“I played with Alonzo and Dikembe, but I never saw anybody do the things that Reggie did.” – Mark Tillmon (GU Class of 1990)

Last week, I talked about Jessie Sapp being the only senior leader on the current Georgetown roster. Twenty-two years ago, one of the greatest Hoyas of all time was in a similar position.

Reggie Williams set the bar pretty high during his freshman season in 1984, when he led the Hoyas in scoring in the National Championship game and earned the Player of the Game award. But in spite of all of his achievements during his early days as a Hoya, his senior year was far and away his most amazing season as a Hoya, and that’s really saying something when you look at his first three seasons.

Many people remember the team known as “Reggie and the Miracles”. He was the only senior on the team in the 1986-87 season, and even though there were some talented youngsters on the roster, there was very little experience. Reggie became the example of leading by example. For the other players on the team, having Reggie at their side must have felt like being alone on the playground with a bunch of bigger kids, and then seeing your older brother show up to more than even the odds.

Through his first three seasons, Reggie was a shooting guard/small forward, but out of necessity he adjusted his role as a senior. Throughout the course of the season he played point guard, shooting guard, small forward, and power forward and even led the team in rebounding. Through his first three seasons, he averaged just over 12 points per game. During his senior year he averaged 23.6.

Of course, Reggie’s greatness during his senior season is not really measured on paper; it was measured by the overall impact he had on the program and is remembered by the countless stories and memories from that special season. Take the 1987 Big East Championship game. Syracuse led by ten points early on (which was a lot in those days), but the Hoyas stormed back to tie before halftime. Georgetown was actually leading by four in the final seconds of the half. Reggie was dribbling across half court with the clock winding down. He was moving much too casually, and it looked like he wouldn’t get a shot off before the break. Then, as he was about five feet beyond the NBA three-point line, he pulled up and buried a three-pointer to put the Hoyas up by seven. The game was over at halftime.

At the end of that game, Reggie also provided the final touch of class. With the Orangemen (as they were then known) trying to come up with a miracle finish, they were applying a full court press after a made basket. Reggie leaked down court and had an open breakaway. His one-handed slam signaled the end of the game and the tournament. It was a fitting sign to the rest of the conference that Georgetown Basketball had life after Patrick, and it was the final bit of poetry from Reggie’s glorious career.

Stats don’t tell the story, but they are worth mentioning in the case of the 1987 Big East Tournament Final:

• 25 Points (Game-high)
• 9-21 FG
• 5-7 3PT
• 2-3 FT
• 9 Rebounds (Game-high)

There were talented players on that team like Mark Tillmon, Perry McDonald, Charles Smith, and Jaren Jackson. They all developed into great players during their careers, but it’s hard to imagine how their careers could possibly have developed as well without the role of the team captain from 1987.