And with a bit of a laugh, he then recounted a story from when he was negotiating his initial five-year deal with the school.
“As we were putting together my contract, I was talking with Dan Sadlier and when he asked what I wanted, I said, ‘I want four tickets for life to the men’s and women’s basketball games.’
“Dan smiled and we went on with what was an enjoyable conversation. But when they brought the contract back, I looked at it and said, ‘Wait, where’s the clause about the tickets?’
“He said, ‘I thought you were kidding.’
“I said, ‘No, I’m serious.’
“And that’s when he grinned and said, ‘Well, in that case, I’m only gonna give you two. ... You have to stay 10 years to get four.’ ”
Well, Curran’s now been here nine and last year the university extended his contract through June of 2015.
And while he’s certainly proven himself as a dynamic leader of the school — during his tenure UD has earned recognition as a top-tier national research university, has doubled the size of its campus and has seen enrollment set records and become more diverse — he’s also shown himself to be a true basketball fan.
I spoke to him by phone last week from the Dallas-Fort Worth Airport, where he was waiting to board a flight to Honolulu. He was making a quick trip to Chaminade University — the Marianist school where he’s on the board — at the end of what had been almost a month of fund raising on the road.
The afternoon we talked, the Flyers were playing in Charlotte in a few hours and he was trying to figure out if — while flying — he was somehow going to be able to watch the game or at least get updates, via his computer.
“One way or another I try not to miss any games,” he said. “On the road, I’ve watched two of them with alumni groups — one in Hilton Head, one in Tampa.”
In Hilton Head he said he spent a couple of hours with Libby Blackburn, the widow of legendary Flyers coach Tom Blackburn:
“She told me stories about going to the Garden (Madison Square Garden) for games and how she and the coach would go out to dinner with the writers. She said, ‘I may have been the first PR person for the University of Dayton.’ ”
As he recounted their chat, you could sense his delight and it was obvious that he appreciates UD’s past even while much of his time is spent guiding the school toward the future.
And Flyers basketball plays a part in that.
“The thing from Dayton that’s seen more on national TV than anything else in the city is the UD Arena floor,” he said. “From generation to generation, Dayton Flyers basketball has carried the name of the university — the name of the entire city — forward. It was important then and it is now.”
Fan in the stands
Growing up in Philadelphia, Curran was caught up in the fervor of Big 5 basketball and talked about going to the Palestra to see doubleheaders
After receiving his undergrad degree at Saint Joseph’s, his masters at Temple and earning a Ph.D. from Delaware, Dr. Curran returned to Saint Joe’s and spent 23 years in various administrative and faculty positions.
“In the mid-’80s I was the academic advisor to both the men’s and women’s basketball teams there,” he said. “One year I was even listed as an assistant coach.”
During that time, he became good friends with both Phil Martelli — now the Hawks head coach, but back then an assistant — and Jim Foster, the women’s coach who now coaches Ohio State’s women.
Before he became UD’s first lay president, Curran said he’d seen games at the Arena when visiting friends who teach at UD. Now he said he’d go to UD games even if he weren’t the school president — but, because of his position, game nights come with responsibilities.
Beforehand and at halftime he’s pressing flesh, making business connections — or as he put it “when the ball’s not bouncing, I am bouncing around,” — but by the opening tip he hopes to be settled into his mid-court seat seven rows up from the floor.
One pregame routine he relishes is being in the hallway to acknowledge the team as it heads to the floor. And afterward he often stops by the dressing room to talk to players and coaches.
“I’m more casual at the women’s games,” he said. “There you’re more apt to find me in the corner, wearing jeans and being a fan.
“But the time I can really relax is during the week when I stop by practice. I know the etiquette. I don’t bother Brian (Gregory) or the players, but I’ll sit with Bucky (Bockhorn) and we’ll talk and I’ll see what we’re doing. I really enjoy that.”
Game plan
Just as he hears plenty of praise about Flyers athletes and the program, he’s heard some griping by those who think the team has not performed well enough this year.
“Everyone wants us to be in the NCAA tournament, but the reality of it is we’re in a tough situation,” he said. “There are something like 4 to 8 at-large spots for mid-major teams. Certainly everyone has high expectations and when you lose ... people get frustrated.”
While he understands that, he doesn’t like it when people target the players or Gregory:
“I think Brian is doing a doing a great job. And it makes me laugh when I hear people say he’s not an X and O guy. Look at his big wins in the Arena — Pitt, for example — or last year’s NIT run.
“There is always going to be debate, but fans need to look at everything: The quality of the kids Brian brings in, the way they represent the university, graduation rates. And they do perform.
“Brian is averaging 20 wins a season, he’s building the program and that’s what we want. That’s why basketball gets the resources it does ... and why we’re also always looking at what we need to do next.”
Curran talked about a Men’s Fitness article he said called UD Arena “the No. 1 place to see a game” and admitted with him Flyers’ games have become a family affair.
His youngest son Aidan is a UD student and does some video work at the games. His oldest boy, Sean, goes to Dartmouth, where Curran said, “he almost exclusively wears Dayton stuff.”
His wife, Claire M. Renzetti, took a job last summer at the University of Kentucky, where she teaches sociology and was named to an endowed chair of Studies on Violence Against Women. After weekdays at UK, she returns to Dayton — and UD games — on weekends.
“When I’m down there and (UK fans) bring up basketball, I remind them the last time we played, we beat them,” Curran said with a laugh. “And if it’s a Louisville fan, I can say, ‘We beat you the last three times we played.’ ”
Conversations like that show he’s earned his stripes among the Flyer Faithful.
And that explains something else:
He now has six tickets to every UD game.
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