Highs and lows of 2001-2002 Temple sports

Sports fans, our school year is slowly winding down and our athletic teams have played their seasons with mixed results. The men’s basketball squad and the football team, as one may have noticed, fell short

02 May 2002 Uncategorized

Sports fans, our school year is slowly winding down and our athletic teams have played their seasons with mixed results.

The men’s basketball squad and the football team, as one may have noticed, fell short of expectations. However, the other teams — the ones least marketed — performed very well in 2001-2002.

It was that kind of year on North Broad Street, where the non-revenue sports provided a bigger bang for Temple’s buck.

The football team, amid much marketing hype, stumbled again. While the Owls did finish the season with two straight wins en route to a 4-7 finish, this was a team that began the season with aspirations of a bowl bid. This, which of course, would have brought Temple added revenue.

As the football team struggled in the Big East, Temple’s Sports Marketing department struggled to put fans in the stands. Who wants to watch a football team who has had a 4-7 record the past two years? If Temple starts winning, maybe people will begin to attend the games.

The bigger shock was that the men’s basketball team failed to get to the NCAA tournament for the first time in 13 seasons. Despite advancing to the semifinals of the NIT Tournament without top scorer Lynn Greer, Temple simply isn’t used to three-lettered tournaments in March.

Instead, this year other success stories came to the surface:

  • The women’s volleyball team, a perennial contender under head coach Bob Bertucci, found much success in the Atlantic 10. They finished their season with a 22-10 record, advancing to the championship match of the A-10 tournament.
  • Back in March, it was Dawn Staley who sat with her basketball team on Selection Sunday. The Owls, in Staley’s second season, went 20-11, won their first A-10 championship in more than a decade and advanced to the NCAA tournament for the first time since 1989, which is, ironically, the last time Chaney’s squad failed to make the Big Dance.
  • The golf and women’s lacrosse teams were successful in their campaigns. The golf team finished fifth or better in four of its outings and also had one of its players, Jon Rusk, win the individual A-10 title. The women’s lacrosse team has gone 12-4 overall, undefeated in the Atlantic 10 and holds the No. 19 ranking in the country.
  • The field hockey team, despite an 8-11 record, faced off against five nationally-ranked opponents beating William & Mary. With several key letterwinners returning, the future looks bright.
    Temple’s revenue sports, such as men’s basketball and football, didn’t pay off this season. Temple programs in the A-10 have a relatively higher budget than other schools in the conference, but the football team has the lowest funding out of all schools in the Big East. At this juncture in the school year, it is safe to say that the investments the school made have not reaped their expected benefits.

    So, looking at it from that angle, most people would think that this year was a disappointment because of the basketball and football teams’ unmet expectations and shortcomings.

    But if you take another look, away from the dollar signs and big arenas, Temple’s sports season has by no means been a disappointment. Many teams found success.

    You may have just not been aware of it.

    Andrew Monaghan can be reached at actmono@aol.com

    • The Temple News

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