday, February 22, 1984 – only four days after "The Shot" - the Flyers travelled to Chicago to face the Blue Demons again. Unsurprisingly, DePaul blew out Dayton 79-59 in front of a crowd of 13,000 fans, but it didn’t really matter, as Dayton had punched their ticket to the NCAA Tournament with Ed Young’s nationally-televised shot.
1983-84 Dayton Flyers Roster and Stats - SportsReference.com
1983-84 Dayton Flyers Schedule and Results - SportsReference.com
Dayton finished the regular season with an 18-10 record and was awarded a #10 seed in the NCAA Tournament West Region. DePaul finished the regular season with an 25-2 record and was awarded a #1 seed in the NCAA Tournament Midwest Region.
1984 NCAA Basketball Tournament
UD NCAA legends: Roosevelt Chapman’s 41-point thrashing of powerful Oklahoma on a 1984 Elite Eight run – Dayton Daily News - March 15, 2017
DePaul coach Ray Meyer's impending retirement may give DePaul an emotional boost - UPI - March 21, 1984
Wake Forest Upsets Depaul In Overtime In Midwest - Peter Alfano, The New York Times - March 24, 1984
17. The 2005-06 Season: DePaul Joins the Big East Conference
It's Official: DePaul To Join BIG EAST Conference – DePaul University – November 4, 2003
Fifteen years have now passed since Dayton and DePaul played their one and only game since DePaul began play in the Big East – and thereby ending the Dayton-DePaul Rivalry – at least for the foreseeable future.
Rivalry Game No. 69: December 10, 2005 • UD Arena • DePaul 61, Dayton 54 Attendance: 12,302
DePaul Fends Off Flyers 61-54 - University of Dayton - December 10, 2005
DePaul Legend Ray Meyer Dies - Chicago Tribune - March 17, 2006
…………… Ray Meyer (1913-2006) ……………
Ray Meyers Tribute/Obituary Articles – We Are DePaul (Very lengthy listing, with whole articles and numerous excerpts.)
Ray Meyer - Chicago Tribune - March 18, 2006
Nobody had more love for Chicago than Ray - Chicago Tribune - March 18, 2006
18. Wintrust Arena at McCormick Square
Wintrust Arena at McCormick Square Opens in Chicago – Wikipedia – October 14, 2017
Link
Link
Link
In the three seasons that 10,387-seat Wintrust Arena has hosted DePaul men's basketball, the Blue Demons have averaged a disappointing 5,060 fans per game. It is worth noting that the ol’ UD Fieldhouse had a capacity of 5,808 and sold out every game. In years gone by, when DePaul had good basketball teams, their Chicago fans showed up in impressive numbers:
AD Revenues ('18-'19) – Post #3
19. Taking Stock on May 30, 2020
The story of the former Dayton-DePaul Rivalry is many things. Rookie coach Ray Meyer meeting tall freshman George Mikan on campus and teaching him how to play basketball and shoot the ball. Ray Meyer and Tom Blackburn on the sideline watching their All-Americans play in front of sold-out, cheering crowds at Alumni Hall and UD Fieldhouse. But mostly, it was about the 20-year rivalry and long-time, great friendship between two Hall-of Fame coaches: Ray Meyer and Don Donoher, whose teams played each other 30 times in some of the most memorable games in UD’s history.
Meyer soaks in the love at tribute – Bill Jauss, The Chicago Tribune – December 15, 2003
DePaul Blue Demons in the Big East:
Jerry Wainwright: 5 Seasons • 2005-2010 • Overall: 60–95 (.387) • Conference: 21–65 (.244)
Oliver Purnell: 5 Seasons • 2010-2015 • Overall: 54–105 (.340) • Conference: 15–75 (.167)
Dave Leitao: 5 Seasons • 2015-2020 • Overall: 64-98 (.395) • Conference: 19–71 (.211)
DePaul in the Big East: 15 Seasons • 2005-2020 • Overall: 178–298 (.374) • Conference: 55–211 (.207)
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A miracle at the Garden won’t save the Dave Leitao regime - Lawrence Kreymer, The DePaulia - March 8, 2020
Big East Tournament canceled at halftime of St. John’s-Creighton game – New York Post – 1:09 PM, March 12, 2020
DePaul's Faith in Dave Leitao Proves They Don't Care About Basketball – Andrew Doughty, Hero Sports - March 19, 2020
DePaul and Dave Leitao Agree to Multi-Year Contract Extension – DePaul University – April 2, 2020
Blue Demons fans react to Dave Leitao contract extension - Lawrence Kreymer, The DePaulia – April 10, 2020
Reviewing DePaul - OmahaGuy, Holy Land of Hoops - March 13, 2020 (57 posts as of May 25, 2020)
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The former Dayton-DePaul Rivalry is also a story about how hiring the right coach (or wrong coach) can impact the fortunes of their basketball programs.
Dayton fires basketball coach Jim O'Brien - United Press International – March 2, 1994
Final AP Top 25 Poll - Week 20 - March 18, 2020
Anthony Grant Named Naismith National Coach Of The Year – University of Dayton – April 2, 2020
And that concludes my story and my trilogy of Dayton’s former rivalries. I don’t know if or when Dayton will play their 70th game against DePaul, or if the 2020-21 season will even take place. But I do know that there will never be another Ray Meyer, and that college basketball has greatly benefited from Coach Meyer’s contributions to it, dating back to 1942, when the game was unrecognizable compared to today’s game. I was quite fortunate to see many of the Dayton-DePaul games at the UD Fieldhouse and UD Arena, and I am quite pleased to share some of my many memories of this former rivalry with you.
History of the Former Dayton-DePaul Rivalry – Part II
In Part II of the former rivalry, I will explore a number of topics worthy of a closer look, focussing on the Ray Meyer Era.
11. The Effect of World War II on College Basketball
12. The 1942-43 Season: Ray Meyer and George Mikan Begin a Basketball Legend at DePaul
13. All-American Players
14. The NCAA Tournament: Snake-bitten as No. 1 Seeds
15. The 1978-79 Season: Mark Aguirre Enrols at DePaul and the Good Times Roll
16. The 1983-84 Season: Ray Meyer Retires
17. The 2005-06 Season: DePaul Joins the Big East Conference
18. Wintrust Arena at McCormick Square
19. Taking Stock on May 30, 2020
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11. The Effect of World War II on College Basketball
First Peacetime Draft Enacted Just Before World War II – The United States Department of Defense
In 1940, Americans closely followed the news of Germany's armed forces overrunning most of Europe, while Japan was using its military aggressively in East Asia. Public opinion in the United States was changing sharply from isolationism to the possibility of military action against the Axis powers of Italy, Japan and Germany.
On September 16, 1940, President Franklin D. Roosevelt signed into law the Selective Training and Service Act, which was another name for the draft. It required all men between the ages of 21 and 45 to register for the draft. While there were wartime drafts during the Revolutionary War, the Civil War and World War I, this draft was different. It was the nation’s first peacetime draft.
Following Japan's surprise attack on Pearl Harbor, Hawaii in 1941, Congress amended the act to require all able-bodied men ages 18 to 64 to register with their local draft board for military service for the duration of World War II plus six months after. In practice, however, only men 18 to 45 were drafted.
During the course of the war, more than 10 million men were inducted into the Army, Navy and Marines through the draft. However, most men who served, as well as a lot of women, volunteered for the military.
American troops approaching Omaha Beach during the invasion of Normandy on D-Day, 6 June 1944.
I was disappointed that I was unable to find an article or listing that addressed this topic in sufficient detail to quote, so I used Wikipedia’s articles for each of the teams listed below to compile the following information:
Butler: did not play 1943-44 season nor 1944-45 season
Creighton: did not play 1943-44 season, 1944-45 season, nor 1945-46 season
Dayton: did not play 1944-45 season
DePaul: fielded teams during World War II
Georgetown: did not play 1943-44 season nor 1944-45 season
Marquette: fielded teams during World War II
Providence: did not play 1943-44 season
Seton Hall: did not play 1943-44 season nor 1944-45 season
St. John’s: fielded teams during World War II
UConn: fielded teams during World War II
Villanova: fielded teams during World War II
Xavier: did not play 1943-44 season nor 1944-45 season
National Invitational Tournament (NIT) and NCAA Tournament: took place as usual, but many schools with ‘good’ basketball teams in the 1941-42 and 1942-43 seasons did not field teams until the 1945-46 season.
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12. The 1942-43 Season: Ray Meyer and George Mikan Begin a Basketball Legend at DePaul
In 1940, DePaul alumnus Bill Wendt was named coach of the Blue Demons and led them to a 13-8 record in 1940-41, and a 10-12 record in 1941-42.
Following the conclusion of the season, Bill Wendt resigned and was succeeded by 28-year old Ray Meyer in a hiring that would change the fortunes of DePaul basketball for the next four decades, and change the game of basketball forever.
George Mikan was born in Joliet, Illinois. As a boy, he shattered one of his knees so badly that he was kept in bed for a year and a half. Mikan did not seem destined to become an athlete. When Mikan entered Chicago's DePaul University in 1942, he stood 6' 10", weighed 245 pounds, moved awkwardly because of his frame, and wore thick glasses for his nearsightedness. Shortly thereafter, Mikan met rookie DePaul basketball coach Ray Meyer, who saw potential in the bright and intelligent, but also clumsy and shy, freshman.
Put into perspective, Ray Meyer's thoughts were revolutionary, because at the time it was believed that tall players were too awkward to ever play basketball well. In the following months, Meyer transformed Mikan into a confident, aggressive player who took pride in his height rather than being ashamed of it. Meyer and Mikan worked out intensively, and Mikan learned how to make hook shots accurately with either hand. In addition, Meyer made Mikan punch a speed bag, take dancing lessons, and jump rope to make him a complete athlete.
George Mikan dominated his peers from the start of his college games at DePaul. He intimidated opponents with his size and strength, was unstoppable on offense with his hook shot, and soon established a reputation as one of the hardest and grittiest players in the league, often playing through injuries and punishing opposing centers with hard fouls. In addition, Mikan also surprised the basketball world with his unique ability of goaltending, i.e. jumping so high that he swatted the ball away before it could pass the hoop. In today's basketball, touching the ball after it reaches its apex is a violation, but in Mikan's time it was legal because people thought it was impossible anyone could reach that high. "We would set up a zone defense that had four men around the key and I guarded the basket", Mikan later recalled his DePaul days. "When the other team took a shot, I'd just go up and tap it out." As a consequence, the NCAA, and later the NBA, outlawed goaltending.
Mikan was named the Helms NCAA College Player of the Year in 1944 and 1945 and was an All-American three times. In 1945, he led DePaul to the NIT title, which at that time was the college basketball national championship tournament. Mikan led the nation in scoring with 23.9 points per game in 1944–45 and 23.1 in 1945–46. When DePaul won the 1945 NIT, Mikan was named Most Valuable Player for scoring 120 points in three games, including 53 points in a 97–53 win over Rhode Island; his 53-point total equalled the score of the entire Rhode Island team.
………… George Mikan in 1945 …………
George Mikan – DePaul University Archives • Ray Meyer – DePaul University Archives
1943 NCAA Tournament
8-Team Field: Dartmouth, DePaul, Georgetown, NYU, Oklahoma, Texas, Washington, Wyoming
Quarterfinal: DePaul 46, Dartmouth 35
Quarterfinal: Georgetown 55, NYU 36
Semifinal: Georgetown 53, DePaul 49
Final: Wyoming 46, Georgetown 34
1944 National Invitation Tournament
8-Team Field: Bowling Green, Canisius, DePaul, Kentucky, Muhlenberg, Oklahoma A&M, St. John's, Utah
Quarterfinal: DePaul 68, Muhlenberg 45
Quarterfinal: St. John's 44, Bowling Green 40
Semifinal: DePaul 41, Oklahoma A&M 38
Semifinal: St. John's 48, Kentucky 45
National Championship game: St. John's 47, DePaul 39
History of NCAA Basketball Rule Changes
1944-45: Defensive goaltending is banned. (i.e. the new ‘George Mikan’ rule)
1945 National Invitation Tournament
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------8-Team Field: Bowling Green, DePaul, Muhlenberg, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, Rhode Island, St. John's, Tennessee, West Virginia
Quarterfinal: DePaul 76, West Virginia 52
Quarterfinal: St. John's 34, Muhlenberg 33
Semifinal: DePaul 97, Rhode Island 53
Semifinal: Bowling Green 57, St. John's 44
National Championship game: DePaul 71, Bowling Green 54
13. All-American Players
DePaul Record Book: All-Americans – DePaul University – June 7, 2019
Dayton Flyers 2019-20 Media Guide Page 59: All-American Flyers – University of Dayton – November 5, 2019
Obi Toppin Named 2020 Wooden Player Of The Year – University of Dayton – April 7, 2020
Toppin Has Been Named In Five Of The Six Major Player Of The Year Awards
1943 - George Mikan
1944 - George Mikan
1945 - George Mikan
1946 - George Mikan
1948 - Ed Mikan
1951 - Don Meineke
1952 - Don Meineke
1955 - John Horan
1956 - Bill Uhl, Ron Sobieszczyk
1957 - Richard Heise
1961 - Howie Carl
1962 - Bill Chmielewski
1962 - Garry Roggenburk
1966 - Henry Finkel
1967 - Don May
1968 - Don May
1978 - Dave Corzine
1979 - Mark Aguirre, Jim Paxson Jr., Gary Garland
1980 - Mark Aguirre
1981 - Mark Aguirre, Clyde Bradshaw
1982 - Terry Cummings
1987 - Dallas Comegys
1988 - Rod Strickland
2020 - Obi Toppin
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14. The NCAA Tournament: Snake-bitten as No. 1 Seeds
The first NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament was held in March 1939, but another 40 years would go by until the NCAA began seeding the teams selected for the Tournament field in 1979.
Most unfortunately for the coaches, players, and fans of DePaul and Dayton, both teams have been snake-bitten as No. 1 Seeds.
DePaul Blue Demons in the NCAA Tournament
1980 • Second Round • #8 UCLA 77, #1 DePaul 71
1981 • Second Round • #9 Saint Joseph's 49, #1 DePaul 48
1982 • Second Round • #8 Boston College 82, #1 DePaul 75
1984 • Second Round • #1 DePaul 75, #8 Illinois State 61 •••• 1984 Sweet Sixteen • #4 Wake Forest 73, #1 DePaul 71, OT
Dayton Flyers in the NCAA Tournament
Dayton has never been seeded No. 1 in the NCAA Tournament. The Flyers’ best seeding was in the 2003 Tournament, when they were awarded a #4 seed but lost their First Round game to #13 Tulsa 84-71. But the Flyer Faithful were eagerly awaiting Dayton’s first #1 seed in the 2020 NCAA Tournament when the coronavirus abruptly ended the college basketball season on March 12, 2020. Snake-bitten again.
The 2020 Final Bracket Matrix – Averages of 97 Final Brackets
Seed No. • Team • Conference • Average Seed No.
1 • Kansas • Big 12 • 1.00
1 • Gonzaga • West Coast • 1.00
1 • Baylor • Big 12 • 1.01
1 • Dayton • Atlantic 10 • 1.08
2 • San Diego State • Mountain West • 1.97
2 • Florida State • ACC • 2.01
2 • Villanova • Big East • 2.21
2 • Creighton • Big East • 2.31
3 • Seton Hall • Big East • 3.30
5 • Butler • Big East • 4.90
8 • Providence • Big East • 8.14
9 • Marquette • Big East • 8.87
While it is generally unwise to count one’s chickens before they hatch, the AP #3 Dayton Flyers had an overall record of 29-2, a conference record of 18-0, and were odds-on favorite to win the cancelled 2020 Atlantic 10 Tournament, as no other A10 team received as much as a single vote in the AP Poll or Coaches’ Poll. The NCAA records for the aborted 2019-20 season will show that the Dayton Flyers were regular-season Atlantic 10 champions, and nothing more. But the Flyer Faithful know that the Dayton Flyers were well on track to record their first 30+ win season, and much, much more.
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15. The 1978-79 Season: Mark Aguirre Enrols at DePaul and the Good Times Roll
Here’s some mood music for Chapter 15: Let the Good Times Roll – B.B. King live music video
1978–79 DePaul Blue Demons Men's Basketball Team - Wikipedia
The 1978–79 DePaul Blue Demons were led by head coach Ray Meyer, in his 37th season, and played their home games at the Alumni Hall in Chicago. After starting the regular season unranked, the Blue Demons won 22 of 27 games to earn a top ten ranking and the #2 seed in the West region of the NCAA Tournament. DePaul began tournament play by defeating USC and Marquette, then knocked off #1 seed UCLA, avenging a season-opening loss, to earn the program's second trip to the Final Four. The team fell to the #1 ranked and unbeaten Indiana State – led by NCAA Player of the Year Larry Bird – in the National Semifinals. They finished the season with an overall record of 26–6.
1979 NCAA Basketball Tournament
Michigan State won the national title with a 75–64 victory in the Championship game over Indiana State, who came into the game undefeated, but couldn't extend their winning streak. Magic Johnson of Michigan State was named the tournament's Most Outstanding Player.
The final game marked the beginning of the rivalry between future Hall of Famers Magic Johnson and Larry Bird. As of 2016, it remains the highest-rated game in the history of televised college basketball. Both Johnson and Bird would enter the NBA in the fall of 1979, and the rivalry between them and their teams (respectively, the Los Angeles Lakers and Boston Celtics) was a major factor in the league's renaissance in the 1980s and 1990s. The game also led to the "modern era" of college basketball, as it introduced a nationwide audience to a sport that was once relegated to second-class status in the sports world.
DePaul was seeded #2 in the West Region, behind #1 seed UCLA. . DePaul had a bye in the First Round of the 40-team tournament.
Second Round (Round of 32): #2 DePaul 89, #7 USC 78
Regional Semifinal (Sweet 16): #2 DePaul 62, #3 Marquette 56
Regional Final (Elite 8): #2 DePaul 95, #1 UCLA 91
National Semifinal (Final Four): #1 Indiana State 76, #2 DePaul 74
National Third Place Game: #2 DePaul 96, #9 Penn 93
National Championship Game: #2 Michigan State 75, #1 Indiana State 64
1978-79 DePaul Blue Demons Roster and Stats - SportsReference.com
1978-79 DePaul Blue Demons Schedule and Results - SportsReference.com
Game No. • Date • Game Type • AP Ranking Opponent • Result • Venue
1. Sat, Nov 25, 1978 • REG • @ #2 UCLA • Lost 85-108 • Pauley Pavilion
6. Wed, Dec 13, 1978 • REG • @ Butler • Won 81-62 • Hinkle Fieldhouse
10. Sat, Dec 30, 1978 • REG • Creighton • Won 88-70 • Alumni Hall
13. Tue, Jan 9, 1979 • REG • @ Providence • Won 84-75 • Dunkin' Donuts Center
15. Sat, Jan 20, 1979 • REG • @ Dayton • Lost 64-68 • University of Dayton Arena
22. Sat, Feb 17, 1979 • REG • @ Villanova • Won 69-66 • The Palestra
24. Sat, Feb 24, 1979 • REG • #9 Marquette • Won 61-60 • Alumni Hall
25. Fri, Mar 2, 1979 • REG • #2 Notre Dame • Won 76-72 • Alumni Hall
27. Sun, Mar 11, 1979 • NCAAT • Southern California • Won 89-78 • Pauley Pavilion
28. Thu, Mar 15, 1979 • NCAAT • #10 Marquette • Won 62-56 • Marriott Center
29. Sat, Mar 17, 1979 • NCAAT • #2 UCLA • Won 95-91 • Marriott Center
30. Sat, Mar 24, 1979 • NCAAT • #1 Indiana State • Lost 74-76 • Jon M. Huntsman Center
31. Mon, Mar 26, 1979 • NCAAT • #14 Pennsylvania (Third Place game) • Won 96-93 OT • Jon M. Huntsman Center
Mark Aguirre Stats – 1978-79 to 1980-81 - SportsReference.com
89 Games • 24.5 PPG • 7.9 RPG • 3.3 APG • 54.6 FG% • 76.8 FT%
Mark Aguirre - Wikipedia • Mark Aguirre – DePaul University Archives
Mark Aguirre is recognized as one of the best college basketball players ever. Along with George Mikan and Ray Meyer, his name is one of the most synonymous with DePaul basketball. Although he played only three seasons at DePaul, Aguirre remains the school’s all-time leading scorer.
In his first season at DePaul in 1978-79, Aguirre set Chicago and the college basketball world on its ear by leading the Blue Demons to the Final Four with a 26-6 record. Aguirre averaged 24 points and 7.6 rebounds as a freshman and made DePaul’s Alumni Hall the place to be in the city.
Aguirre did not disappoint as a sophomore, leading the Blue Demons to a 26-2 record and No.1 ranking for most of the season. He averaged 26.8 points and 7.6 rebounds. Aguirre also was named to the 1980 U.S. Olympic team.
His junior season was almost identical to his sophomore year except for one thing, the Blue Demons had a new home arena - the Rosemont Horizon. Aguirre helped pack the new suburban home, averaging 13,369 fans per game.
DePaul became a fixture on national television and Aguirre averaged 23 points and 8.6 rebounds a contest for a team that would finish the year 27-2 and ranked No. 1. Once again, Aguirre was named a
consensus first team All-American. In his three years at DePaul, Aguirre led the Blue Demons to a 79-10 (.888) record.
1979 Final AP Men's Basketball Poll
1. Indiana State
2. UCLA
3. Michigan State
4. Notre Dame
5. Arkansas
6. DePaul
1980 Final AP Men's Basketball Poll
1. DePaul
1981 Final AP Men's Basketball Poll
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------1. DePaul
16. The 1983-84 Season: Ray Meyer Retires
The Dayton Flyers did not appear in the AP Poll during the 1983-84 season, but DePaul was ranked #18 in the Preseason AP Poll and moved up to #2 on January 16, 1984:
DePaul 1984 AP Poll Men's Basketball Rankings – November 28, 1983 to March 12, 1984
1983-84 DePaul Blue Demons Roster and Stats - SportsReference.com
1983-84 DePaul Blue Demons Schedule and Results - SportsReference.com
The Bue Demons won the first 16 games of their 1983-84 schedule, including impressive victories over #3 Georgetown, #7 Purdue, at Creighton, at #15 UCLA, and at Notre Dame on Saturday, February 11, 1984.
On Saturday, February 18, 1984 DePaul (18-1) was ranked #3 in the AP Poll and arrived at UD Arena to face the Flyers (14-8).
Dayton Upsets DePaul on Last-second Shot, 72-71 - The New York Times – February 19, 1984
DePaul saw an 11-point lead fade in the last 6:13 and missed three free throws in the closing minute that could have secured the lead. Dayton (15-8) posted its second straight home-court victory over DePaul. Larry Schellenberg hit two free throws with 13 seconds left to bring Dayton to 71-70. DePaul's Raymond McCoy was fouled, but missed his first free throw with 11 seconds left. Schellenberg rebounded and passed to Roosevelt Chapman, who fed Young for the winning shot and Dayton's only lead of the second half.
UD LEGENDS SERIES: THE 18 GREATEST GAMES IN UD ARENA HISTORY – University of Dayton - November 11, 2005
Dayton 72, DePaul 71 (February 18, 1984)
One of the most famous games and memorable games in UD Arena history came in 1984, when Dayton upset AP No. 3 DePaul with "The Shot" at the buzzer.
It was the 250th game at UD Arena and DePaul was coming in ranked No. 3 at 19-1. With the game being nationally televised on NBC, you had that feeling something special was about to happen.
Finding itself down 11 at 65-54 with six minutes left in the game, UD started to turn it up. The Flyers went on a run scoring six straight unanswered points, closing the gap to 65-60 with 3:32 remaining. A long jumper by guard Sedric Toney with 1:09 to go would make it 69-66. With 37 seconds left, Larry Schellenberg tipped in a miss to put the Flyers within one. After two Dallas Comegy free throws, Schelly nailed two of his own to make it 71-70.
The next 11 second would go down in UD basketball history as one of the most thrilling game-ending shots. After fouling Blue Demon Raymond McCoy on the inbound, it looked like UD would fall just short of a great comeback. But McCoy missed and Schellenberg came down with the rebound. In what seemed like slow motion, he dribbled up the court and found teammate and UD's all-time leading scorer Roosevelt Chapman. Instead of taking the shot, Chapman incredibly dished it off to Ed Young who banked in the eight-footer over Marty Embry as time expired."It was a great pass from Chap. I had no idea how much time there was," said Young "I just shot and looked up to see one second on the clock."
"The Shot" would propel the Flyers into the NCAA tournament for the first time in 10 years, and UD would go on to make the tournament's Elite Eight.
"The Shot" - Youtube video - University of Dayton Arena - February 18, 1984
"The Shot" 30 Years Later - Youtube video – Fox News – March 21, 2014
On Wednesday, February 22, 1984 – only four days after "The Shot" - the Flyers travelled to Chicago to face the Blue Demons again. Unsurprisingly, DePaul blew out Dayton 79-59 in front of a crowd of 13,000 fans, but it didn’t really matter, as Dayton had punched their ticket to the NCAA Tournament with Ed Young’s nationally-televised shot.
1983-84 Dayton Flyers Roster and Stats - SportsReference.com
Player • Class • Position • Height • Summary
Roosevelt Chapman • SR • G • 6-4 • 21.8 Pts, 9.1 Reb, 2.4 Ast
Ed Young • SO • F • 6-7 • 13.4 Pts, 6.6 Reb, 1.6 Ast
Sedric Toney • SR • G • 6-2 • 11.6 Pts, 2.5 Reb, 2.9 Ast
Damon Goodwin • SO • F • 6-6 • 10.1 Pts, 4.6 Reb, 1.5 Ast
Larry Schellenberg • JR • G • 6-3 • 6.6 Pts, 3.8 Reb, 4.4 Ast
Dan Christie • FR • G • 6-1 • 3.6 Pts, 0.9 Reb, 1.8 Ast
Anthony Grant • FR • F • 0.8 Pts, 1.0 Reb, 0.1 Ast
1983-84 Dayton Flyers Schedule and Results - SportsReference.com
Dayton finished the regular season with an 18-10 record and was awarded a #10 seed in the NCAA Tournament West Region. DePaul finished the regular season with an 25-2 record and was awarded a #1 seed in the NCAA Tournament Midwest Region.
1984 NCAA Basketball Tournament
The 1984 NCAA Division I Men's Basketball Tournament involved 53 schools playing a single-elimination tournament. It began on March 13, 1984, and ended with the Championship Game on April 2 in Seattle. This was the last tournament in which some teams earned first round byes as the field expanded to 64 teams beginning in the 1985 tournament when each team played in the first round. It was also the second year with a preliminary round; preliminary games would not be played again until 2001.
Georgetown, coached by John Thompson, won the national title with an 84–75 victory in the final game over Houston. Thompson became the first African-American head coach to lead his team to any NCAA Division I title.
Winning Coach: John Thompson (1st title)
MOP: Patrick Ewing (Georgetown)
Top Scorer: Roosevelt Chapman (Dayton) – 105 points
Midwest Regional – St. Louis, Missouri
First Round: #1 DePaul - Bye
Second Round (Round of 32): #1 DePaul 75, #8 Illinois State 61
Regional Semifinal (Sweet 16): #4 Wake Forest 73, #1 DePaul 71 OT
West Regional – Los Angeles
First Round: #10 Dayton 74, #7 LSU 66
Second Round (Round of 32): #10 Dayton 89, #2 Oklahoma 85
Regional Semifinal (Sweet 16): #10 Dayton 74, #6 Washington 58
Regional Final (Elite 8): #1 Georgetown 61, #10 Dayton 49
First Round: #1 Georgetown - Bye
Second Round (Round of 32): #1 Georgetown 37, #9 Southern Methodist 36
Regional Semifinal (Sweet 16): #1 Georgetown 62, #5 UNLV 48
Regional Final (Elite 8): #1 Georgetown 61, #10 Dayton 49
National Semifinal (Final Four): #1 Georgetown 53, #1 Kentucky 40
National Championship Game: #1 Georgetown 84, #2 Houston 75
UD NCAA legends: Roosevelt Chapman’s 41-point thrashing of powerful Oklahoma on a 1984 Elite Eight run – Dayton Daily News - March 15, 2017
The Flyers’ all-time leading scorer guided UD on an Elite Eight run in 1984 that included a 41-point, 8-rebound performance against second-seeded Oklahoma in the 89-85 second-round win. Victories against LSU, Oklahoma and Washington led UD to a regional final loss against eventual national champion Georgetown.
Chapman finished his UD career with 2,233 points - an 18.9 points-per-game scoring average over four seasons. Even though he was 6-foot-4, he also ranks eighth overall in rebounds (956, 8.1 per game), third in blocks and seventh in steals.
DePaul coach Ray Meyer's impending retirement may give DePaul an emotional boost - UPI - March 21, 1984
WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. -- DePaul coach Ray Meyer's impending retirement may give DePaul an emotional boost that Wake Forest will have trouble contending with in the NCAA Midwest Regionals, Deacons coach Carl Tacy said.
'I am sure DePaul will be the sentimental favorite,' Tacy said at a news conference Tuesday. 'Even my wife said that if we couldn't win the whole thing, she'd like him (Meyer) to. She'll be loyal Friday night or she will have to find another way home.' The Deacons will have to be ready for DePaul, Tacy said.
'We not only have to prepare for a great basketball team but Coach Meyer's retirement gives us a sixth man to compete against Friday,' he said.
Wake Forest Upsets Depaul In Overtime In Midwest - Peter Alfano, The New York Times - March 24, 1984
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Ray Meyer's sentimental journey came to an end tonight. The 70-year-old coach of DePaul fell three games short of his retirement goal when a layup by Danny Young gave Wake Forest a surprising 73-71 overtime victory in the Midwest Regional.
For DePaul and Meyer, the ending was even more shocking because DePaul had led throughout the game and appeared to be safely in front by 8 points with 3 minutes left in regulation time. But the Blue Demons played recklessly all night. A basket at the buzzer by Delaney Rudd of Wake Forest tied the score at 65-all and forced the overtime period.
17. The 2005-06 Season: DePaul Joins the Big East Conference
It's Official: DePaul To Join BIG EAST Conference – DePaul University – November 4, 2003
NEW YORK - The BIG EAST Conference announced that five institutions have accepted invitations for membership into the league. Those schools are: University of Cincinnati, DePaul University, University of Louisville, Marquette University, and the University of South Florida. All five universities will begin BIG EAST Conference play in the 2005-06 academic year.
Fifteen years have now passed since Dayton and DePaul played their one and only game since DePaul began play in the Big East – and thereby ending the Dayton-DePaul Rivalry – at least for the foreseeable future.
Rivalry Game No. 69: December 10, 2005 • UD Arena • DePaul 61, Dayton 54 Attendance: 12,302
DePaul Fends Off Flyers 61-54 - University of Dayton - December 10, 2005
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------DAYTON, Ohio - DePaul handed the Dayton men's basketball team its first home loss of the season Saturday night at UD Arena, 61-54, behind a 22-7 run midway through the second half. The Flyers stretched their lead to four at 34-30 to begin the second half before DePaul answered with an 8-0 run over the next 2:40 to build a 38-34 lead with 15:25 left in the half. From there the Blue Demons would build a double-digit lead over the next seven minutes and held a 52-42 advantage with 8:32 remaining before the Flyers began to chip away at the lead.
The Flyers had started the season 5-0 at home for the 11th time since UD Arena opened. Dayton is now 438-172 all-time at the Arena (.718). Dayton leads the all-time series with DePaul 35-34, but the Blue Demons have won three in a row: 70-59 last season at DePaul, and 76-69 in double overtime in the First Round of the 2004 NCAA Tournament in Buffalo, NY. Brian Gregory falls to 0-3 versus DePaul.
DePaul Legend Ray Meyer Dies - Chicago Tribune - March 17, 2006
…………… Ray Meyer (1913-2006) ……………
Ray Meyers Tribute/Obituary Articles – We Are DePaul (Very lengthy listing, with whole articles and numerous excerpts.)
Ray Meyer - Chicago Tribune - March 18, 2006
Late in Meyer's career, America would adopt him as a national treasure. His pained expressions and gap-toothed grins, once merely coaching idiosyncrasies, became trademarks.
But Chicago knew him long before he was a lovable legend. Chicago knew him when he was just a hard-working coach with a loud voice, a soft heart and big dreams. His rise from obscurity beneath the "L" tracks to national prominence as coach of DePaul's 1979 NCAA Final Four team helped illuminate the qualities that made him a successful and enduring professor of the game.
"Above all, he was a wonderful, wonderful man," said Don Donoher, the retired University of Dayton coach who competed against Meyer for years. "He was one of the class acts, revered by everyone in college basketball. A giant has fallen."
Nobody had more love for Chicago than Ray - Chicago Tribune - March 18, 2006
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------"Ray Meyer was a tough competitor as a player and as an opposing coach. Later, he was always kind of a cuddly, avuncular type of presence that everybody instinctively liked."
Many attributed that likability to a genuine selflessness that came naturally to Meyer. In 1964, DePaul was in Dayton to play the Flyers the night legendary coach Tom Blackburn died of cancer. Meyer told his team to leave for home, but Libby Blackburn, the widow, interceded because she said her husband would want them to play. Meyer honored Mrs. Blackburn's wishes, and DePaul won 79-73 in the last game of the regular season.
Don Donoher, 16-14 in his career against Meyer at Dayton, remembered hanging out with Meyer in his office after St. Joseph's had upset the Blue Demons at Dayton in the first round of the 1981 NCAA tournament. "He just shrugged his shoulders and said, `What are you going to do?"' Donoher said. "He was heartbroken, but he was with friends. No matter who was in the room, Ray Meyer was always among friends.
18. Wintrust Arena at McCormick Square
Wintrust Arena at McCormick Square Opens in Chicago – Wikipedia – October 14, 2017
Wintrust Arena at McCormick Square, previously referred to as DePaul Arena or McCormick Place Events Center, is a 10,387-seat sports venue in Chicago's Near South Side community area. It is the current home court for the men's and women's basketball teams of DePaul University and serves as an events center for McCormick Place.
Before the actual announcement, the arena was publicized by the Chicago Sun-Times as a 12,000-seat arena that would cost $300 million. The arena was announced in May 2013, with construction planned to begin in 2014, and use expected to begin with the 2016–17 season. The start of construction was delayed to November 2015, with completion delayed until the 2017–18 season. Although DePaul had been seeking a new home arena — it used Allstate Arena in suburban Rosemont starting 1980 — it rejected a November 2012 ten-year offer to play rent free at the United Center. Instead, DePaul planned to use Allstate Arena on a recurring one-year basis until it had a new home. On November 16, 2016, DePaul and the Metropolitan Pier and Exposition Authority (MPEA or "McPier") announced that the new event center at McCormick Square would be called Wintrust Arena. The announcement came after the signing of a letter of intent that contemplated a definitive 15-year sponsorship agreement between DePaul and Wintrust.
ESPN reported the expected cost of the arena was $173 million - $70 million from DePaul University and $103 million from public funds. It was built to host concerts, conventions and other events in addition to DePaul Basketball games. As the building approached completion, its capacity was announced as 10,387 seats for basketball.
The decision for public participation in the funding of DePaul's athletic facility was controversial because it was announced 6 days prior to the Board of Education's decision to close 50 public schools due to a $1 billion deficit. When the Chicago City Council approved funding on July 24, 2013, the Chicago Reader reported the vote as though money was taken from the schools and spent on the arena because the spending plan included $68 million in budget cuts for the Chicago Public Schools. The Chicago Tribune revealed that the land for the project had not yet been acquired four days after the City Hall funding vote.
……… Wintrust Arena in May 2018 ………
Link
On October 31, 2018 Fieldhouse Flyer wrote:
ATTENDANCE 2017-18
17,000 • Creighton
12,996 • Dayton
12,323 • Marquette
11,828 • Villanova
10,475 • Xavier
9,547 • Providence
9,134 • St. John's
8,554 • Butler
8,456 • Seton Hall
7,531 • Georgetown
6,147 • DePaul
Link
On April 10, 2019 Fieldhouse Flyer wrote:
ATTENDANCE 2018-19
15,980 • Creighton
15,821 • Marquette
12,941 • Dayton
10,034 • Xavier
9,542 • Providence
9,193 • St. John's
9,053 • Villanova
8,507 • Seton Hall
8,419 • Butler
7,212 • Georgetown
3,847 • DePaul
Link
On March 22, 2020 Fieldhouse Flyer wrote:
ATTENDANCE 2019-20
17,314 • Creighton
15,145 • Marquette
13,363 • Dayton
11,299 • Villanova
10,328 • Seton Hall
10,311 • Xavier
10,064 • Providence
8,617 • Butler
7,931 • Georgetown
6,236 • St. John's
5,187 • DePaul
In the three seasons that 10,387-seat Wintrust Arena has hosted DePaul men's basketball, the Blue Demons have averaged a disappointing 5,060 fans per game. It is worth noting that the ol’ UD Fieldhouse had a capacity of 5,808 and sold out every game. In years gone by, when DePaul had good basketball teams, their Chicago fans showed up in impressive numbers:
In Part I above Fieldhouse Flyer wrote:
Jan 9, 1982 • Rosemont Horizon* • AP #5 DePaul 71, Dayton 69 • Attendance: 12,320
Jan 21, 1983 • Rosemont Horizon • DePaul 56, Dayton 52 • Attendance: 12,339
Feb 22, 1984 • Rosemont Horizon • AP #5 DePaul 79. Dayton 59 • Attendance: 13,027
Feb 6, 1985 • Rosemont Horizon • Dayton 67, AP #18 DePaul 63 • Attendance: 16,803
Jan 4, 1986 • Rosemont Horizon • DePaul 66, Dayton 52 • Attendance: 12,731
Feb 7, 1987 • Rosemont Horizon • AP #5 DePaul 88, Dayton 65 • Attendance: 14,280
Jan 14, 1988 • Rosemont Horizon • Dayton 79, DePaul 72 • Attendance: 10,935
* Rosemont Horizon opened in Chicago in 1980 with a capacity of 17,500 for basketball and was renamed Allstate Arena in 1999.
AD Revenues ('18-'19) – Post #3
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------On April 1, 2020 Fieldhouse Flyer wrote:
Survey Year • Institution Name • Revenues Men's Basketball Team
2018 • Marquette University • $21,856,683
2018 • University of Dayton • $16,281,364
2018 • Villanova University • $14,428,932
2018 • Xavier University • $13,916,975
2018 • Georgetown University • $13,573,946
2018 • Providence College • $11,117,186
2018 • St. John's University • $10,028,677
2018 • Creighton University • $8,590,055
2018 • Butler University • $8,228,482
2018 • Seton Hall University • $7,506,127
2018 • DePaul University • $6,793,520
19. Taking Stock on May 30, 2020
The story of the former Dayton-DePaul Rivalry is many things. Rookie coach Ray Meyer meeting tall freshman George Mikan on campus and teaching him how to play basketball and shoot the ball. Ray Meyer and Tom Blackburn on the sideline watching their All-Americans play in front of sold-out, cheering crowds at Alumni Hall and UD Fieldhouse. But mostly, it was about the 20-year rivalry and long-time, great friendship between two Hall-of Fame coaches: Ray Meyer and Don Donoher, whose teams played each other 30 times in some of the most memorable games in UD’s history.
Meyer soaks in the love at tribute – Bill Jauss, The Chicago Tribune – December 15, 2003
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------One tribute touched Ray Meyer more than any of the others Sunday when DePaul University dedicated the basketball court at Allstate Arena to Meyer and his late wife Marge. That was the turnout of so many of his former players from his 42 years as DePaul's coach. "Seeing so many of you players is my greatest enjoyment of the day," Meyer said at a brunch honoring him before the DePaul-Notre Dame game. "Players make the coach. My players became part of my family. I loved them all."
The players returned the favor to Meyer and his wife. "One time we had a party at the house," Meyer recalled, with a twinkle in his eye. "The players told me I might as well leave. They were having more fun with Marge." Marge Meyer died in 1985. The couple had been married 46 years. "My only regret is that she couldn't be here to enjoy this ceremony," Meyer said. "She was such a part of my life and such a part of the DePaul teams. It's only fitting that the honor be for both of us."
Meyer celebrates his 90th birthday this week. Meyer likened it to the outpouring of affection he received in 1979, when a nation of fans adopted the little school hard by the "L" tracks and the grandfather/coach who took DePaul to the Final Four. More than 40 of Meyer's former players, plus his six children, 17 grandchildren and numerous great-grandchildren took part in a halftime ceremony in which the playing surface was officially named the Ray & Marge Meyer Court.
Don Donoher, a long-time friendly rival of Meyer from his days as the coach at Dayton, was on hand in his role as a Cleveland Cavaliers scout.
"Basketball is a game, not life itself," Meyer said. "I will always remember this day. I'm overwhelmed and grateful."
DePaul Blue Demons in the Big East:
Jerry Wainwright: 5 Seasons • 2005-2010 • Overall: 60–95 (.387) • Conference: 21–65 (.244)
Oliver Purnell: 5 Seasons • 2010-2015 • Overall: 54–105 (.340) • Conference: 15–75 (.167)
Dave Leitao: 5 Seasons • 2015-2020 • Overall: 64-98 (.395) • Conference: 19–71 (.211)
DePaul in the Big East: 15 Seasons • 2005-2020 • Overall: 178–298 (.374) • Conference: 55–211 (.207)
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A miracle at the Garden won’t save the Dave Leitao regime - Lawrence Kreymer, The DePaulia - March 8, 2020
If Lenti Ponsetto had any clue how to run a college program, she would have told Leitao to forget about coaching the Big East Tournament. Instead, the Massachusetts native will be allowed to stand on the sidelines in New York and embarrass the program for one final time. When the season comes to an end at Madison Square Garden, Leitao should announce he won’t be returning next season. He at least owes that much to the fans who have had to watch his pathetic brand of basketball for five years.
Big East Tournament canceled at halftime of St. John’s-Creighton game – New York Post – 1:09 PM, March 12, 2020
DePaul's Faith in Dave Leitao Proves They Don't Care About Basketball – Andrew Doughty, Hero Sports - March 19, 2020
DePaul and Dave Leitao Agree to Multi-Year Contract Extension – DePaul University – April 2, 2020
CHICAGO - DePaul University and men's basketball coach Dave Leitao have mutually agreed to a multi-year extension for Leitao to lead the program. The extension continues the current contract through the end of the 2023-24 season.
"We are happy to reach an agreement to continue the improvement and stability that Coach Leitao has instilled in our men's basketball program," said athletics director Jean Lenti Ponsetto. "His vision of academic excellence, athletic excellence and community service mirrors DePaul's mission in developing outstanding student-athletes and future leaders in our society."
Blue Demons fans react to Dave Leitao contract extension - Lawrence Kreymer, The DePaulia – April 10, 2020
Reviewing DePaul - OmahaGuy, Holy Land of Hoops - March 13, 2020 (57 posts as of May 25, 2020)
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The former Dayton-DePaul Rivalry is also a story about how hiring the right coach (or wrong coach) can impact the fortunes of their basketball programs.
Dayton fires basketball coach Jim O'Brien - United Press International – March 2, 1994
DAYTON, Ohio - Jim O'Brien was fired on Wednesday as basketball coach of the University of Dayton, effective at the end of the season. [Updated} Dayton was 6–21 (1–11) this season and 61-84 in five seasons under O'Brien. The Flyers were 22-10 in their first season under O'Brien in 1989-90, but have not been above .500 since then. Dayton was just 4-26 (3–11) in 1992-93.
Final AP Top 25 Poll - Week 20 - March 18, 2020
1. Kansas (28-3) • 1,623 points (All 65 First-place votes)
2. Gonzaga (29-22) • 1,547 points
3. Dayton (29-2) • 1,505 points
4. Florida State (26-5) • 1,381
5. Baylor (26-4) • 1,337
6. San Diego State (30-2) • 1,279
7. Creighton (24-7) • 1,154
8. Kentucky (25-6) • 1,118
9. Michigan State (22-9) • 1,023
10. Villanova (24-7) • 1,011
15. Seton Hall (21-9) • 727
23. Butler (22-9) • 165
Anthony Grant Named Naismith National Coach Of The Year – University of Dayton – April 2, 2020
ATLANTA – The Atlanta Tip-Off Club has announced that University of Dayton men's basketball coach Anthony Grant has been named the 2020 Ladder Naismith Men's Basketball National Coach of the Year. Grant, a 1987 Dayton grad, is the first coach to win the Naismith Coach of the Year award while coaching at his alma mater since Jim Boeheim in 2010.
Grant had already been named Men's College Coach of the Year by the NABC, the USBWA, the Associated Press, The Sporting News, Fox Sports and CBSsports.com. Dayton went 29-2 this year, setting UD's record for wins in a season despite not having the benefit of post-season play. Both of UD's losses were in overtime on neutral courts to teams expected to be in the NCAA tournament field – No. 1-ranked Kansas and Colorado. The Flyers earned a No. 3 ranking in both the Associated Press and USA Today Coaches polls. After being picked to finish third in the Atlantic 10 Conference's preseason poll, UD was the first team to go 18-0 in the conference in 35 years.
And that concludes my story and my trilogy of Dayton’s former rivalries. I don’t know if or when Dayton will play their 70th game against DePaul, or if the 2020-21 season will even take place. But I do know that there will never be another Ray Meyer, and that college basketball has greatly benefited from Coach Meyer’s contributions to it, dating back to 1942, when the game was unrecognizable compared to today’s game. I was quite fortunate to see many of the Dayton-DePaul games at the UD Fieldhouse and UD Arena, and I am quite pleased to share some of my many memories of this former rivalry with you.
Dayton Flyers . . . UD Fieldhouse (1950 – 1969) . . . UD Arena (1969 – Present) . . . Transform UD Arena
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