Hall of Fame
Thomas W. Cooney ’64 – Class of 1992
Genuine…
There’s no need for buttons because the hands are thrust deep in the pockets of the coat. The pace is rapid though the body seems to slouch; clearly there’s important work to do. The eyes are down…
This is a coach who once told a reporter he’d rather play the home for the blind than one of the scheduled opponents in the event his Division II team made the finals of the Carrier Classic.
The sweat pants and shirt don’t come close to matching. But now the body is coiled with energy; the eyes intent on the action. A stream of personalized exhortations flow as he cajoles his charges to make the most of practice…
This is a basketball player who never mentions his own talent. Yet, he might well be the finest of his decade, and was chosen as Le Moyne’s Athlete of the Year in 1964, leading the team to a conference title and NCAA berth.
It’s hard to tell whether the recruit is more nervous than the potential coach as the Le Moyne representative’s eyes take in the family. Yet soon everyone knows beyond doubt that this man is sincere; that in a green and gold uniform the young person can find a way to grow on and off the court…
This is a man of letters, capable of blending words in a fashion that illuminates a page, who chooses to pursue conversations with the simplest terms, and is likely to punctuate them with “shucks.”
For most of three decades he has been a fixture on the Le Moyne College campus as a player, coach of both men’s and women’s basketball and sports information director. Yet his self-effacing manner belies his quick intelligence, keen wit and strongly-held convictions.
As a player, coach, husband, father and friend, he has touched as many Le Moyne people as any other individual. And uniformly, they are better for the experience.
He has shown us that we need not fear being ourselves in everything we do, and therefore, Thomas W. Cooney ’64 is inducted to the Le Moyne College Athletic Hall of Fame.
February 8, 1992
