Roger Kinney remembers thinking the setting was perfect for making Denver’s proposal to host the 1989 NCAA Final Four.
The main meeting room at The Broadmoor Hotel in Colorado Springs overlooks the golf course, and it was a typical sunny July day along the Front Range in 1984. Surely the ambiance would put the members of the NCAA’s site selection committee in an accommodating mood.
The field of potential sites had been narrowed to Denver and Seattle, so there wasn’t much margin for error. As chairman of the Denver Organizing Committee, Kinney had delegated assignments to appropriate people in the community and everything was ready to go.
“We knew Seattle had a really strong presentation and we all were worried about that,” Kinney said. “The state of Washington was celebrating its centennial in 1989, and we knew that was part of their presentation.”
But the Denver presentation had some muscle as well. With the help of Bill Daniels, a Denver cable television tycoon, Kinney’s group had hand-carried its presentation and delivered it in person to each member of the NCAA’s site selection committee at their home base for a little extra touch.
“We had done our homework and had become well-acquainted with the committee members,” Kinney said. “We had played host to a regional tournament before, so we had gone through some of the organizational part.”
Eddie Crowder, athletic director at the University of Colorado at the time, grabbed the moment as the final presenter. Instead of rehashing what had already been presented, he played to the strength of the meeting site.
“All Eddie did was reach under the table to grab a bunch of golf balls,” Kinney said. “He said a couple of words about Denver being the choice and threw the golf balls to the committee members. They thought it was great.”
But when the selection announcement was made, Seattle was the choice for 1989. However, in an unprecedented move, the site committee also made the award for the 1990 Final Four and it went to Denver.
“We felt that there wasn’t going to be a better time for Denver to get the Final Four,” Kinney said. “The selection committee already was talking about the need of playing the Final Four in larger arenas than Denver could offer.”
The Denver bid had an ally on the site committee. Arnie Ferrin, the athletic director at the University of Utah, had played basketball in the old AAU Tournament and knew Denver’s basketball history.
“I know that Arnie thought it would be tragic if Denver didn’t get the chance to have a Final Four,” Kinney said.
The Final Four in Denver was a huge success. College basketball fans filled downtown Denver at all hours of the day and night.
“Everybody raved about the excitement, and the enthusiasm of college basketball fans tied in really well,” Kinney said. “We brought the pep bands and the cheerleaders downtown and they really added to the atmosphere.”
Kinney well remembers the group that helped bring Denver from longshot status for the Final Four to the winning ticket. He clicks off the names: Daniels, Crowder, Rex Jennings, Vince Boryla, Johnny Dee, Larry Varnell, Dick Eicher, Walt Koebel, Bill Weimar, Don Hinchey and Mike Raabe, to name a few.
Even former President Gerald Ford got involved with national support as honorary chairman of the DOC.
After the winning venture for the Final Four, Kinney turned his attention to baseball. He served on the Stadium District Board as well as director of the Colorado Baseball Commission in their successful drive to bring Major League Baseball to Denver.
Kinney’s roots are in Denver, but he also has planted some long roots as well.
Roger Kinney bio
Born: May 4, 1937, in Denver
High school: East, 1952-55; College: Colorado
Family: wife Sue; son Doug; daughters Nancy Holst, Linda Hantman
Hobbies: Golf, writing, community work with city’s youth
Ambition: Find the Oklahoma baseball player who knocked him into left field in breaking up a double play while Kinney played second base for Colorado.
