5 years ago today.......

[patrick_o'brian]

5 years ago today many of us were at Renaissance Coliseum attending a press conference to see new AD Chris Reynolds introduce Brian Wardle as the new Bradley Basketball head coach. So many of us were fed up with the program and could not wait for change. Reflecting 5 years to the day, I’m certain none of us would have believed that we would be coming off back to back MVC tournament championships in just 5 years. However, here we are! So grateful to Chris Reynolds for making this selection. Even more grateful for the hard work and passion of Coach Wardle and his staff. Also, to the high character ball players that he has brought to us fans to cheer for. We are truly blessed to be Bradley Basketball fans. 5 years ago there weren’t many of us fans left. You could buy an $8 ticket and sit wherever you wanted. However, now Coach Wardle, his staff, Dr. Reynolds, and these players have reunited the Red Sea!!! BU is back and SO ARE WE! Go Braves!!

 

[Tommy]

Well said, Patrick. And kudos to the board of directors for finding the right Pres and AD. Without them, there is no BW. Everyone makes mistakes, but not everyone learns from them. Glad the BU board made a correction.

 

[Da Coach]

 

[Dub]

Reflecting on that... that is an insanely short timeframe to achieve that level of turnaround. And it wasn’t always pretty... there was a lot of losing along the way frankly. What stands out is that our staff and players have embraced a culture of hard work and relentlessly learning from those losses.

 

[PhiAlphaBoy]

Reflecting on that... that is an insanely short timeframe to achieve that level of turnaround. And it wasn’t always pretty... there was a lot of losing along the way frankly. What stands out is that our staff and players have embraced a culture of hard work and relentlessly learning from those losses.

Jim Les took us to the Sweet 16 in year 4 and NIT in year 5... Just sayin'

 

[Dub]

Jim Les took us to the Sweet 16 in year 4 and NIT in year 5... Just sayin'

I love Jim Les. I absolutely loved Jim as our coach. Loved him.
When Bradley defeated Pitt and Jim pointed up to the Bradley crowd in celebration, he cemented himself as a Bradley hero of legendary proportions.

There is reason to believe Brian may have an even higher ceiling as a Bradley coach. I hope he does.
With the 2 MVC tournament championships (in a freaking row!) under his belt, I credit Brian with an accomplishment that matches what Hall-of-Famer Jim Les did.

That's just my opinion. And perhaps we are better poised this time to sustain success. Wouldn't that be nice!

What Brian has done takes nothing from Jim Les, you are totally correct. They both rock in my book.