Bob Hurley Sr is one of the true HS basketball coaching legends.He coached at Jersey City St Anthony's High School in Jersey City, New Jersey.... You can literally stand next to the school and look across the Hudson River to the Freedom Tower and Empire State Building in Manhattan. Well the storied basketball program has come to an end, as the school has just announced its closing....
People talk about all the stars that came through there over the years, including Hurley's sons Bobby and Danny, Roderick Rhodes, Roshown McLeod, Kyle Anderson, Terry Dehere and Jerry Walker... Minnesota Twins fans probably remember drafting baseball pitcher Willie Banks, who was supposed to be the next Doc Gooden but never quite worked out that way. He was a St Anthonys grad.... David Rivers, pg at Notre Dame in the '80s, was probably the first great basketball player to come out of that HS..
The school has struggled financially for years and I am guessing that Hurley,, and most of the rest of the staff, probably didnt get any compensation from the school as a stipend..VERY VERY POOR AREA.. The school building itself is not much when you look at it but lots of HS memories on that basketball court. It is sad because, next to Detroit Southwestern for me, this is one of the biggest historically great big city high schools with great programs that has been closed in my lifetime......Lots of memories for Hurley, I am sure.
People may not realize but there are far far more St Anthony's kids that played at smaller colleges.. Many of them had their lives turned around as a result of Hurley in their lives... My guess is those will be just as big, if not bigger, in Hurley's mind than all the great championship teams... Money, or lack thereof, always wins out in these circumstances but this is a truly sad day for those who are nostalgic with the best HS programs in the nation.
People talk about all the stars that came through there over the years, including Hurley's sons Bobby and Danny, Roderick Rhodes, Roshown McLeod, Kyle Anderson, Terry Dehere and Jerry Walker... Minnesota Twins fans probably remember drafting baseball pitcher Willie Banks, who was supposed to be the next Doc Gooden but never quite worked out that way. He was a St Anthonys grad.... David Rivers, pg at Notre Dame in the '80s, was probably the first great basketball player to come out of that HS..
The school has struggled financially for years and I am guessing that Hurley,, and most of the rest of the staff, probably didnt get any compensation from the school as a stipend..VERY VERY POOR AREA.. The school building itself is not much when you look at it but lots of HS memories on that basketball court. It is sad because, next to Detroit Southwestern for me, this is one of the biggest historically great big city high schools with great programs that has been closed in my lifetime......Lots of memories for Hurley, I am sure.
People may not realize but there are far far more St Anthony's kids that played at smaller colleges.. Many of them had their lives turned around as a result of Hurley in their lives... My guess is those will be just as big, if not bigger, in Hurley's mind than all the great championship teams... Money, or lack thereof, always wins out in these circumstances but this is a truly sad day for those who are nostalgic with the best HS programs in the nation.
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