Buffs Basketball Honors Harrington Era In Annual Reunion
February 10, 2018 | Men's Basketball, Neill Woelk
BOULDER — For the fourth straight year, the Colorado basketball program is hosting a reunion of players from a previous era — and for the fourth straight year, players and coaches from that era are wholeheartedly embracing the weekend get-together.
This year's reunion features players from the Joe Harrington era at CU. Harrington, who coached in Boulder from 1990-96, is still tied for second with Boyle on Colorado's list of all-time NCAA and NIT tournament wins with four. He may be best remembered for an outstanding NIT run in his first season with the Buffs, when Colorado advanced to the NIT Final Four by beating Michigan, Wyoming and Arkansas State before finally falling to Big Eight rival Oklahoma in the tourney semifinals. Colorado then beat Massachusetts in the third-place game.
The reunion weekend — which welcomes all former Buffs, not just those from the specific era being honored — once again featured a Saturday afternoon luncheon with current Buffs coaches and players as well as a Saturday evening reception in downtown Boulder.
All those attending are also scheduled to be at Sunday's 2 p.m. Colorado-Stanford game at the Coors Events Center.
The reunions have been a priority for CU head coach Tad Boyle since he took the job in 2010. Boyle, who played college ball at Kansas, is well-aware of what embracing the tradition and culture of a program can mean in the big picture.
"This whole idea is to bring the old together and blend it with the new," Boyle said. "I want the players who played in that era to understand they are always a part of this program. Doesn't matter if they played in the '60s, '70s, '80s or '90s. Bringing the eras of Colorado basketball together and understanding we're all Buffs."
Boyle has previously hosted players and coaches from the Bill Blair, Tom Apke and Tom Miller eras.
For some of the players and coaches, the reunions serve as their first trip back to the Events Center since their days on the team. For those Buffs, it means their first look at the CU practice facility, which features two practice gyms, new locker rooms and a state-of-the-art weight room, as well as meeting rooms and dining facilities.
For some, the facility is hard to recognize.
"Amazing," said former Buff Sande Golgart. "I don't know how anybody could have imagined this when we were playing here."
But, Golgart said, it is a sign that CU's administration is making sure the basketball program is given every chance to succeed.
"More than anything, it helps you appreciate good leadership," Golgart said. "Good leadership is about removing obstacles. So when you are an athlete and you come here and you see these kind facilities, you know the leadership is removing every obstacle. We have nutritionists, we have world-class facilities, we have everything. When you start treating people like world-class, then the expectations to be world-class on and off the court, in the community, and your performance, will be elevated. If you want it, it's there. It makes you feel like there are people looking out for you and creating a path, and there is also an obligation on your part to make all of this mean something. It's here, you have to take advantage of it."
Former Buff Cody Walters called CU's facilities "unbelievable."
"They have every aspect that you could even hope or dream for to develop their skills and make them better basketball players," Walters said. "The technology advances are unbelievable since the 25 years ago that we were here. Two additional practice courts, the weight room. ... The weight room we had was a closet. There are no words to describe it, to be honest."
Another highlight of the Harrington era was the 1992 season when CU beat three ranked teams in a row at home: No. 21 Oklahoma, No. 2 Oklahoma State and No. 9 Missouri. Harrington also recruited Chauncey Billups to Colorado.
But, Harrington hasn't been back to Boulder since 1996, his last season in Boulder.
"I'm really glad Coach Boyle is doing this to link the past with the present," Harrington said. "That needs to be done. These guys aren't going to play basketball forever and a lot of people who graduated from here have accomplished a lot in other areas and become very successful people. The guys who are here now can see that and learn from it."
Harrington also lauded Boyle for his willingness to embrace the past and make it part of the present.
"Tad is well-aware that creating that tradition and culture needs to be done and that it creates a better program," Harrington said. "That's what great programs do and I'm glad to see him doing that. It's invaluable to program."
Harrington also couldn't help but chuckle at CU's current facilities. When Harrington coached at CU, the weight room was little more than a converted storage room and the only place in the Events Center to practice was the main floor.
That meant that when some classes conducted final exams in the Events Center, the Buffs had to practice either at aging Carlson Gymnasium or find space at a local high school. Just one floor also meant juggling schedules with the women's team and the volleyball team, which did not lend itself to anything resembling continuity.
"Personally I'm just happy to be back," Harrington said. "The changes are overwhelming. The facilities here are as good as it gets. They can recruit against anybody in the country with the facilities they have here. They're no longer taking a step back when it comes to basketball at Colorado. Everything is top of the line and that means a lot. There's no reason Colorado can't be in the thick of the NCAA playoffs every year."
Boyle actually watched Harrington's teams play on a regular basis, as he was in the investment business in Boulder during that era before embarking on his coaching career.
"It's good to have him back," Boyle said. "We want him to leave with a really good taste in his mouth about the time he spent here. Boulder is a special place, the University of Colorado is a special place, and Joe Harrington is a part of our history and we want to honor him."
Contact: Neill.Woelk@Colorado.edu