Portland Basketball: Shake Up in the Administration and Looking Ahead
March 6, 2013; Las Vegas, NV, USA; Portland Pilots guard Kevin Bailey (00) against the Loyola Marymount Lions during the first half of the WCC Basketball Championships at Orleans Arena. Mandatory Credit: Kyle Terada-USA TODAY Sports
For the University of Portland community, a big change is coming this summer. It was announced last fall that current President Fr. Bill Beauchamp would step down as president. Last week it was announced that the new President will be Fr. Mark Poormam. I’m not too familiar with Fr. Poorman but my little sister, who had him for class last semester, sent me this text about him:
“Hey Brother! I personally like Fr. Poorman a lot. He knows the students and their struggles and focuses. I loved his class!”
So there you have it.
But before we focus too much on what Fr. Poorman can bring to the Bluff, I think it’s important to look back at the impact that Fr. Beauchamp has had on the University of Portland and more specifically the impact on the profile of Portland Athletics.
Throughout his tenure, Beauchamp put an emphasis on the athletics. When Fr. Bill took over as president, the amount of support (both financial and administrative) was not on par with similar Universities. Over the Past 9 years, there has been a concerted effort to close the gap and results can clearly be seen.
Just a few milestones that occurred during Fr. Beauchamp’s time on the Bluff:
- 2005 Women’s Soccer NCAA Champions (He was the VP when the Pilots won in 2002)
- Portland has led the nation in Women’s Soccer attendance 9 straight seasons
- The Men’s Cross Country Program is one of four programs that has finished in the top 14 in each of the past seven seasons (The others are Oklahoma State, Northern Arizona, and Wisconsin)
- Additionally the Men’s X-C program is one of four to finish in the top 18 each of the past nine seasons (The others are Oklahoma State, Wisconsin, and Colorado)
- Portland is consistently among the top APR and Graduation Progress Rate Institutions nationally and among peers
Those are just a few non-basketball related achievements. When it comes to Basketball, Portland has been closing the gap that exists between them and top programs in the conference. The advancement can be seen in the resources that has been put into the program. The University, and more specifically Fr. Beauchamp, put a big emphasis on closing that gap.
As a fan of Portland, I just want to thank Fr. Bill for all of his great work and care of the University and Pilot athletics.
Where we came from
Overall Record: (12-9, 4-5) 6th in the WCC standings, 6th in latest West Coast Convo Power Rankings
Last week: 1-1 with a 114-110 Win in 3OT against BYU and a 63-65 Loss to San Diego.
Portland is loving Thrusday’s. They are 4-0 on Thursday nights including this past week’s instant classic 3OT thriller against BYU. Like I said I thought it was over, then BYU came back in regulation; I thought it was over again, then BYU came back in the first OT; I thought it was over again, then Portland came back in the second OT; and then finally it was over. How fun was it to see Bobby Sharp go Gerry McNamera all over BYU. The JC transfer was even trending on Twitter, which is pretty sweet.
The loss…..It wasn’t great. Hopefully Portland can bounce back from that.
Where we are headed
Portland @ San Fransisco Wednesday, Portland @ Santa Clara Saturday
When Portland is at its best, they are playing a well-balanced team game. It’s almost as if when one Pilot struggles, they all struggle (except Kevin Baily usually). Portland will need solid contributions from each position for them to start gaining ground on the upper half of the WCC.
A few thoughts
Hey, if you like what I’m doing, don’t be afraid to share this article with friends, or if you’re my nemesis, and think I’m embarrassing myself, share it with all of your friends and point and laugh. If you want to tweet me, I’m cool with that and will try to tweet back. Seriously any time of the week just send me a little tweet.
Also, if you’re in the Denver area and want to watch a WCC game anytime, you should let me know.