History of the Seton Hall Basketball Booster Club
The Seton Hall Basketball Booster Club was founded in 1981 with the approval of the University President, Dr. Edward R. D’Allessio and Athletic Director Richie Regan. The organization was formed as a social club consisting of alumni and friends of Seton Hall University. The purpose was to provide fan support to our men’s basketball program.
The Booster Club was formed at a time when our basketball fortunes were at a low point, and we wanted to show players, coaches and the University that our fans were there to support them in good times as well as in tough times. Our membership consists of Pirate fans of all ages and positions in life. It consists of recent graduates, professionals, university employees, retired alumni, and non-alumni Pirate fans. One of our original members and most ardent supporters was Monsignor William Noe Field, who regularly attended our trips and offered Sunday Mass for the group.
Over the years we have run weekend trips to Pirate road games and to NCAA and NIT tournaments. Usually, we run two to three road trips per year to enable the fans to support our team in away arenas. The trips are run at cost to our members and always sell out. We also hold an annual pre-season Tip Off Party and an in-season Dinner to provide the Pirate fans with the opportunity to get together and discuss their favorite topic - PIRATE HOOPS! The dinners are also run at cost for our members. Over the past several years, we have also hosted a day at Monmouth Race Track.
We are not a fund raising organization though we do collect membership dues. The money collected is essentially given back to the membership in the form of membership gifts (usually a Seton Hall clothing item), to cover mailing expenses and expenses associated with the trips and dinners. Any surplus at the end of the year is donated to WSOU, Seton Hall’s student radio station, for its sports coverage. This donation is made in memory of our founder and original President, Ray Lopez, who passed away years ago. Virtually all of our members are regular contributors to the Seton Hall University Pirate Blue Athletic Fund, as well as to other University fund raising projects.