By Raymond G. Hebert, PhD
Thomas More University
“I’ve been taking care of business every day… Taking care of business every way.” Those words, said by the music teacher in Mr. Holland’s Opus, were illustrative of Mr. Holland’s life and used by Don McNay to describe Dan Tieman at the time of his retirement as a teacher at Covington Catholic High School after 46 years (Don McNay, “A teaching role model on Teacher Appreciation Week” The Times-Tribune, May 11, 2010).
Most important of all, though, is that it all started at little Villa Madonna College in Covington which did not become a co-ed institution until 1945 and Men’s Basketball did not begin until 1947 and was briefly dropped in 1951 because of the Korean War. As was stated in the 1950-1951 VMC Press Guide (TMU Archives), “Basketball was resumed in 1954, the same year Men’s Golf was started. The precariousness of VMC’s athletic programs is reflected in the realization that the Athletic Director in those early years was Fr. Anthony Deye, a History and Economics Professor who later served twice as the Academic Dean.
The turning point, as noted in earlier articles, was in 1954 when the brilliant decision was made to hire Charles Wolf as Head Coach of the Men’s Basketball Team. In the Centennial History article, (Thomas More University at 100: Purpose, People, and Pathways to Student Success, pp. 287-292), it was emphasized that Coach Wolf’s was a lasting legacy “for not only being the first ‘real’ coach in the institution’s history but his success in his final seasons, including the 1959-1960 year when they won the Kentucky Independent Athletic Conference (KIAC) Championship and advanced to the NAIA National Championship Tournament in Kansas City. That success then catapulted him to a role as Head Coach of the Cincinnati Royals of the National Basketball Association in 1960 (“Thomas More University Hall of Fame Bio).
That article and a later one then talked about the two early stars for those Wolf-era teams: Larry Staverman (forward and leading scorer) and Jim Weyer (point guard and assist leader). Not to be forgotten, though, and the subject of this article is Dan Tieman, the third of the triumvirate of players who had outstanding success wearing a Villa Madonna college uniform in the early years of Men’s Basketball at VMC: Dan Tieman.
Looking back to several articles written about him at the time of retirement from Covington Catholic High School (CCH) in 2010 after 46 years of “dedication and service” there, I learned that his “legacy” began on the varsity basketball team for four years, where he started as a sophomore (while his brother Roger was a senior). By the time he graduated, he had been recognized as “a member of the Courier Journal’s All-State Team, the 1000-point club, All-District, and All-Region. In 1958, he led the team to the regional finals, where they finished as Region Runner-Up” (Jennifer Abdrabbo, “Legendary Colonel and Former NBA Player Retires After 46 years”, local Cincinnati.com/mycin/110664/ and McNay, Ibid).
Surprisingly, after his four successful years at Covington Catholic, Tieman turned down a partial scholarship at Miami of Ohio and chose instead to play for Charlie Wolf at Villa Madonna College (VMC) where he could also play baseball, a second sport that he loved. According to the Thomas More Archives, in the tradition of Staverman and Weyer who played just before him, he earned many accolades: MVP in 1960 and 1961; All-Conference KIAC in 1960, 1961, and 1962; and the Catholic Digest All-American Team in 1960 when he played in the NAIA National Finals in Kansas City.
Also on that team was a cadre of upperclassmen who became important figures in the Villa Madonna/Thomas More/Diocese of Covington community: Gerry Thelen, Dave Kriege, Don, Ray and Ron Albrinck,, Ron Langenbrunner, and VMC’s first minority player, Les Stewart, who was a freshman on that team. Tieman was the leading scorer in 1960 and 1961 and graduated from VMC as a member of the 1000 Point Club, the second all-time scorer (to Staverman), and the career assist leader. In 1962, he received the Robert Breinich Award for Character and Leadership and was drafted by the Kansas City Steers of the American Basketball League. Looking back at his VMC career, even though it is now over 60 years ago, he is still in the top 10 in VMC/TMC/TMU history in all categories with remarkable consistency: as an example in the category of points scored, with 14.1 points per game in 1958-1959; 19 points per game in that turning point year of 1959-1960; with 14.6 points per game in 1960-1961; and 10.8 points per game with a less successful team in 1961-1962 – for a career average of 14.8 points per game with 1454 total points (6th in program history).
As an interesting example of his importance to each of those teams, his single-season field goal total in that magical 1959-1960 season of 262 is still 5th all-time (statistics from Athletic Department). The Abdrabbo article verifies the story that a call from former Coach Wolf, then the Head Coach for the Cincinnati Royals of the NBA, led to a change of plans when “Wolf was in need of a guard”. While his time in the NBA was short-lived as Oscar Robertson and others became part of that franchise the following year, it was said that “during his time in the NBA, he got to travel to Boston, New York, and Los Angeles where he met quality players like Wilt Chamberlain and Jerry West.” (Abdrabbo, Ibid).
To Villa Madonna College’s benefit, however, Tieman immediately started his coaching career at home as the Assistant Baseball and Basketball Coach for former teammate Jim Weyer, who had become the Head Coach of both after Charlie Wolf’s departure. He held the position while teaching at Covington Catholic High School (CCH). Abdrabbo and McNay tell of his beginning in 1978 (to 1985) as the coach for freshman football and JV basketball Coach until becoming the Head Men’s Basketball Coach in 1985. Northern Kentucky Sports Hall of Fame statistics show him as the winningest coach in CCH history; and “in 1992 Coach T. was named NKY Coach of the Year after winning region.” There were runner-up trophies in 1994, 1995, and 1999 and at the end of 1999, he celebrated his 300th victory as the head coach of the Covington Catholic basketball team. He retired in 2010 but, as head coach he had “amassed 314 wins, a career winning percentage of 75%, the 1992 Region IX Title and posted a record of 21-9 during his final season.” (Abdrabbo, Ibid).
As noted in the TMU Archives, he was remembered afterwards by membership in multiple Halls of Fame: Covington Catholic; Thomas More University; NKADA; Greater Cincinnati High School Basketball Hall of Fame, and College Achievement Class of 2002. Among the writings at the time of his retirement from CCH, the focus was consistently on the impact he had on the lives of his players and his students (in the Business classes he taught). One reference was to a motto and style of: “Do your best, that is all we can ask from every student and athlete alike” (Abdrabbo, Ibid). When he was asked why he stayed so long at CCH, without hesitation he replied: “The quality of the people here is great. They rally around good causes. We have an excellent faculty. It is great to be associated with people who have the best interests of the students at heart” (Ibid). None more it seems than Dan Tieman.
In his reminiscence, at the time of Tieman’s retirement in 2010, Don McNay, a former student, 34 years after having been in his class, remembered that Tieman never mentioned having played in the NBA (“The lesson learned was that the higher achievement, the less inclined you are to brag about it”) but was always focused on “taking care of business.” What McNay remembered is that while: “Dan Tieman had the work ethic and vision to jump from tiny Villa Madonna College/Thomas More College to the NBA (he also) spent 46 years at Covington Catholic, teaching thousands of young men the ability to dream big and to work hard to achieve those dreams. McNay added, heartwarmingly: “I am thankful I was one of them” (McNay Reminiscence, “A teaching role on Teacher Appreciation Week”).
Sadly, after battling cancer for the years after his retirement, Dan Tieman passed away on October 30, 2012, never to be forgotten at Covington Catholic nor at Thomas More College/University. He was inducted into the TMU Hall of Fame as one of its first honorees in the original seven-member class in 1987.
At the time of his induction, his Hall of Fame biographical sketch said:
“Tieman was sixth all-time in program history in scoring (1,454), ninth in assists (319), and fourth in Field Goals Made with 608 “ (TMU Athletic Hall of Fame Bio). Not emphasized but a crucial part of his legacy were the 15 years he spent back at his alma mater (VMC/TMC) as the Assistant Head Coach of the Men’s Basketball and Baseball Teams and in those crucial post-Charlie Wolf years when Coaches Weyer and Tieman took the programs to another level. Once their successful existence was guaranteed, Coach Tieman, who had begun teaching Business courses part-time at his other alma mater, Covington Catholic High School, joined them full-time in 1978 becoming the Head Men’s Basketball Coach in 1985 until his retirement in 2010. Consistently, throughout his careers as player, coach, and teacher, as remembered so fondly by former student Don McNay, Dan Tieman took care of business “every day (and) in every way and never forgot that his students/players always came first.”
Dr. Raymond G. Hebert is Professor of History and Executive Director of the William T. Robinson III Institute for Religious Liberty at Thomas More University. He is the leading author of Thomas More University at 100: Purpose, People, and Pathways to Student Success (2023). The book can be purchased by contacting the Thomas More University Bookstore at 859-344-3335. Dr. Hebert can be contacted at hebertr@thomasmore.edu .
Paul A. Tenkotte, PhD is Editor of the “Our Rich History” weekly series and Professor of History and Gender Studies at Northern Kentucky University (NKU). He also serves as Director of the ORVILLE Project (Ohio River Valley Innovation Library and Learning Enrichment), as well as Editor of the forthcoming ORVIE (Ohio River Valley Innovation Encyclopedia), previewing in Summer 2024. ORVIE is now recruiting authors for entries on all aspects of innovation in the Ohio River Watershed including: Cincinnati (OH) and Northern Kentucky; Ashland, Lexington, Louisville, Maysville, Owensboro and Paducah (KY); Columbus, Dayton, Marietta, Portsmouth, and Steubenville (OH); Evansville, Madison and Indianapolis (IN), Pittsburgh (PA), Charleston, Huntington, Parkersburg, and Wheeling (WV), Cairo (IL), and Chattanooga, Knoxville, and Nashville (TN). If you would like to be involved in ORVILLE or ORVIE, please contact Paul Tenkotte at tenkottep@nku.edu.