In Memoriam: Lou Carnesecca ’50C, ’60GEd, ’00HON

St. John’s University mourns the passing of Luigi “Lou” P. Carnesecca ’50C, ’60GEd, ’00HON, who passed away peacefully surrounded by family and friends on Saturday, November 30. Coach Carnesecca was 99 years old and just five weeks shy of his 100th birthday.

“Throughout his long life, Coach Carnesecca represented St. John’s with savvy, humility, smarts, tenacity, wit, integrity, and grace,” said Rev. Brian J. Shanley, O.P., President. “He was the public face of our University, and he embodied the values of our Catholic and Vincentian mission. We thank God for his legacy.”

A proud St. John’s graduate and unabashed ambassador of the University that he devoted his life to, Coach Carnesecca embraced everything that St. John’s and New York City stands for: faith, family, friendships, food, and fun, forged over the common immigrant experience of working-class New Yorkers. 

“We lost an iconic St. John’s man,” stated St. John’s Men’s Basketball Head Coach Rick Pitino. “His coaching expertise was as good as anyone in basketball, but the man he was surpassed that. Rest in peace, Looie. We will miss you so much.”

Basketball is often called the city game, and its soundtrack is played out on the hot asphalt of vibrant playgrounds spread across contrasting neighborhoods woven together by subway lines. It was from these streets that the glory years of college basketball emerged—and the maestro who would conduct the most incredible sports symphony ever played at St. John’s was known solely by his first name, “Looie.”

Coach Carnesecca, the only child of Italian immigrants, was the consummate New Yorker who helped make the city game global. He won over generations of fans, cultivated St. John’s “subway alumni” wherever he went, and, despite all his professional success, never lost his common touch.

“A peacock today, a feather duster tomorrow,” was his often-used proverb, demonstrating how someone’s fortunes can change quickly. 

Born on January 5, 1925, the son of Italian immigrants, Coach Carnesecca grew up in Manhattan, in East Harlem, living above the family-owned grocery store. From those humble beginnings he would reach the pinnacle of his chosen profession by being elected to the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in 1992 and the New York City Basketball Hall of Fame in 1993. He was selected as the National Coach of the Year in 1983 and 1985 by the US Basketball Writers Association.

He coached his beloved alma mater, the St. John’s Men’s Basketball program—then known as the Redmen—to 526 wins and 200 losses over 24 seasons (1965–70, 1973–92). A colorful character with a raspy voice and salty language reached the postseason in every season he coached the team, including a National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Final Four appearance in 1985.

“He embodied everything that is great about this University, this city, and the sport of basketball,” said Ed Kull ’05MBA, Vice President and Director of Athletics. “There will never be another like him, and we are all better for having known him.”

Coach Carnesecca attended high school at St. Ann’s Academy in Manhattan (now Archbishop Molloy High School). After graduation, he served his country for three years in the US Coast Guard during World War II, where he served on a troop transport in the Pacific theater.

After an honorable discharge from the military, he first enrolled at Fordham University before quickly transferring to St. John’s. Here, he played baseball—not basketball—for the legendary Frank McGuire, who at that time coached both teams. He played on the St. John’s baseball team that advanced to the 1949 College World Series. Also on that team was John W. “Jack” Kaiser, Coach Carnesecca’s lifelong friend who would also go on to dedicate his professional life to St. John’s as its baseball coach and athletic director.

While still a student, Coach Carnesecca helped coach the freshmen baseball team and another young son of a grocery store owner, Mario M. Cuomo ’53C, ’56L, ’75HON, who would later become the governor of New York. The Carnesecca and Cuomo families, both residents of Jamaica Estates in Queens, would be longtime friends.

Coach Carnesecca graduated in 1950 and coached his high school alma mater, St. Ann’s/Archbishop Molloy, before returning to St. John’s as an assistant to the legendary Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame Coach Joseph B. “Joe” Lapchick in 1958.

Coach Carnesecca married Mary Chiesa on June 2, 1951; she would remain his partner in everything and the singular love of his life for the next 73 years.

Over the next eight seasons on Coach Lapchick’s staff, Coach Carnesecca helped lead St. John’s to a pair of NCAA National Invitation Tournament (NIT) titles in 1959 and 1965. Following Coach Lapchick’s retirement in 1965, Coach Carnesecca was named the 12th head coach in St. John’s Men’s Basketball history. His first five seasons at the helm were highlighted with trips to the NCAA Tournament regional semifinals in 1967 and 1969 and advancing to the NIT Championship game in 1970.

In 1970, Coach Carnesecca left St. John’s for three years to coach the New York Nets of the American Basketball Association. During his tenure in the professional ranks, he took the Nets to the playoffs in each of his three seasons, reaching the finals of the league championship in 1972.

Coach Carnesecca returned to his alma mater in 1973, beginning a transformative period in the program’s history that featured the birth of the BIG EAST Conference, of which St. John’s remains a charter member.

He had his most successful season in 1984–85 when, led by future Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Famer and St. John’s Men’s Basketball Head Coach Chris Mullin, the Johnnies went 31–4 and reached a historic Final Four that featured three BIG EAST schools: St. John’s, Georgetown, and the eventual champion, Villanova.

During this memorable season, in which his team only lost four games—three to rival Georgetown and one to fellow Vincentian school Niagara University—an ugly sweater made history. St. John’s was preparing for a road trip to Pittsburgh, PA, in January 1985 and Coach Carnesecca was ill. His wife told him to pack a sweater and he found one—a brown pullover with broad chevron stripes—that had been given to him by an Italian basketball coach. When star player Chris Mullin hit a winning shot at the buzzer, the superstitious coach had found a lucky charm. He stuck with the sweater and the team soared to a national No. 1 ranking.

In his 24 seasons at the helm of the St. John’s Men’s Basketball program, Coach Carnesecca guided the Redmen to 526 wins and 200 losses, for a winning percentage of .725. Under his tutelage, the Johnnies never missed a postseason, making 18 NCAA tournaments and earning six NIT berths—including a title in 1989.

Coach Carnesecca steered St. John’s through a shifting college basketball landscape, guiding St. John’s to five BIG EAST regular season titles in the league’s first 13 seasons. The three-time BIG EAST Coach of the Year also took home BIG EAST Tournament titles in 1983 and 1986.

“The BIG EAST Conference is deeply saddened by the passing of Lou Carnesecca, a quintessential New Yorker and one of the most successful coaches in our history,” said BIG EAST Commissioner Val Ackerman. “His basketball accomplishments abound: 526 wins in 24 seasons, postseason bids in each of those years, the ‘sweater game’ and other magic moments at Madison Square Garden, and the superstars he mentored along the way who are themselves part of BIG EAST lore.”

Coach Carnesecca retired from coaching in 1992, but never left St. John’s. He remained as a Special Assistant to then-President Rev. Donald J. Harrington, C.M., helping fundraise and appearing at special events. 

Nicholas “Nick” Vendikos ’91SVC, Senior Director of Athletic Development, first came to know Coach Carnesecca as a student journalist for the now-defunct St. John’s Today newspaper and later collaborated with him on Athletics Department fundraising events. “I was always amazed at the grace and kindness of Coach Carnesecca,” he said. “No matter how many people wanted to stop to tell a story or take a photo with him, he happily obliged—and Looie always made them feel like they were the only people in the room. He was the best we will ever see.”

A prominent and beloved figure in the game of basketball well beyond the city limits, in January 2001, Madison Square Garden raised a red-and-white banner emblazoned “526” for Carnesecca’s 526 career victories at St. John’s.

“Never has one man had such a positive impact on so many people. If you were lucky enough to have known Lou, you considered yourself blessed. There was no separation between St. John’s and Lou—they were one in the same,” said William J. Janetschek ’84CBA, ’17HON, Chair of the St. John’s University Board of Trustees, and retired Partner and Chief Financial Officer, Kohlberg Kravis Roberts & Co. L.P.

On November 23, 2004, Alumni Hall, the on-campus home of St. John’s Basketball since 1961, was renamed in Coach Carnesecca’s honor. The evening was promoted to have the court named after the legendary coach, but then-President Rev. Donald J. Harrington, C.M., surprised the standing-room-only crowd and announced that the building would now bear his name.

In October 2021, St. John’s University dedicated and blessed the Lou Carnesecca statue in the lobby of Carnesecca Arena.

“Coach Carnesecca impacted the lives of countless individuals and the trajectory of our great University,” said Joseph E. Oliva, Esq. ’91CBA, ’94L, Senior Vice President and Chief Operating Officer, St. John’s University. “He did this through faith, family, love, passion, and personal commitment to excellence. I value every precious conversation I had with him. Often his words were few, but his wisdom eternal. He inspired so many at St. John’s to work with grit, toughness, and determination.”

Coach Carnesecca was deeply devoted to his Catholic faith. Asked about his legacy, Coach Carnesecca once reflected, “I pray to the Blessed Mother that she gives me the strength and courage to handle what’s coming. It’s out of my hands; I can’t call time out.”

“He truly believed in the mission of St. John’s and lived it in his daily life in very concrete and practical ways,” reflected Rev. Richard Rock, C.M., Campus Minister for Athletics. “His spirit will always live on.”

Speaking on behalf of the Eastern Province of the Congregation of the Mission, Very Rev. Stephen M. Grozio, C.M., Provincial Vice Chair of the St. John’s University Board of Trustees, and Provincial Superior, Eastern Province of the Congregation of the Mission (the Vincentians), remarked: “Lou Carnesecca was a man of faith who always had a special relationship with the Vincentian Community that founded and sponsors St. John’s University. He was named an affiliate of the Congregation of the Mission, a rare distinction bestowed on members of the laity. Throughout his long and legendary life, Coach Carnesecca was a teacher on and off the basketball court. Wherever he traveled, Lou truly represented the Catholic and Vincentian mission and values of St. John’s. May God grant him the fullness of eternal life.”

Honored alongside Mary with the Spirit of Service Award at the 2008 St. John’s University  President’s Dinner, Coach Carnesecca was inducted into the Athletic Department Hall of Fame; was a member of the Heritage Circle; was awarded the Medal Of Honor, the highest award given to an alumnus; was conferred an Honorary Doctorate of Pedagogy; and received the St. Vincent de Paul Medal.

He is survived by Mary, his wife of 73 years; and daughter, Enes; son-in-law Gerard “Jerry” Frunzi; granddaughter Ieva and her fiancé, Frank; his dear niece and nephew, Susan Chiesa and John Chiesa, and his wife, Nancy; as well as extended family and friends.

Mass of Christian Burial for Luigi “Lou” P. Carnesecca ’50C, ’60GEd, ’00HON

Expressions of sympathy may be sent to
St. John’s University
President’s Office, Newman Hall
8000 Utopia Parkway, Jamaica, NY 11439

Visit www.stjohns.edu/CoachC to make a gift in support of the Lou Carnesecca Scholarship. 

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