REFLECTIONS
Brotherly Battles Mark Dienhart It was a reoccurring complaint I punch. It could be a real stunner to SJU and UST were heard in film sessions for more than 15 lose a recruit to Saint John’s who’d archrivals, but it was an years as a football player, assistant coach already been told by John several times and head coach at the University of St. and who believed that John was really honor to coach against Thomas while preparing for important not recruiting him! Some grudging John Gagliardi, whether games against our perennial rival. And it admiration naturally follows a recruiting you won or lost. wasn’t even directed at John Gagliardi. method like that. “It seems like this guy has been at I nearly attended Saint John’s. I Saint John’s forever” was the complaint, and it was always had many friends who did, and I could never bring myself directed at some unusually effective player whom we all to fully endorse the blood feud that was supposed to be wished and sincerely believed had graduated but reappeared part of the relationship between our two fine Catholic on current-year game films and was found to still be on the institutions. There were too many good people and good SJU roster. John was different. He was a fixture. He was a friends on the other side of the fence and ball. Games given. He WAS Saint John’s. reminded me of brotherly battles where, in the end, the two So, I guess it’s understandable that when I read of would ultimately find themselves appreciating their many John Gagliardi’s retirement, I was, frankly, stunned. I really similarities and, likely, a lasting bond of friendship despite couldn’t have believed John might just coach forever. But that very real, baked-in rivalry. it surely felt that way, and I did harbor thoughts that his So, on the occasion of John’s retirement announcement, tenure would last long enough so, like some of his former I decided I needed to send John a note. For years, we’d players, I might have grandchildren NOT recruited to exchanged enjoyable phone calls intermittently when play for John and Saint John’s in the same way I was not I was at the University of Minnesota and later after I recruited to play for his team when he visited Minneapolis’ returned to St. Thomas, but a phone call just didn’t seem De La Salle High School my senior year. It would have been formal enough. For a second, I wondered if he used and an honor. read email, which, of course, was falling into the wellJohn was in his forties when we first met, and his easy orchestrated “underestimating trap” John effectively set manner made it seem that I really wasn’t being recruited for all of his coaching adversaries those many years. (He at all, as of course, he would always contend. It was only probably was an early adopter—tweeted, blogged and later that I learned that John actually began coaching downloaded more game film to analyze than anyone else in at Saint John’s the same year I was born and had some the MIAC could ever have imagined!) considerable expertise at this essential coaching prerequisite In the email I sent, I admitted to John that while of assembling talent and then not spoiling it, but bringing I’d always known I’d be proud of participating in some out the very best in it. victories against Saint John’s, only at that moment I found him intriguing and very likable, like so many had I realized that I’m also proud to have participated others did—then, later and now. And, when calling in the games that resulted in losses just because of his on recruits as St. Thomas’s head football coach, it was involvement. I told him that he’d made the entire MIAC remarkable how often John had already beaten me to the better by setting the bar as high as he and Saint John’s did,
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