Jerry Tarkanian was only at Long Beach State for five years, but he set an immortal standard that to this day continues to be the benchmark of success at The Beach.
That couldn’t have been more clear during halftime of Saturday’s men’s basketball game against Cal State Northridge. Tarkanian was honored with a towel, a miniature pyramid and a standing ovation from more than 3,000 fans.
Despite being in poor health, hall of fame coach Tarkanian was able to visit Long Beach for a couple days, meeting with old players on Friday before sitting in on a film session with current players Saturday morning.
“I think it was very impactful for the kids,” head coach Dan Monson said. “His health is not good, and he was not able to talk a lot, but I think just his presence of getting up at 10 this morning to come…him being here is worth a thousand words.”
Tarkanian holds the LBSU record for wins and led the 49ers to the NCAA tournament four times in five seasons. The miniature pyramid he was given read: “Thank you for helping build the foundation of our basketball program and the Pyramid.” He was also given a towel, honoring his signature move: sucking on a towel during games.
“It was an honor to meet him because he built everything here,” point guard Mike Caffey said. “What really got to me was just his presence there. He didn’t really speak to us, but just to have him there while we watched film and stuff was big for us.”