Lou Campanelli

American basketball coach (1938–2023)

Lou CampanelliBiographical details

Born| Elizabeth, New Jersey, US
Coaching career (HC unless noted)
Basketball
1972-1985| James Madison Dukes
1986-1993| California Golden Bears

Louis P. Campanelli (August 10, 1938 – January 31, 2023) was an American basketball coach. He served as head coach at James Madison University from 1972 to 1985 and the University of California, Berkeley from 1986 to 1993.

## Early life

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Campanelli was born on August 10, 1938, in Elizabeth, New Jersey. He graduated from Montclair State University.[1]

## Coaching career

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### James Madison

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Campanelli was head coach at James Madison for 13 years (1972–85) where he guided the Dukes to a record of 238–118 and five NCAA Tournament appearances. His 21-year head coaching record stands at 361–226 (.615).

### California

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Campanelli played a significant role in Pac-10 men's basketball, having served as head basketball coach at California for eight years, from 1985 to 1993. He compiled a record of 123–108 (.532) and led the Bears to post-season play on four occasions. In his first season, he led Cal to the 1986 National Invitation Tournament, the school's first postseason bid kind since 1960. In 1990, he led the Bears to their first NCAA Tournament in 30 years.

Campanelli was abruptly fired on February 8, 1993 with ten games to go in the 1992–93 season. Athletic director Bob Bockrath inadvertently heard Campanelli give profanity-laced lectures to his players following losses to Arizona State and Arizona. Several players, including freshman Jason Kidd, had complained to Bockrath about his abrasive coaching style, but Bockrath said he had no idea how "beaten down" the players had been until then.[2]

### Later career

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After college coaching, Campanelli also coached one year in the Japan Pro League, spent several years as an advance scout for the National Basketball Association's Cleveland Cavaliers and New Jersey Nets, and served as Commissioner of Pac 10 Officiating.[1]

Campenelli coached the junior varsity basketball team at Campolindo High School in Moraga, California, starting as a volunteer assistant.[3]

## Personal life and death

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Campanelli grew up in Springfield, New Jersey. He graduated from Montclair State University, where he also earned his master's degree. He resided in Livermore, California.

Campanelli died on January 31, 2023, at the age of 84.[4]

## Book

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In 2015, Campanelli wrote a book titled Dare to Dream: How James Madison University Became Coed and Shocked the Basketball World, about his dream of becoming a college basketball coach and his accomplishment of growing the all-girl Madison college athletics program into a successful men's NCAA basketball team.

## Head coaching record

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Statistics overview  Season  | Team  | Overall  | Conference  | Standing  | Postseason

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James Madison Dukes (Virginia College Athletic Association) (1972–1975)
1972–73  | James Madison  | 16–10 |  |  |
1973–74  | James Madison  | 20–6 |  |  | NCAA Division II first round
1974–75  | James Madison  | 19–6 |  |  |
James Madison Dukes () (1975–1977)
1975–76  | James Madison  | 18–9 |  |  | NCAA Division II first round
1976–77  | James Madison  | 17–9 |  |  |
James Madison Dukes (Eastern College Athletic Conference) (1977–1979)
1977–78 | James Madison  | 18–8 | 6–2 |  |
1978–79 | James Madison  | 18–8 | 9–5 |  |
James Madison Dukes (ECAC South) (1979–1985)
1979–80 | James Madison  | 18–8 | 7–3 |  |
1980–81 | James Madison | 21–9 | 11–2 | 1st | NCAA Division I second round
1981–82 | James Madison | 24–6 | 10–1 | 1st | NCAA Division I second round
1982–83 | James Madison | 20–11 | 6–3 | 2nd | NCAA Division I second round
1983–84 | James Madison  | 15–14 | 5–5 | T–4th |
1984–85 | James Madison  | 14–14 | 7–7 | 5th |
James Madison: | 238–118 (.669) |  |
California Golden Bears (Pacific-10 Conference) (1985–1993)
1985–86 | California  | 19–10 | 11–7 | 3rd | NIT first round
1986–87 | California  | 20–15 | 10–8 | T–3rd | NIT quarterfinal
1987–88 | California  | 9–20 | 5–13 | T–8th |
1988–89 | California  | 20–13 | 10–8 | 5th | NIT second round
1989–90 | California | 22–10 | 12–6 | 3rd | NCAA Division I second round
1990–91 | California  | 13–15 | 8–10 | T–5th |
1991–92 | California  | 10–18 | 4–14 | 9th |
1992–93 | California*  | 10–7* | 4–5* |  |
California: | 123–108 (.532) | 64–71 (.474) |
Total: | 361–226 (.615) |

National champion Postseason invitational champion
Conference regular season champion Conference regular season and conference tournament champion
Division regular season champion Division regular season and conference tournament champion
Conference tournament champion

*Campanelli was fired in February 1993; California credits the first 17 games of the regular season to Campanelli.

## References

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1. ^ a b "Legendary JMU Coach Lou Campanelli Dies at 84".
2. ^ Friend, Tom (1993-02-15). "Words Got The Best of Cal Coach". New York Times. Retrieved 30 December 2008.
3. ^ "Leung: Even at the JV level, Campanelli has never stopped teaching basketball". 27 September 2011.
4. ^ JMU Athletics Mourns Passing of Hall of Fame Basketball Coach Lou Campanelli

* v
* t
* e

James Madison Dukes men's basketball head coaches

* Charles Branscom (1969–1971)
* Dean Ehlers (1971–1972)
* Lou Campanelli (1972–1985)
* John Thurston (1985–1988)
* Tom McCorry # (1988)
* Lefty Driesell (1988–1997)
* Sherman Dillard (1997–2004)
* Dean Keener (2004–2008)
* Matt Brady (2008–2016)
* Louis Rowe (2016–2020)
* Mark Byington (2020–2024)
* Preston Spradlin (2024– )

# denotes interim head coach

* v
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* e

California Golden Bears men's basketball head coaches

* No coach (1907–1909)
* No team (1909–1911)
* No coach (1911–1915)
* Kilduff (1915–1916)
* Ben Cherrington (1916–1917)
* Walter Christie (1917–1918)
* Bill Hollander (1918–1920)
* Earl Wight (1920–1924)
* Nibs Price (1924–1954)
* Pete Newell (1954–1960)
* Rene Herrerias (1960–1968)
* Jim Padgett (1968–1972)
* Dick Edwards (1972–1978)
* Dick Kuchen (1978–1985)
* Lou Campanelli (1985–1993)
* Todd Bozeman (1993–1996)
* Ben Braun (1996–2008)
* Mike Montgomery (2008–2014)
* Cuonzo Martin (2014–2017)
* Wyking Jones (2017–2019)
* Mark Fox (2019–2023)
* Mark Madsen (2023–)

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*[t]: Discuss this template
*[e]: Edit this template