Day 41: Pete Murphy
Coach Garrett, in saner times, with the zany John Matuszak in 1974
No discussion of the kickers and punters in Columbia history can be complete without a mention of the ill-fated Pete Murphy '86 who had the misfortune of being singled out by an angry coach on a tough day in front of the cameras and tape recorders.
Murphy came to Columbia in 1982 from the nearby Little Neck section of Queens and St. Francis Prep. He had dreams of playing quarterback for the Lions and he did get a decent shot his junior year of 1984 when he completed 41 of 79 passes with a TD and one interception. He was also considered a decent scrambler.
But it was his punting talents that stood out even more, and he became the Lions regular punter by his sophomore year. By his junior year, he was Honorable Mention All Ivy with a 35.7 per kick average.
Then came new Head Coach Jim Garrett and the 1985 season opener against Harvard. Columbia blew a 17-0 lead in that game and lost 49-17, sending Garrett into the infamous postgame tirade during which he accused his players of being like "drug-addicted losers."
For some reason, even though Murphy had punted relatively well that day, Garrett went on to single him out for a poor performance. It was unfair and uncalled for and Garrett has yet to live it down.
Murphy quit the team after the incident, and it seems to prove that kicking at any level of football is laden with added pressures that just don't seem fair.
posted by Jake @ 11:03:00 PM
4 comments
4 Comments:
I worked at Columbia when this story broke, about Coach Garrett and his post game tirade. I'm sorry - but I can't forget or forgive this guy, even when I see his sons who have enjoyed some football fame beyond the Ivy League.
I think it ranks up there with Bryant slugging an opposing player tearing down the sidelines - while, his actions did not amount to a physical assault, to have a coach denigrate his own players like that, and single out one particular player? It also seems a shame - in that his sons were pretty good ball players - and he obviously had some coaching talent, but boy, did he implode or what? It also seems ridiculous to call down a punter of all people - the most fickle position in football? What would he have said about Scott Norwood of Buffalo v. Giants fame - "wide left" ...
thanks goodness for Coach Wilson - he seems to embody good coaching skills with a touch of humanity!
regards
Lion Fan
Jake,
How about an update on Pete Murphy, showing how he overcame the "ill-fated" tag you laid on him? He was right to quit (his punting average that day was 38.5), as any player with good sense and feelings should have done. Garrett just blew it big-time.
Garrett's hiring was for all the wrong reasons. His son John was a good receiver, but his brother was an excellent freshman QB, and the third brother was a terrific HS running back. So somebody decided that we should hire the father to get all three sons. And as for the ill fated 49 to 17 game, as soon as that 17 point lead started to evaporate Garrett started losing it; if the kids weren't so uptight from his tirades I'm not saying we would have won, but it would not have turned into a blow-out. PS, Al Paul used to have to attend practice the rest of the year to monitor Garrett.
I'd love to find out Pete Murphy's current whereabouts. If anyone has that info, and it's okay with Pete to talk about what he's doing today, I'd love to add that postscript.
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