Missed Milwaukeean:

Al McGuire

Al McGuire may have been New York born and bred, but boy did he make an impact in Milwaukee. McGuire, who died of acute leukemia in January 2001, led Marquette to its only NCAA Championship in 1977. In 13 years as coach at Marquette (295-80), McGuire was known for his

ability to motivate and get the best out of his players.

“He had the unique ability to make you feel as if you were the most important person around,” Marquette men’s basketball coach Tom Crean says. “He had a mind that allowed him to read every situation at the drop of a hat. He understood how to get the most out of people.”

After his coaching career was completed, McGuire enjoyed a successful broadcasting career, highlighted by his famous “holy mackerel” call when Georgia Tech beat USC at the buzzer in a 1992 NCAA Tournament game at the Bradley Center.

McGuire’s legacy lives on with Al’s Memorial Run & Walk, which McGuire started to raise money for Children’s Hospital of Wisconsin and fund medical care, research and education. In addition, Marquette’s

state-of-the-art training facility is called the Al McGuire Center.

“He’d be ecstatic and proud with the way it was laid out,” Crean says.