Solid work, John. Great retrospective. I appreciate the time and effort it takes to write and produce this level of content. Thank you for sharing…
One minor stat correction: The Ramblers were 25-5 entering the 1985 tournament.

If I may briefly add a couple of thoughts to the pre-85 content… Loyola’s 82-84 seasons deserve a special shout-out. Gene Sullivan, Doug Bruno and the coaching staff were building an outstanding program. Winning seasons with good schedules, yet LU was snubbed for post-season tournaments. The snubs reached a boiling point in 1984 when Sullivan threatened an injunction against the NIT and floated the idea of a Cinderella Classic. This SI article on Alfredrick Hughes and the Ramblers, and the build-up into 1985 is a classic: https://www.si.com/vault/issue/40786/39

And the Spring, 84 drama of whether or not Hughes would return for his senior season could've changed the course of Loyola sports history:
https://www.upi.com/Archives/1984/04/26 ... 451803600/

More, thanks for the throwbacks about the Amphitheater. You really had to be there to appreciate it!

TCJpost, thanks for the fact checks and details.

That was a typo on my part for the pre-NCAA record in '85, I'm going to make a correction. Great links that you added to fill out the picture....

You're welcome, John. Thought you'd want to know!

And speaking of 'filling out the picture' ... that SI picture of Hughes and the Ramblers vs. Marquette at a packed Mecca in Milwaukee is a great example of what was in the mid-80s - and a sharp contrast to the eventual decline in the subsequent decades...

Looking forward to your next installment on the 90s!

I love this. When I watched this run to the Final 4, it triggered all the neurons in my head holding these dark memories. So many facets to our walk through the wilderness. The venues part of this story is a story in and of itself. A chronological history is great, but you could do our fall into irrelevancy based on themes - the venues, the conferences, the coaches, broadcasting rights, etc. So many bad decisions. I can have a few beers and laugh about this now. It was just painful last year at this time.

Great start. There was a significant shift in the players Sully and Doug took risks on after 85. There was tremendous disappointment from the lack of institutional support hoops received from the University. The answer was to repeat success and put more pressure on the administration. The risks weren't just from an academic point of view. There were feeble attempts in helping academically when a tutor was hired, but even the best students were faced with some faculty who went out of their way to make everything difficult. The real issues with that group of players were their off court actions and it was something the program wasn't able to overcome and Loyola would not tolerate. Loyola had no choice in the end but draw a hard line. We didn't take a chance on a kid for over twenty years. That myopic stance set the stage for many lean years and countless missed opportunities. If Father B had fully embraced the success of 85, history could have been re-written. Image most of the players from those years being the core that made up the Illini team of 88-89. We were in the running for all of them and Doug had the pipeline. NBA players regularly played with us during the summer and the MCC was about to change for the better. The stage was set but LU couldn't see the future at the time. Gene would have retired and Doug takes over. Let's remember what Doug has built at DePaul and the caliber of coach he is. JCT is right, it gets much worse from here.

All of this is before my time (00' grad)... I do remember hearing about the Amphitheater and Rosemont... But I don't recall hearing about playing home games at UIC and Depaul!?!?! A new venue 4 out of 5 seasons!?!?! Uggghhh... This must have been absolutely horrible for everyone involved!

Don't leave out the season that the Ramblers played at Northwestern!!!

Moving to all those off campus locations was definitely negative overall. But, the 84-85 season in Depaul' s gym is a great memory. I believe that was an undefeated season on that court. Almost all of the games were sold out and raucous, as neighborhood hoop fans became attracted to the high scoring Ramblers. Too bad it didn't continue.

A new installment of The Dark Years is up. The Dark Years: The Nauseous Nineties (1990-1996)

http://www.ramblermania.net/stories/the ... 1990-1996/

JCT ...Great job, but YIKES such tough memories!!!!! ... I had to go back and read your final four write up to come off of that buzz kill! Hopefully our administration will read this and make sure to seize the moment! I believe they have so far taken the right steps, but only time will tell. Go Ramblers!