A former BIG EAST Power is on its way back........the JOHNNIES....ST. JOHN'S RED STORM aka REDMAN are back

Ex- ST. JOHN'S Red Storm Head Coach NORM ROBERTS couldn't quite get the JOHNNIES back going the way they used to be back in the DAY.

Once called the St. JOHN'S REDMAN and coached by the SWEATER-Wearing Legend LOU CARNESECCA, the REDMAN were a national power as well as a BIG EAST Power with the likes of SYRACUSE, GEORGETOWN , and VILLANOVA.

Coaches and Players that use to call ST. JOHN'S home were mainly from the NEW YORK Area like:

MARK "ACTION" JACKSON
CHRIS MULLIN
BILL WENNINGTON
WALTER BERRY
SHELTON " THE HORROR" JONES from AMITYVILLE NY
WILLIE GLASS related to UNC Alum "BIG GAME" JAMES WORTHY
DICK MCGUIRE
MIKE JARVIS
MALIK SEALY
RON ARTEST
FELIPE LOPEZ
ERICK BARKELY
LAVOR POSTEL
MARCUS HATTEN
ZENDON HAMILTON
ROBERT WERDANN

.................just to name a few and some of the best College COACHES EVER TO MAN A SIDELINE coached the JOHNNIES

Now enter the most important hiring the JOHNNIES have done in about 5-10 years in New HEAD COACH Steve Lavin.

Lavin, a former PURDUE assistant under the great GENE KEADY, was an assistant for the BRUINS for 6 seasons before becoming the head coach of the BRUINS from 1996-2003, and did a well of a job recruiting and coaching in one of the top jobs in AMERICA the BLUEDUDE thinks.

Now LAVIN has hit the ground running and the RED STORM will haul in one of their best recruiting classes in years for the class of 2011..including 6 top 100 kids.......Check this list:

SF JAKARR SIMPSON BREWSTER ACADEMY NH TOP 100
SF MAURICE HARKLESS SOUTH KENT SCHOOL CT TOP 100
SF DOM PAINTER QUALITY EDUCATION ACADEMY NC TOP 100
SG D'ANGELO HARRISON JOHN FOSTER DULLES HIGH TX TOP 100
SF AMIR GARRETT FINDLAY COLLEGE PREP NV TOP 100
PF NORVELL PELLE PRICE HS CA TOP 100
PF DWIGHT MIEKLE QUALITY EDUCATION ACADEMY NC
SG NURIDEEN LINDSAY REDLANDS COMMUNITY COLLEGE OK JUNIOR COLLEGE

One thing LAVIN will bring to the RED STORM PROGRAM........STABILITY and RECRUITING....he was one of the best at UCLA when he was employed with the BRUINS and is a tireless worker........GOOD LUCK RED STORM .........the future looks bright under the LAVIN REGIME

***NOTE former PURDUE HEAD COACH and LEGEND among the college Basketball ranks GENE KEADY is special assistant to Coach LAVIN and his staff .....a HUGE PLUS from a Building a Top Program Perspective.