UL Coach (1957-73) Beryl Shipley

[LsuULfan]

_ I joined this site for several reasons, but this was one of the biggest reasons. I've known Coach Ship my entire life and our families are very close. In fact, he attended quite a few of my games growing up and always had solid advice. I obviously have a biased opinion of him and I wasn't around when he was coaching at USL. He gave me a copy of his book and I just recently stopped by his house to get it signed. I plan on starting the book sometime later this week. I've heard bits and pieces about his story, and I'm hoping to learn a lot more through "Slam Dunked". I know he put together some great teams and was just wondering if some of ya'll would share your opinions (both good and bad) of the former coach. Thanks. _

I liked the book a lot. It gets a little repetive or slow in the middle as he addresses all of the charges-so there may be a point where you skip a bit of it-but it was a good read. Have to admit part of it being a good read for me was remembering going to a lot of the games as a kid. My folks knew Coach over the years as well-I grew up on the next block over from his house.

[Turbine]

I enjoyed the book.

After getting reverse jammed the NCAA silence has been golden.


igeaux.mobi

[RaginFan2]

_ I joined this site for several reasons, but this was one of the biggest reasons. I've known Coach Ship my entire life and our families are very close. In fact, he attended quite a few of my games growing up and always had solid advice. I obviously have a biased opinion of him and I wasn't around when he was coaching at USL. He gave me a copy of his book and I just recently stopped by his house to get it signed. I plan on starting the book sometime later this week. I've heard bits and pieces about his story, and I'm hoping to learn a lot more through "Slam Dunked". I know he put together some great teams and was just wondering if some of ya'll would share your opinions (both good and bad) of the former coach. Thanks. _

Coach Shipley was an outstanding coach who was way ahead of his times here in Louisiana. I started at USL in Jan. 1973, the last semester of the Shipley Era (after transferring from LSU). The ball game atmosphere was electric! The team was exciting to watch. I wish we could have that caliber of team again. The book is an uneven read. It has a lot of fascinating parts, but as someone else said, it is slow in some parts and tends to be repetitive. As a Ragin' Cajun fan for over 35 years, I couldn't put it down. The portion of the book devoted to the NCAA charges and the USL responses was generally tedious, but there were some interesting pieces.

It is unbelievable that Shipley is not in the LA State Hall of Fame. That is just wrong. If for no other reason, his breaking the color line should get him in. But his won-loss record is so good that it is ridiculous for him to remain out of the HOF. I hope that is corrected in his lifetime. This book is a must-read for EVERY Ragin' Cajun fan and should be read by all basketball fans in the state. It does NOT paint a very good picture of many people, including the state athletics board (at that time), board of regents (at that time), the USL administrations (at that time), Raymond Blanco, and, most especially, Stanley Galloway.

[Crawfish]

_ I did not remember all of the things that happened to cause him to resign and the book tells the story. I did not necessarily like the book. I thought it was confusing to read and not really well told. Ron Gomez is an accomplished author and I thought something was "holding him back". I can't say I would recommend reading the book. It caused me to wonder about the truth or the twisted truth. OR the reason Coach Ship didn't do something sooner. Maybe it would have been better if it had been longer. I had a lot of unanswered questions. Just my two cents. _

I agree, the book was a tough read. I was not a USL Basketball fan back then, so I was pretty unbiaed when I read the book. After reading the book, I arrived at the opinion that:

a) Yes the university was hosed on the first incident (Black athletes being on private scholly,) especially since the court case ruled in the favor of the players

b) There were some legitimate violations in the second case, but on their own (without the bogus first case) they did not warrant the death penalty.

The cause of the violations in the second case (IMO) was a lack of anyone on staff who was aware of what was allowed.

[bballholic]

Thanks for the input. When I started this thread, I wasn't sure if Coach Ship was going to get dumped on or not about the violations deal. I dont' know much about that situation, but I'm looking forward to learning more through the book. My entire family graduated from LSU, but they raved about going to the Cajun games back in the day when Ship was at the helm.

[rustycameron11]

I have never heard of the book, and this morning (its 10am here) i recieved a package from the states, in it contained his new book signed by Shipley and Gomez, kinda crazy if you ask me. Now i better read it and know what everyone is talking bout

[bballholic]

_ I have never heard of the book, and this morning (its 10am here) i recieved a package from the states, in it contained his new book signed by Shipley and Gomez, kinda crazy if you ask me. Now i better read it and know what everyone is talking bout _

Pretty cool stuff.

[Boomer]

Ron Gomez told me last night that Coach was in really bad shape ---really bad---not too good with the medical terms But losing Charlie and Coach being so sick hurts!!!!

[Turbine]

This is sad news.

Coach Shipley is a man who deserves to be in the State of Louisiana Sports Hall of Fame.

I hope he lives to see that day.

[cajunfan32]

_ This is sad news.

Coach Shipley is a man who deserves to be in the State of Louisiana Sports Hall of Fame.

I hope he lives to see that day. _

I agree he should be in the LSHOF but does he have a shot? doesn't the "paying the players" BS hurt his reputation in the voters' minds?

[CajunRed]

I saw Coach Shipley at a game in the Dome earlier this year. He was with his wife and was connected to a small oxygen tank, so I knew he wasn't in great shape. His eyes lit up a bit, though, when I said..."Hey Coach". I know he still likes to be called that to this day.

[cajunhawk]

After reading "Slam Dunked" I was hoping to get a chance to shake this man's hand and tell him he was THE best college basketball coach this state has ever seen and what they did to him was a crying shame. It's never fun to be the scapegoat. It's even worse to be a scapegoat for something that seems so trivial these days as having black players on your team is now the norm. It's sad that he will never get the recognition and the accolades, but everyone who knows his story, saw him coach (I am too young to hold that distinction), knows the truth behind who and what Beryl Shipley was. And that is, the BEST college basketball coach the state of Louisiana has ever seen.