Blue Demons Upgrade Athletic Director

Big Win With DeWayne Peevy Hire

Sorry for the long delay on this article. I am still in shock! In what can be described as a reboot, unbelievably, DePaul University has gone against every prior instinct and hired an outsider for the Athletic Director spot. The Lazy Blue Demon is Delighted!

In early July, this writer wrote the Search Committee with a checklist of the key items that he was searching for in the new Athletic Directory. Now that DeWayne Peevy has been officially announced as the new Athletic Director, let’s take stock of how close he measured up to the dream candidate. Let’s go down the list, step by step on a 5 point scale.

Someone from the Outside: 5/5

In the letter, it was stated that “DePaul cannot be tainted by a holdover.” The long term damage of the JLP era needed to be addressed, and the fact way that no one in house had seen what a modern Athletic Department looked like.

DeWayne Peevy is a true outsider from a DePaul perspective. He is not from Chicago. He has not worked at the DePaul Athletic Department in any manner. He has not worked in the Big East conference. The farther away from the status quo the better.

Peevy brings modern practices to an out of date place.

Person from a school that has demonstrated success in hiring first time head coaches: N/A

If DePaul went with an experienced hire, it was absolutely necessary that the hire have a track record of identifying coaching talent at a major college level. Peevy worked hand in hand with Hall of Fame Basketball Coach, John Calipari, throughout his tenure at Kentucky. Since Peevy was the Deputy Athletic Director, and his program was under the control of a Hall of Famer, Peevy never needed to give input on a Men’s Basketball Head Coach hire. I will give the search committee a pass on this one, because if you are going to go with the Assistant AD path for the hire, mine as well get one that has been around one of the more progressive Athletic Departments and one that has been tied to a school that has had Four Final Four appearances since 2011.

Person who understands Student Engagement: 5/5

As mentioned in the letter, “if you look up at the Demon Deck of Wintrust Arena, you will see mostly blue seats. The lack of students coming to games has been a problem for multiple generations, especially the lost generation of 2005-2020.” We are now getting to Peevy’s sweet spot.

Peevy is a former Sports Information Director, a role that is all about communication with the student body and alumni. Peevy was the first ever African American Media director at a SEC school.

At Kentucky, Peevy worked with both the media relations department and as the University of Kentucky site states, “the award-winning Kentucky sports publication department while serving as the primary media contact for the nationally renowned men’s basketball team.”

As the SID at his alma mater, Montevallo, he won six national publications awards. The dude gets it.

Of course it helps that Kentucky could probably sell out their basketball games without an Athletic Director, but we have got to give him some credit.

Person who understands Alumni Engagement: 5/5

I have been bombarded with emails and tweets. This is a great start.

Social Media Guru: Incomplete

The Twitter account for DePaul Men’s Basketball is not verified.

It is still not verified. We are looking for that Blue Check!

Get this Bastard Verified
Hd Waiting GIF by MOODMAN

Excellent Media Presence

It would be nice to have a strong communicator who does not make the Alumni community cringe at every other sentence.

Through his first press conference and other early engagements, I am pleased. He wants to elevate all of our sports.

Someone who believes in Transparency

DePaul fans hope that the days of double-talk and cover up are over.

So far the communication has been stellar, which bodes well for the future.

Huge Win for DePaul

At the end of the day, this is a huge upgrade. Let’s check back at the end of the school year to see where we are. At the very least, we’d better be twitter verified!

The Lazy Blue Demon’s Dream Athletic Director

Dear Search Committee member,

Allow me to introduce myself, I am the Lazy Blue Demon of DePaul. I am what is known as a Double-Demon for the insanity of going back to get a 2nd degree from the same place.

My first day on campus as a student was in September of 1993. My first memory of the DePaul Blue Demons came via WGN, which I was able to watch in my hometown in Southwestern Missouri.

One of the first things I did, once I stepped foot on campus, was walk over to the DePaul Athletic Department and bought season tickets for the 1993-94 season. My exuberance paid off in that I had front row seats in the student section. I did not miss a game, other than the games played between Thanksgiving and the New Year, due to me going home for Winter Break.

Your search committee has allowed for DePaul Blue Demons fans to reach out to you to let us know about our dream candidate. Lucky for you, I have a few opinions on the matter.

Continue reading “The Lazy Blue Demon’s Dream Athletic Director”

JLP Retiring

Finally, after 18 years in control of the fate of DePaul Athletics, Jean Lenti Ponsetto is retiring.  It’s happening.

I can remember meeting Jeanie up in Milwaukee at an Alumni gathering before a DePaul-Marquette game just after being named the new Athletic Director.  I was excited for her, and I was excited that the University was progressive in its thinking.  There are times when promoting from within can be the right choice.  If the ship is afloat, why rock it?

This method was an excellent approach when it came to the DePaul’s Women’s Basketball program.  Doug Bruno was running a well oiled machine, and the machine has kept humming, making 18 straight NCAA Tournament appearances.

This approach worked well for the Women’s Softball Program as coach Eugene Lenti lead the women to four College World Series appearances over a nine year period.

This approach was working at the Men’s Basketball Program as JLP inherited Dave Leitao in 2002.  Leitao brought youth, energy, and experience of being the top assistant on one of the biggest programs in college basketball in the University of Connecticut Huskies.  The energy was felt on the recruiting trail.  The players he inherited immediately improved.  Taking a team that was 9-19 under Pat Kennedy to 16-13 in his first year.  In his second year, 2003-04 Leitao lead the Blue Demons to their first NCAA Tournament appearance since 2000, and only the 2nd appearance since 1992.  The program looked to be on the rise.

Continue reading “JLP Retiring”

Blue Demons Travel to Play Friars, seeking Providence

DePaul travels to Providence on Saturday, March 7th at the Dunkin’ Donuts Center in Providence, Rhode Island.  When these two teams met in the 2nd game of Big East Conference play, the game pushed the teams in opposite directions.  The Friars had accumulated some funky results which put them near the bottom of Big East teams entering conference play.  After convincingly defeating Texas and Georgetown, the Friars won the rock fight against DePaul on a last second free-throw.

Since that time, Providence has proven to be a resilient team defeating all the Big East teams at least once.  The Friars are on a five game winning streak.  It is incredible.

The DePaul Blue Demons, one of the worst Division One teams at shooting free-throws, shot 88.6% from the line to defeat Marquette.  The Demons rode the hot free-throw shooting of 50% shooter Jaylen Butz and 57% shooter Darious Hall.  Hall and Butz went a combined 15-17 or 88.2%.  It was also incredible.

cropped-white-demon

Continue reading “Blue Demons Travel to Play Friars, seeking Providence”

DePaul Hosts Marquette For Senior Night

The DePaul Blue Demons host rival Marquette.  The Golden Eagles currently sit in 5th place in the Big East with a 9-9 record.  As we all know, DePaul is in the cellar with a 2-14 record in conference play.  This game will be a contest of contrasts.  Marquette has an excellent offense that lives by the 3 and dies by the 3, while the Blue Demons have a horrific offense that lives by the 2 and dies by the 3, because the team takes too few and shoots them poorly.

Poor free-throw shooting doomed the Demons in the first meeting in a game that DePaul lead for all but 1:16 of action.

The Setup

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DePaul takes on Marquette Tuesday, March 3rd, at 7PM Central at Wintrust Arena in the South Loop. The game will be on FS1 Channel 237 on Comcast in Chicago and on Radio 670AM.

Tale of the Tape

 

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Marquette has 6 great advantages, while DePaul has 5.  Of course, Marquette is the 11th most lethal 3 point shooting team in the country shooting 38.2% as a team.  That is just crazy.

Winner of the Tape:  Marquette

Who Can Hurt the Demons?

Markus Howard

Howard is the highest usage guy in the country.  37.8% of all possessions end in his hands.  41.0% of all shots come from Howard, which is the highest percentage in the country.  He is currently rated as #3 in the kenpom.com player of the year metric.  He is pretty much a nightmare, so it would be interesting if he did not play.  Who would pick up the shots?

Howard is also a clean point guard not turning the ball over at a high rate.

Sacar Anim

Anim is another deadly 3 point shooter shooting 39% behind the arc.  Strangely, he only shoots 64% from the free-throw line.

Theo John

You do not have to worry about John’s offense, but he blocks 10% of all shots in a typical game.  The Golden Eagles funnel drivers to him and he finishes them off.

Other Dangerous Shooters

Brendan Bailey shoots 39% from 3, while Jamal Cain and Greg Elliott shoot 40% and 39.5% from 3.  All 3 of these guys typically have wide open attempts, which contributes to their deadliness.

What is Going to Happen on Tuesday?

It is Senior night.  It is the last regular season game for DePaul at home.  It will most likely be the last time we see Paul Reed at Wintrust in uniform (if he plays).  That is why it is hard to say how the game will go.  If Reed plays, DePaul has an excellent chance to win.  If Reed’s hip-pointer keeps him out.  Forgetaboutit.

 

 

Blue Demons Travel to Indy to Take on Bulldogs

Blue Demons Look To Snap 5 game Losing Streak in Hinkle Fieldhouse

After finally ending an eleven game losing streak to Butler in January, DePaul tries to snap a 5 game losing streak at Hinkle Fieldhouse.  The last victory was a memorable on in January of 2014.

DePaul and Butler met up in Hinkle Fieldhouse for the first time as Big East opponents.  For the first 30 minutes of the game, the Bulldogs had the game in hand, building a 12 point lead with 10 to go.  At that point, the Blue Demons mounted a furious attack lead by Cleveland Melvin, Brandon Young, and Freshman, Billy Garrett Jr.  When regulation was over, the Demons found themselves tied with Butler.  After 28 points combined were scored in Overtime, DePaul and the Bulldogs remained tied.  Finally, after 2 Overtimes, the Blue Demons won an epic game 99-94.

Cleveland Melvin Eyes a Rebound in Last DePaul Victory against Butler.  Melvin had 30 points in the Double Overtime victory.

DePaul is coming off being swept by Xavier in a game that was there for the taking.  After being down by double digits for most of the first half, the Blue Demons went on a 10-0 run between the end of the 1st half and the beginning of the 2nd half, cutting the lead to 3.  With multiple changes to get to less than 3 or keep it within 5, DePaul’s offense stalled at 52-48, and did not score for over 5 minutes (9 possessions), allowing Xavier to get up by 14.  From that juncture on, the game was out of reach.

 

The Setup

DePaul takes on Butler Saturday, February 29th at 5:30 Central at Hinkle Fieldhouse in Indianapolis, Indiana.

The game will be on FS1, Channel 237 on Comcast, and on Radio 670AM.

Continue reading “Blue Demons Travel to Indy to Take on Bulldogs”

DePaul Travels to Cincinnati to Fight the X-Men

Coming off a long awaited win against Georgetown, DePaul travels to Cincinnati to seek revenge against the Xavier Musketeers.  On February 4th, the Musketeers lost their minds and made eight first half 3 pointers, including 7 of their first 10 shots, roaring to a 19 point lead.  Funny enough, the X-Men then went 1-15 from 3 the rest of the game.  The Blue Demons put up a pathetic 16 points in the first half for their worst offensive showing of the year.  The Demons went the final 8:22 of the first half without scoring a single, damn point.

A late rally, and I mean really, really late, made the final score a respectable 8 point loss.  DePaul scored 23 points in the last 4:15 seconds of the 2nd half, totaling seven more than they scored in the entire first half.

Continue reading “DePaul Travels to Cincinnati to Fight the X-Men”

DePaul Hosts The Hoyas

Will The Blue Demons Ever Win Again?

The DePaul Blue Demons are back at the Wintrust to take on long time opponent, Georgetown.  This is the 40th time that these clubs have played since 1950.  The two squads have split in each of the past 3 seasons.  In the last meeting, DePaul Lost to a short-handed Hoyas team that clinched victory when walk-on George Muresan hit two clutch free-throws to put the game out of reach.  It was a familiar defeat in that the Blue Demons found a way to lose.  Since that game, DePaul has been blown out of the gym by Creighton and Villanova.

Georgetown enters the game with a 5-8 record in conference.  The depleted bunch upset Butler at Hinkle Fieldhouse after the DePaul game and let a half-time lead slip away against Providence at home.

Continue reading “DePaul Hosts The Hoyas”

DePaul Host Villanova Hoping to End 19 Game Losing Streak to Wildcats

Also Looking to Snap 7 Game Losing Streak In Conference

Coming off of an abomination of a game at Creighton that embarrassed all alumni, made St. Vincent DePaul roll over in his grave and question all of the good he did in the world, and showed the ineptitude of the coaching staff, along with the lack of pride shown by the players, DePaul hosts Villanova.

This writer called the 1st meeting, the Pennsylvania Screw Job: DePaul Loses in Overtime at Villanova.  In that game,  DePaul came back from eleven down with 2:10 to go to tie the game and force overtime.  In overtime, the referees gifted 8 free-throws to Villanova, the first 4 were on ‘fouls’ that should have been called on Colin Gillespie.  The game was marred by a huge free-throw discrepancy, which has been the norm in Big East play for DePaul.  In the end, DePaul lost by 4, because they had to foul at the very end and hope for a miss.

Where are we today?  Unfortunately, the Blue Demons have been going streaking, not to the quad, not anywhere fun, but to the bottom of the Big East standings.  This is the longest losing streak for DePaul since 2017, which really isn’t that long ago.

To the Bottom of the Big East Conference

Continue reading “DePaul Host Villanova Hoping to End 19 Game Losing Streak to Wildcats”

Blue Demons Try to End 11 Game Losing Streak to Creighton

DePaul tries to end an eleven game losing streak to the Creighton Bluejays.  When the Blue Demons last played the Bluejays, the team and fan base were coming off of the great Butler win.  All were hoping that it would be the start of something new.  But no, Creighton snuffed out all hope of a quick turnaround  by shooting 40% from 3pt land, while DePaul shot 18%.  In the end, it was the most lopsided defeat of the season.

Continue reading “Blue Demons Try to End 11 Game Losing Streak to Creighton”