Dear Mr. Monasch,
I wrote you earlier in the season after the horrible lost to West Virginia behind 3 NYC freshmen and explained to you how disheartened with the program I was then. I am writing to you now to tell you that while the end of the season did bring me some enjoyment, nothing has changed: We need a new coach. It is nice to see that the team has improved and that we are capable of now beating the bottom half of the Big East at a 66% clip - at least in the last few games of the season. I was at our first victory against Georgetown and I have not had so much fun at a game since 2 years ago when Larry Wright - Oakland's Larry Wright - hit a game winning jump shot as a freshman against Notre Dame. All of this said, the loss to Marquette and our consistent losses to the top half of the Big East in largely disgusting performances resulting in double digit defeats show that nothing has changed. Coach Roberts has been given 5 years to turn this once-proud program around, and we are not even going to make the NIT. I know a smart, talented Athletic Director like yourself would never attempt to insult the intelligence of the fans by accepting an invitation to the CBI or another low-level postseason tournament and try to spin that as progress. It is an embarassment we would even have to resort to playing in that kind of postseason tournament - a tournament for teams who are not even in the top 100 in the country!
I understand we bring back Anthony Mason Jr. next year. I understand that "sophomores become juniors" and undoubtedly our team will be better next year and may even contend for a real postseason berth. But do not be fooled - anything they achieve will be in spite of Norm Roberts' coaching deficiencies and because of the players' great attitudes and hard work they put in during the summer and during the season. The players represent this school as much as the coach does. As the Athletic Director of St. John's University, it is your duty to give the men's basketball players a real chance of winning, and maybe even making a career out of basketball either in the NBA or abroad. This kind of improvement can only be achieved by hiring a new coach. The new coach should have a history of winning at Division One, but at the very least, have a history of winning at some collegiate level - unlike our own Coach Roberts who failed at Queens College just like he has failed in 5 years here.
I trust and expect that you and Father Harrington will appropriately analyze and handle the situation and come to the only conclusion that you owe the fans, and most of all, the players, a new, proven coach to coach the men's basketball team. Norm Roberts was a great ambassador to this University, but in five years he has proven he simply cannot be the great coach St. John's is looking for. Do not buy into the fool's gold and promises of young Mr. Stephenson - who should not have to bear the burden of carrying the team to glory and bear the burden of saving Coach Roberts' job. Do not buy into the fool's gold of the CBI or another lower ranked postseason tournament. Just look at the facts, look at how we've competed against the top half of the Big East, and look at Coach Roberts' body of work in the past 5 years. I trust the facts will speak for themselves.
Thank you for your time and consideration.
Sincerely,
Brian Smith
St. John's University School of Law '08
Duke University '05