Al McGuire passed away in 2001, which for him meant that he didn’t have to see the Twin Towers attacked later that year in his hometown of New York City, which was probably a blessing because that man was New York to the bone.
He was widely seen as an eccentric and something of an oddball at times. Like Dick Vitale, he was a bon vivant and like Bill Walton, his interests ran far and wide.
Like both of those guys though, he was wildly competitive and the fire burned very, very hot.
In this clip, which
came after Marquette’s 67-66 win over Kansas State on the way to the 1977 national championship, McGuire blew a gasket.
He was furious about the officiating and let everyone know. When you see this, if you’re like us, you’ll think about Rick Pitino, who can go off in a similar manner, but without the sincerity.
McGuire was absolutely enraged.
After this, the Warriors, as Marquette was then called, blew past Wake Forest to get to the Final Four. They would then beat Cedric Maxwell’s 51-49 before taking out Dean Smith’s UNC 67-59 for Marquette’s one and only championship.
It was McGuire’s last game as a coach, but he went on a long and wonderful career as a broadcaster for NBC.
Blue Healer Auctions | Drop us a line
