Chapter 1: What inspired Mike Repole to support St. John's basketball?
There really is nothing better than seeing someone from their area, their hometown, make it big and then end up giving back to the places that help them get to where they are. And a great example of that is the man who was on the line right now. That's Mike Rapoli. And Mike Rapoli has done. A ton of amazing things, and I'm sure he's proud of every single one of them.
Selling Glissot, selling body armor to Coca-Cola, building those products up, the horse racing that he has gotten into, and Breeders' Cup, and so on and so forth. And the reason why he is on today, being the backing with the nil money and supporting St. John's basketball in a way that has gotten him into the Sweet 16. He joins us right now. Mike, good morning. Thanks for joining us. How are you?
Hey, GLA. Boomer, how are you? We're doing great, Mike. And my first question to you, who recruited who? Did you recruit Patino to St. John's or did Patino recruit you back to St. John's? Boomer, that's a great question.
In 2005, I've been trying to recruit Rick Patino. I had a mutual friend when I worked at Vitamore in 2005 and 2006. And And we own horses, and we went to the Kentucky Derby a lot. So I wanted Coach Patino to coach this team in 05, 10, 15, 20, and eventually. So when he was at Iona and the position became available, I'm sure you guys remember my rant on WFAN years ago, right? Oh, yeah.
Yeah, with Mike.
Yep.
Yeah. And, you know, he called me up and he asked me about the job. And I told him we have a new president. We haven't, you know, but they had to commit. And it was mutual. And then I think I did an article in the polls that I would love for it to be there and I would love to support. And since then, it's been in a magical three years, to be honest with you.
Yeah, I mean, and this was the tandem that all of St. John's wanted to see, you and Rick Pitino together. So, I mean, when you're getting ready for this game tonight, what are the equal amounts? Describe to me the emotions that you have as you're getting ready to watch this team that you have so much a part to do with take on Duke in the Sweet 16, the first time that St.
John's has been there since 1999.
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Chapter 2: How did Mike Repole recruit Rick Pitino to St. John's?
You got Chris Mulling, Wennington, and Walter Berry, and me and my five friends that are going to go tonight are going to go sit in the blue seats and watch them. I mean, I can't believe 40 years have gone by, but that's what it feels like. It feels like. just a kid from Holy Cross Queens. And, and, and, and if it wasn't for that team, I don't even know if I go to St. Sean's.
I mean, they made me want to go to St. Sean's. So, you know, to have that, you know, I mean, you guys grew up here, right? We remember the garden in the eighties. We remember in the nineties and, you know, you know, boomer, we, we had a fundraising dinner, I think like 10 or 15 or almost 20 years ago. You know, I think it was either Norm Roberts or Lavin. It was you and Cotton and,
And we weren't good. And it feels pretty good to see St. John's resurgence. But really what they mean to all of New York and watching that Garden Pack. 19,000 fans. It's pretty special.
You know, Mike, I do remember that dinner, and I do remember how passionate you were about St. John's even back then, and I'm sure you have been since you basically graduated from there. Help me wrap my head around this whole thing, because as a former athlete at the University of Maryland, I love the school. I love my time there. I've supported that school.
I certainly wasn't nearly as successful as you have been, but yet you still come back to St. John's. You love St. John's. You've given them so much money. You've backed them so much. I have a really hard time now just seeing 18-year-olds or anybody leaving another school, going to Maryland, and then Maryland asking me to give them money to pay that kid. I just can't buy that.
I can't wrap my head around it. How can you do this? It's a great question, Boomer.
I mean, I'm always going to be Mike from Queens, right? Even though I live in Florida now, my daughter is 10. We moved down here five years ago and we had to pick an area for her to go to school. I still have my house in Long Island. I spend a lot of time in Manhattan, but...
You know, my parents are first generation, Italy and France, and I was always Mike from Queens and grew up in Woodside and Middle Village. And, you know, St. John's helped me become who I was. I was a sports management major. I had a 2.2 grade point average. Probably not as good as you, Boomer, but better than Gio, I'm sure. But, you know, Queens never left me, right?
I'm still that kid from Queens. And for me, St. John's was a big part of it. And I wasn't the athlete that you were, Boomer, and I didn't get to play at Maryland and Cincinnati and the Jets. So, you know, this was it. And I coached at Christ the King High School. I thought I was going to be a coach one day. I guess I wasn't good enough, so I had to do something else.
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Chapter 3: What emotions does Mike Repole feel about St. John's recent success?
John's basketball. And I always tell Boomer, I don't care how we get to these games as long as we get to these games. So does it feel... To you, with this landscape, as special as it did back when you were watching, you know, real college kids go to the classes, getting this done, does it feel the same to you, or do you feel like you are supporting professional athletes?
Well, I'm not sure if those kids in 1985 actually went to class either. Yeah, that's a good point there. Okay. Cause I was a sports management major and Sheldon Jones and Mark Schachter were my class. And I was there. I better attend them to both of them. But, but, but listen, it, it, it, I mean, listen, it's different. I mean, I love sports business.
The college game has been sports business for the last 50 years. The only thing is now the athletes are getting paid. Do I think there needs to be better controls and systems? You know, you can't go there for eight months and transfer out four years, four times. You know, maybe a two-year contract, and you can only transfer one time. But you know what?
It's different, but it's sports business, and... You know, for us, we grew up here, you know, to see people like your story, your mom, your uncles. I'm sure you're talking to them a lot more now over the last three years about St. John's than you did the past 20 years, right? Oh, yeah. So to hear all these stories about, you know, hey, I used to come here with my dad.
My dad took me when I was young. Even though I go to another school, St. John's is part of New York, and And honestly, when I was 15, Rick was coaching Providence. He was sitting on the sideline. He was a legend. So just to see him now and, I mean, listen, I think he's the greatest college basketball coach of all time. You know, he's incredible.
Yeah, he is incredible, Mike. There's no question about it. And he's the perfect guy at the perfect time to resuscitate basically a basketball program that had been lost for quite a while. You know, the one thing I will say about all of this is the ā You can't put a number on the amount of promotion and the amount of marketing that St.
John's University is receiving from all of this attention in the basketball program. So you're getting like a double hit. Yeah, the basketball thing is great. And all of that is fantastic. And a really good friend of yours, Rick Pitino, is doing well. And he's resuscitated the basketball program. But St. John's benefits from this as a whole as well.
I care about St. John's athletically as much as I do academically. So I speak to Bill Janicek, the chairman. I talk to Father Shanley. We talk about... I spoke at the entrepreneurship conference we had last year at St. John's. I speak to the students. I mean, you know, listen, St. John's might be tougher to get until then than Harvard next year, I mean, the way they're going.
I mean, you're getting, you know, $50 million worth of media today, right? So... It should work. And you know what? Sometimes kids want to stay home and sometimes they go somewhere else. At least now they know they can come back and go to St. John's and still be part of a big school, no doubt.
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Chapter 4: How does Mike Repole view the impact of NIL on college sports?
I mean, I put teams in soccer stadiums where instead of 80,000 fans and only 15 show up, you know, tonight we're playing. It's opening night. I planned on going. Obviously, this is a much better event for me, by the way. But the Louisville Kings are playing the Birmingham Stallions in a sold-out crowd in Louisville. Now, Gio and Boomer, keep it between me and you.
There's only 15,000 that fit to that stadium. But it's going to be on Fox. It's going to be packed. It's going to look great. And then being the entrepreneur that I am and the lover of what's I banned the push-push. I added a four-point field goal over 60. And, Boomer, I think as a quarterback, you'd love this. No punting inside the 50. So you get to go for it every time on fourth down.
Oh, I would love that.
No more punting to the one-yard line. I've got to watch two first downs and another punt. So I'm going for 35, 34, high scoring. But, again, the teams are in Orlando, St. Louis, Birmingham. you know, D.C., some different cities that can really embrace this team. So I think we have a shot. So far, we're doing really well.
You probably don't know this, Mike, but back in 1990 and 91 during the spring, I was the Monday night announcer with Brad Nessler, for the World League of American Football in those same cities. And those cities, actually, that league was doing reasonably well. I mean, it's not that it can't happen. It just has to look better on TV.
And I think by moving them to smaller stadiums, that's probably going to work pretty well for you.
Well, when I looked at it two years ago and a year ago, I felt like the quality of football was really good, but I thought I was watching COVID games, like there'd be 4,000 people in the stands. And, you know, changing that. And then the other thing is, you know, Boomer, I hired coaches that were familiar. I hired A.J. McCarron of the Birmingham Stallions. Teddy Ginn tonight.
Chris Redman is coaching Louisville. When I get the Long Island team, Boomer, I didn't tell you yet, but you're going to be coaching that team. So, yeah.
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Chapter 5: What challenges does Mike Repole see in the current college sports landscape?
So I got a job for you. I mean, there's a stadium in Queens. Maybe we can put one there and you could be the head coach. Yeah, okay, Mike.
I'm a little past that, but I will say you're also involved in something else that I saw, like my godson-in-law or whatever I'm calling him, grandson-in-law. Matthew Schaefer wearing your Noble sweatshirt, so you're already all over him. I see that.
Yeah, you know, I was going to bring that up. I didn't know if you called him a nephew or a godson. I mean, if he keeps playing like this, you're going to start calling him a son, I guess, right? I mean, he's 18. He's unbelievable. I haven't met him yet. My team has met him. And obviously, your wife and your father-in-law and your grandchildren. I mean, he is the greatest, nicest kid. My team...
Just wants to hug him every time. He thanks him for everything they do. I mean, he's got an amazing story. You know this better than anybody. But what a great, great kid. Unbelievable, man. And that's all I hear about him.
I'll tell you one thing. He is no bull. And he is a great, great human being and a great player. But he's only 18. We all got to back off a little bit and just give him some room to grow. I mean, he's had a great season. He's going to be even better as the years go on. And he gets more and more confident.
It's hard even to say that, that he's going to get more and more confident because he's already a confident kid.
Is it true that you became an Islander fan now?
Yes. No. There's no way. But I am rooting for him, and I'm certainly rooting for my son-in-law, who's in the front office, as you know.
Yes.
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Chapter 6: How does Mike Repole balance his business ventures with sports involvement?
Super smart, inquisitive, asked a bunch of questions. And he's helping me, and it's been great. You know, he's a great partner, man, really is.
Hey, Mike, thanks for jumping on this morning. Good luck tonight. We appreciate everything you've put into the St. John's program, and I really hope that we'll have another game coming up this weekend after we take down Duke.
Yeah, very special. This is for all of New York, and everyone's going to be watching. I heard the St. John's-Kansas game, 10 million viewers. Tonight, expect 15 million views, so real, real special. It's going to be great. Gio Boomer, thank you a lot.
Thank you, Mike. Have a great day, and good luck tonight.
Yes, absolutely. Mike Rapoli, entrepreneur. I mean, he's done it all. Entrepreneur. It's impossible to, like, I mean, I don't know. There's so many things you could say. It's like, you know, I could be here now until 10 o'clock, listening off all his accomplishments and all the money he's made. It's insane.
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