Hank Raymonds

Hanks Raymonds, coach of the Marquette Warriors, passed away this morning.

He was beloved by his colleagues, his players, and the Marquette community.

The following story ran in the October 2010 issue of Marquette Magazine.

More than 33 years after he coached a game and nearly a decade since his death, Al McGuire is still remembered as a charismatic showman, still regarded as the face of Marquette basketball.

Hank Raymonds remains the program's soul.

That truth became abundantly clear this past summer, when dozens of ex-Warriors and Golden Eagles reached out to their former coach upon learning that Raymonds, 86, is battling cancer.

Hank Raymonds spent 26 years in athletics at Marquette, the first three as an assistant to Coach Eddie Hickey. Then came a heady 13-year run as McGuire's indispensable right-hand man, followed by another 10 as his successor as head coach and athletic director. The university presented Raymonds with a $10,000 check at his retirement, but he returned it, insisting the money be used to start a scholarship fund for non-revenue sports.

Yes, Raymonds officially retired in 1987, but in truth he never left. He has remained a courtside presence at men's basketball games and a supportive regular at women's basketball games, at soccer games, at volleyball games — anywhere the Golden Eagles compete.

"Marquette was his life," says Rick Majerus, a longtime associate and eventual successor who is now coach at St. Louis University.

Majerus considers Raymonds a friend and mentor, and he's hardly alone. Raymonds has been a wise, reassuring father figure to hundreds of Marquette student-athletes over the years and a favorite instructor to just as many ordinary students.

...Raymonds always insisted that Marquette players use basketball as a means to an end. Life goes on after the cheering stops, he told them, so get an education and be ready for it. In recruiting, Raymonds promoted Marquette as a lifelong experience, not just a four-season basketball interlude. That approach made the difference in landing Chicago prep star Bo Ellis, a four-year starter and future pro who played on two Final Four teams and was co-captain of the 1977 NCAA champions.

"When Coach Raymonds was recruiting me, my mother trusted him," Ellis remembers. "He promised her he'd look after me if I came to Marquette, and he did. Every ballplayer has a memory of Hank standing in the middle of the gym on the day we registered for classes. He knew what everybody was taking and where we had to go to sign up for it. I never would have received a degree from Marquette if it hadn't been for Coach Raymonds. I don't know if there's ever been anyone who cared more about his players."

Raymonds' care and concern did not expire with a player's eligibility. He maintained strong relationships with Marquette athletes after they moved on.

"Most coaches will do things for you while you're playing," says Michael Wilson, Sp '82, a four-year starter at guard under Raymonds who today lives in Atlanta and is a manager with a shipping company. "But how many keep in touch and stay involved with you long after you're done? Coach Raymonds and I talked almost every week. Whenever I went to him for career advice or any sort of decision, he was there for me. His wife, too."

...Perhaps the most appropriate tribute to a good man's legacy comes from Robert Byrd, Arts '80, who was a freshman reserve on the NCAA title team and a three-year starter under Raymonds. The "life after basketball" message took with Byrd, as did the example of putting kids first. Byrd opened Bridging the Gap, which is currently in use as a community center for kids just off the Marquette campus and will soon feature a computer lab/reading room known as the Hank Raymonds Educational Center.

"I'm just doing what I was taught to do," Byrd says. "It's a thrill for me to open the learning center in Coach's honor to let people know about this man. The strongest part of our relationship was beyond the athletic arena. With the glamorization of the game, today's athletes don't have many men like Hank Raymonds around, and that's unfortunate. I'm a better person for having him in my life."

Rest in Peace.