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In the early parts of this week, I’ve been notified by several people that former Villanova Wildcats coach Rollie Massimino had entered hospice care. I held off posting, but Kentucky Wildcats coach John Calipari just seemed to confirm those reports on Twitter.
Rollie Massimino, whose team pulled off one of the great upsets in the '85 title game in Rupp, needs our prayers. Say one for him if you can
— John Calipari (@UKCoachCalipari) August 29, 2017
This is obviously terrible news. Rollie is a Villanova legend on the court having brought the school their first National Championship in 1985, but having had the chance to speak with him, he is also one of the nicest men I’ve ever met off the court.
Despite having a minor falling out with Villanova in the early 90s, Jay Wright has brought ‘Daddy Mass’ back to the forefront of the Villanova Basketball family.
And even while he continued to coach at the college level, Rollie has been in and around Villanova a ton in recent years. Perhaps most famously, he showed up at the 2016 National Championship game in Houston to rally the fans as a surprise.
While there’s no official report on Rollie’s situation yet, it appears things have taken a turn for the worse and it’s time to pray for Coach Mass.