Tom Pecora came to Fordham to light a spark — and the new head basketball coach is doing just that.
“Before our season starts, one night I’m gonna call [the team] outside behind our offices and I’m gonna take last year’s stats and we’re gonna throw it in a little fire pit and torch it up and say ‘That’s all behind us,’ ” Pecora said. “We’re gonna move forward from this point on and not look back. What’s done is done. We understand what challenges are ahead of us. It’s a process and it’s not gonna happen overnight.”
Pecora is inheriting a team that went 2-26 (0-16 in the Atlantic 10) last season under interim coach Jared Grasso, who took over after Dereck Whittenburg was fired five games into the season. It followed a 3-25, (1-15) season in 2008-09, but Pecora brings a record of success to the Rams.
As head coach at Hofstra, Pecora went 155-126, winning at least 19 games five times and leading the Pride to three NIT appearances.
“For all of the success we had, we were still that school out on Long Island,” Pecora said at the Atlantic 10 Media Day. “That’s not the case with Fordham. The A-10, you can get in the mix with just about anybody. It opens doors immediately.”
With nine underclassmen, Pecora said the team lacks depth and is aware the Rams, who were selected by the league’s head coaches and media members to finish last in the conference, likely will finish with far fewer wins than he’s accustomed to getting.
“There’s gonna be adjustments, but that’s part of the challenge. That’s why I went,” Pecora said. “I also thought it was a good time in my life to change. It’s good to get a new challenge in life. You can’t play scared.”
A native of Queens, Pecora said he hopes to use his lifelong New York ties to draw in the city’s hotbed of talent. His frustration was evident while discussing the flight of the area’s top players and the recent plight of the city’s teams.
“We’ve gotta get New York back. There’s gotta be more loyalty in this city,” Pecora said. “At times, I feel like New York basketball is losing its soul. We’re selling out to everywhere in the country and not taking care of our own backyard.”
Pecora reached the NCAA Tournament twice as an assistant at Hofstra, but in the Colonial Athletic Association, a conference championship was the lone path to the tournament. Now in the A-10, Pecora said he likes the fact that a team can reach the tournament, even if it’s not Cinderella.
Nevertheless, Pecora said he realizes that the invitation might not come for a few years.
“In our business, you are judged by your NCAA appearances,” Pecora said. “That’s what everyone is going to rate you on. I’m not gonna lie to you, that’s something I want to do in my life. I want to coach in that tournament. If I didn’t think we could get it done, there would be no reason for me to make this move.”