By Harry Minium
HARTFORD, Conn.
John R. Broderick grew up 20 minutes from Hartford in Bristol, Conn. ESPN, which now has its mammoth headquarters in Bristol, wasn’t even an idea then.
But Broderick says Hartford was a sports hotbed even before the self-professed World Wide Leader in Sports opened its doors.
He recalls making the drive to the Hartford Civic Center, now known as the XL Center, many times to see the Hartford Whalers, UConn basketball and even the Boston Celtics play some home games there.
Thursday night, Broderick returns to his home state as President of Old Dominion University, whose basketball team won the Conference USA tournament last week in Frisco, Texas, and takes on third-seeded Purdue in the XL Center at 9:50 p.m.
“I’ve seen more games in the Hartford Civic Center than I have at any other place but the Ted Constant Center,” he said referring to ODU’s 8,500-seat home court.
Broderick met his wife, First Lady Kate Broderick, in New England. She’s a native of Springfield, Mass., just north of Hartford, and will join her husband in Connecticut on Thursday.
Broderick still has family in Connecticut, though not as much as he used to. Last September 22, he was in Connecticut in the morning to bury his father. His mother had only recently passed away.
Later that evening, he flew home to Norfolk in time to see ODU’s football team upset No. 13 Virginia Tech at home. It was among the biggest upsets in college football history.
ODU President John R. Broderick emotionally thanked the football team for its 49-35 of No. 13 Virginia Tech last season.
He tearfully thanked the ODU team in the locker room for making one of the worst days of his life one of his best. It was one of the most emotional scenes I’ve ever seen in sports.
Poignant moment for ODU President John Broderick
His return home will be bittersweet because, once again, he will be attending a funeral, this time for his Aunt Eleanor Connolly, his father’s last remaining sibling, on Friday.
“I grew up just down the street from her, so I knew her very well,” Broderick said. “She was a kindergarten teacher her entire career.
“She was a very kind, caring person who touched a lot of people’s lives. I’m going to miss her.”
Although he’s been President at ODU for 11 years, at heart, Broderick is a journalist, perhaps even a sports writer.
In the six years I covered ODU football for The Virginian-Pilot, and often met with him, our conversations would usually begin with the Boston Red Sox, the latest sports scandal or a major football or baseball trade.
Broderick. came to ODU decades ago in part to oversee the school’s public relations. As vice president of institutional development, he oversaw areas such as marketing and media relations.
Eventually, he moved on to a higher calling, and has been a progressive and enlightened President who helped ODU grow into a leader in resilience, research and entrepreneurship.
While attending St. Paul’s High in Bristol, he was a stringer for the Hartford Courant, covering high school football and minor league baseball. When he was in college he worked for papers in Bristol and Waterbury as well, covering minor league baseball.
It helped him pay tuition at Northeastern University, where he received his undergraduate degree in journalism, and also for his master’s degree at St. Bonaventure.
“I could make $40 a night stringing for a local newspaper and serving as an official scorer,” he said. “At that time, that was good money.
President John R. Broderick and Kate Broderick with ODU booster Barry Kornblau at a recent basketball game.
“Most of my friends were lifeguards during the day and got paid for sitting around. But that was the path I chose.”
His brother, Tim, still lives in Connecticut, as do dozens of cousins. “I will have a lot of family there,” he said.
In some ways, he still considers himself a New Englander. He’s a diehard Red Sox, Celtics and Patriots fan, and lamented, along with nearly everyone in Connecticut, when the NHL’s Whalers fled Hartford for North Carolina.
“When the Rangers, Bruins or Maple Leafs came to Hartford, the games were really special,” he said.
Whalers memorabilia still hangs from the rafters at the XL Center.
Broderick has been responsible for adding more than $860 million in additional funding from private and public sources and made the call when the school moved to the Football Bowl Subdivision.
He’s also pushed ODU, a metropolitan university, to become a leader in high-tech education. ODU graduates more students in STEM-H programs – science, technology, engineering, math and health professions – than any school in Virginia, with the exception of Virginia Tech.
John and Kate Broderick attend many athletic events. They are pictured here with ODU athletic director Wood Selig.
More than $200 million of projects are under construction on campus, and although one of the projects includes a renovation of the football stadium, the most expensive is a $76.5 million new chemistry building. ODU is also adding a residence hall for 470 STEM-H and entrepreneurial students.
ODU has about 24,500 students, and is one of the most diverse in the country. It has one of the highest graduation rates in the country for African-American students.
Broderick is proud of ODU’s basketball success. The Monarchs are playing in the NCAA tournament for the first time in eight years. ODU upset No. 25 Syracuse in the Carrier Dome, defeated regular-season Atlantic 10 champion VCU in Norfolk, and swept three games from Conference USA favorite Western Kentucky.
ODU’s Jeff Jones has been coaching in spite of a recurrence of prostate cancer. Jones has steadfastly praised Broderick for his support.
“Jeff has shown tremendous courage,” Broderick said. “I know that Purdue is favored, but his team has shown so much heart. They’ve won so many close games.
“I’m looking forward to returning to my home state. But most of all, I’m looking forward to see our basketball team play on a big stage.
“I’m proud of Jeff and each and every one of his coaches and players and of all that they have accomplished.”
Contact Minium: hminium@odu.edu