Clarion: Tierney Brings Culture Change To DU

(above) Besides success on the lacrosse field, DU's team GPA has gone from 2.6 to 3.2 under Tierney
Since I’ve been in Denver, there hasn’t been a day gone by where I’m not excited to get up and come to work in the morning. That’s a pretty cool thing. It can sometimes be stressful, but it is also so rewarding."
- DU Lacrosse Coach Bill Tierney

From: DU Clarion
by Anna Gauldin

Men’s lacrosse head coach Bill Tierney has brought a winning tradition to the University of Denver, posting a 35-14 overall record in three seasons and leading the Pioneers to the program’s first NCAA tournament victory and Final Four appearance in 2011.

Tierney joined the Pioneer staff in July of 2009 after more than 20 years as head coach at Princeton. Since then, he has expanded the lacrosse program dramatically across all levels and garnered national attention for a Denver team that competes in a sport restricted primarily to the East Coast. Tierney has coached the Pioneers to three consecutive NCAA tournament appearances; the program had only reached the tournament twice prior to his tenure [read entire article].

8 comments:

Anonymous said...

Like Wooden, Schembechler or Summitt, Tierney blends a vision for sports with winning and life lessons that will change his players, his clooegues, and his school forever.

He could have sat back at Princeton and put it on autopilot, but instead, he came here to be the Pied Piper for his game in the west.

We're very lucky that Peg was able to get him here....

Aluuum said...

Recognition of Teirney and his lacrosse success also helps in getting D.U. known in all of the private schools (rich kids
that don't need scholorship aid)throughout the east. It should help in getting some of them to want to go to school here.

Anonymous said...

You are absolutely right, Aluum.

On a lax level, there are 48 men's roster spots and a 12.6 scholarship max, with the full schollies ostensibly for the Canadian stars. That means more than 40 of the roster are paying to play at DU, and a good chunk of them are paying full pop, so lax vitruakky pays for itself before you even open the stadium gates.

Secondly, getting on more and more of those affuent East Coast kids' radar who are lax-friendly helps DU as well, as those are the full-pop kids who make DU possible for everyone else.

Lax might be the best sports investment DU has made since Gwozdecky and and the Ritchie Center.

vizoroo said...

Surprising there are so few scholies for the number on the team,

Could lax be the first non-winter sport National Championship?

old pio said...

Hey, "Anonymous" when you mention legendary coaches and DU in the same sentence you should mention Murray Armstrong, too. An inexcusable oversight, you ask me, especially when you included that arsehole from Michigan. You use the word "we," frankly I'm not convinced, since you left The Chief off your little list. Try to do better next time.

old pio said...

Oh, and Willie Schaeffler, too. Pat Summit my ass.

Anonymous said...

old pio you are old get a life. Herb Brooks should be the hockey coach not Murray get a clue.

Anonymous said...

Murray won 5 NCAA titles. Herb won 3. Case closed.

As a college coaches go, Herb Brooks is not in the same class with Armstrong. Would have been had he stayed at the U, but he didn't.

Murray had to win in a town with no tradition and no native talent pool, no infrastructure. Herb had to just keep working what Marriucci built for him.