George Raveling Appreciation Thread

LawVHawk said:
Enlighten us: how exactly was he "treated like trash" at Iowa?
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Just going to be a tit for tat and a back n forth and would rather not. You think that Raveling thought he simply didn't fit and I disagree. You don't just up and leave that much talent behind and walk away..

I will move on..
 
SwirlinLingerie said:
I remember my dad saying he used to see him quite a bit in Great Midwestern at lunch time. I don't think it was totally a race thing. Raveling wanted to walk around downtown to grab coffee or lunch. He was a single guy in his forties living in Iowa City. He was also one of the five most recognizable people in the state. Not easy to stroll around town or have dinner by yourself or try to meet a woman.

Pretty different experience than for Stringer, who was married and had kids and was instantly part of the community.
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I rented a house that who's backyard connected with the Stringers. Bill was a great guy, quite the dedicated Father...it was really sad when he passed. That's ultimately why Vivian left IC.
 
C Vivian didn't leave on the best terms either, as she sued the clinic in Iowa City that she said caused he husband's death.
 
Interesting thread I ignored for quite some time. I was young during the raveling days so I didn't know much about this stuff in the community. Did he grow up in an urban area, where? Where's he at today?
 
HawkPrdatr40 said:
Just going to be a tit for tat and a back n forth and would rather not. You think that Raveling thought he simply didn't fit and I disagree. You don't just up and leave that much talent behind and walk away..

I will move on..
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I don't doubt that George experienced some things he did not expect and probably shouldn't have experienced in what was then a pretty narrow-minded Iowa City area and immediate environs. I was not with him and did not witness them myself. Was it enough to drive him out of Iowa City? I don't know. I did speak directly with Lute after he left and while he didn't directly refer to the "fishbowl" existence that supposedly drove him and Bobbi from Iowa, he was pretty pleased to be sitting outside next to his pool in pretty mild Tucson weather while the reporter he was speaking with was in an office with snow and below zero temps outside. Suspect George enjoyed the southern California climate much more than he did Iowa's winters as well.
 
Back to the OP, yes, the fact that Raveling managed to get Roy Marble to come to Iowa probably played a significant role in Dev deciding to become a Hawk.
 
hawkeyz10 said:
I don't believe Dev would have come to Iowa if not for Roy Sr. having roots here. My guess is if Roy Sr. had gone to Michigan or Minnesota or anywhere else, Dev would not have any reason to consider Iowa. Remember, Lick is the one was coaching when dev committed to Iowa.
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Yes, I remember Lickliter recruited Devyn.

But I also remember teams like Minnesota, Michigan, and elsewhere didn't offer Devyn.
In fact, Iowa was the only Power 6 school to offer... this is why I posed the question.

Devyn wanted to play in the Big Ten. Iowa was his only Big Ten offer.

So unless RDM wanted to play ball at Dayton, Buffalo, or Providence, I think he was coming to Iowa regardless.

JMO, though.
 
hawkeyz10 said:
If not for George Raveling, Dev Marble would not be wearing a Hawkeye jersey today. Thank you, George!!! You continue to make a positive difference on our basketball program. I hope you are still rocking your sweat suit on the sidelines.
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????
 
There are a lot of reasons a coach leaves a program. Here's my opinion on why they left.

Ralph Miller: Left because the job opened up in Oregon State. Wanted that job. Nothing against Iowa, just wanted a different opportunity.
Lute Olson: Left because Iowa was a fishbowl. Only gig in the state, magnifying glass on everything he did. Too much stress and attention by the locals.
George Raveling: Bottom line is Raveling left for the west coast because he didn't want to be at Iowa anymore. Like Olson, there was a magnifying glass on him (an even bigger one considering he was a black man in a predominately white community), it wasn't a good fit for him personally. He was also very used to the west coast.
Mr. Davis: Left because Bob Bowlsby is an idiot.
Steve Alford: Left to coach at a mid-major because he was on the hot seat and was worried that he wasn't going to get the resources to back his program.
Todd Lickliter: Left because he oversaw the worst three year period in the history of Iowa Basketball.
 
storminspank said:
Yes, I remember Lickliter recruited Devyn.

But I also remember teams like Minnesota, Michigan, and elsewhere didn't offer Devyn.
In fact, Iowa was the only Power 6 school to offer... this is why I posed the question.

Devyn wanted to play in the Big Ten. Iowa was his only Big Ten offer.

So unless RDM wanted to play ball at Dayton, Buffalo, or Providence, I think he was coming to Iowa regardless.

JMO, though.
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I agree with this, he wasn't a highly sought kid. He had a nice high school career at Lathrup and played on the "The Family" AAU program that was loaded at the time. There were 20 kids that he played with that went on to have D1 scholarships, some going to places like Syracuse. Marble was an afterthought in many people's eyes, Michigan was the only other school the Devyn really had interest in and no offer came. This is one of the few things Lickliter got right, I read a lot of articles where Marble talked about the role that the Iowa coaches saw him best fit for and it isn't the same one that the current staff has had so far. Iowa's past staff was looking at him solely to play PG like Jake Kelly and his high school coach moved him to PG his Sr. year and all his numbers improved.

I am with Spank on this one, unless he wanted to play at a mid-major, he was going to Iowa and to me in all that I have read, it had nothing to do with his dad. He has made his dad proud by wearing the Iowa uniform, but I think Roy would be proud watching his son play ball no matter where he landed, it is just a little sweeter that he is doing it at Iowa.
 
storminspank said:
There are a lot of reasons a coach leaves a program. Here's my opinion on why they left.

Ralph Miller: Left because the job opened up in Oregon State. Wanted that job. Nothing against Iowa, just wanted a different opportunity.
Lute Olson: Left because Iowa was a fishbowl. Only gig in the state, magnifying glass on everything he did. Too much stress and attention by the locals.
George Raveling: Bottom line is Raveling left for the west coast because he didn't want to be at Iowa anymore. Like Olson, there was a magnifying glass on him (an even bigger one considering he was a black man in a predominately white community), it wasn't a good fit for him personally. He was also very used to the west coast.
Mr. Davis: Left because Bob Bowlsby is an idiot.
Steve Alford: Left to coach at a mid-major because he was on the hot seat and was worried that he wasn't going to get the resources to back his program.
Todd Lickliter: Left because he oversaw the worst three year period in the history of Iowa Basketball.
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This is probably the biggest reason, although George would probably never say it. Look, growing up in Iowa and now living in Michigan, racial issues and views are night and day. In the mid 80's, he probably had a bigger microscope on him than any of us will really know or understand.
 
SwirlinLingerie said:
I remember my dad saying he used to see him quite a bit in Great Midwestern at lunch time. I don't think it was totally a race thing. Raveling wanted to walk around downtown to grab coffee or lunch. He was a single guy in his forties living in Iowa City. He was also one of the five most recognizable people in the state. Not easy to stroll around town or have dinner by yourself or try to meet a woman.

Pretty different experience than for Stringer, who was married and had kids and was instantly part of the community.
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This. I saw him come out of Stephens (a clothing shop) in Old Capitol Center. He was carrying new clothes (I assume suit or jacket) on hanger in one of those suit/jacket bags. Instant "coverage" from all directions.

As much as he needed "certain environment", he probably also needed some anonymity or privacy. I can't imagine living like that.

We went to Nashville for a conference two weeks ago. I was wearing a Hawkeye shirt and ran into several people and struck up conversations, which started to annoy my wife (understandably, since I tend to recount everything Hawkeye from 1975 onward when I run into other Hawk fans or Iowa residents). But at least that was "fun" for me, and it doesn't happen often. But for a single guy, in his forties, 6'8" or so, and the coach besides, in Iowa City?

No, not much privacy or relaxation for someone in that situation.
 
storminspank said:
There are a lot of reasons a coach leaves a program. Here's my opinion on why they left.

Ralph Miller: Left because the job opened up in Oregon State. Wanted that job. Nothing against Iowa, just wanted a different opportunity.
Lute Olson: Left because Iowa was a fishbowl. Only gig in the state, magnifying glass on everything he did. Too much stress and attention by the locals.
George Raveling: Bottom line is Raveling left for the west coast because he didn't want to be at Iowa anymore. Like Olson, there was a magnifying glass on him (an even bigger one considering he was a black man in a predominately white community), it wasn't a good fit for him personally. He was also very used to the west coast.
Mr. Davis: Left because Bob Bowlsby is an idiot.
Steve Alford: Left to coach at a mid-major because he was on the hot seat and was worried that he wasn't going to get the resources to back his program.
Todd Lickliter: Left because he oversaw the worst three year period in the history of Iowa Basketball.
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Lute was also under a bit of fire. Post 1980-Final Four, we had 1981, where we got bounced by Wichita State after missing a go-ahead basket, fouling with almost no time left, AND calling a TO when we had no TOs left. Four straight WSU FTs later, we were out, unceremoniously, in the first round. Note that in that particular season, we also lost a Big Ten conference title in the final two regular season games. That particular weekend also top-ranked DePaul lost to St. Joe's at the buzzer, with Mark Aguirre off to the NBA a year early, and defending champ Louisville lose on a near-half-court buzzer-beater to Arkansas.

1982 saw us struggle in the first round against NE Louisiana, then lose at the buzzer to Idaho. A conference-ending loss, with controversial foul call (hence, the Iowa "love" for Jim Bain), didn't add any "fun".

1983 was also a some-thought-too-early exit to Villanova in the second or third round.

Lute was starting to get press conference "heat" after a loss to NW, and some other losses to teams we "always beat".

In short, while the fishbowl was forming, it wasn't due to overwhelming success.
 
I've had to dig a little to make sure my thoughts and recollection of what happened to these coaches have changed/faded in the 25 some years I have been following Iowa BB (Mr. Davis was the first coach I really paid attn to, the others I only know much about because of friends/people talking about them). My recollection of Olson, Raveling, and MIller is all from what I have heard from other people.

This has proven to be pretty fun. I love hearing from people who followed Iowa Basketball back in the 70s. It's also sparked my interest in looking up old articles.

Here's one I found on Alford, it's actually a pretty good editorial on his departure:
Steve Alford Left Iowa Because New Mexico is a Better Opportunity
 
storminspank said:
I've had to dig a little to make sure my thoughts and recollection of what happened to these coaches have changed/faded in the 25 some years I have been following Iowa BB (Mr. Davis was the first coach I really paid attn to, the others I only know much about because of friends/people talking about them). My recollection of Olson, Raveling, and MIller is all from what I have heard from other people.

This has proven to be pretty fun. I love hearing from people who followed Iowa Basketball back in the 70s. It's also sparked my interest in looking up old articles.

Here's one I found on Alford, it's actually a pretty good editorial on his departure:
Steve Alford Left Iowa Because New Mexico is a Better Opportunity
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Like it or not, Iowa fans are a little quick to "forgive" after a modicum of success. Look at KF. By 2006, people wanted him gone. By 2011, same thing.

When people understand that population base, location, lack of certain things glamorous/environmental/weather/etc., recruiting is tough. Not impossible, but definitely not as easy as Texas or Florida or Ohio or Pennsylvania or California. Outside the state, our closest recruiting "hotbeds" are Chicago/St Louis/KC/Twin Cities. Competition is pretty stiff with just the B1G and ND. When a UNC (b-ball) or USC (f-ball) comes calling to a kid from CR or Des Moines, it's hard to "hate" a kid for taking the bait in certain cases.
 
LawVHawk said:
What a basketball dynasty that could have been created if somehow Raveling had remained as an assistant coach in charge of recruiting and Mr. Davis was HC. Never could have/would have happened but one can always dream, can't they? George simply didn't feel like he fit in Iowa City; too bad.
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His next door neighbor had a key to his house just in case he lost his keys......
 
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