Community reacts to St. Bonaventure's decision to opt out of NIT, resignation of athletic director

OLEAN, NY. (WKBW) — St. Bonaventure men’s basketball has a massive following compared to a lot of other mid-major programs like it.

So you can imagine the shock Bonnie fans, alums, and students all felt when ESPN reported last Tuesday that St. Bonaventure had denied a bid to the NIT Tournament.

A couple of days later former Director of Athletics Joe Manhertz spoke about his decision to deny the NIT bid to a media law and ethics class. Where junior and 'The Bona Venture' sports editor Allie Elkins sat in and did exactly what a journalist should do.

“It was a matter of I have something very relevant right now. I felt like people wanted some answers on the timeline and some of the details the university didn’t clear up. So that’s what we ended up posting," Elkins told 7 Sports.

Allie’s article laid out Manhertz’s decision-making on denying the NIT bid. The article caught fire sparking frustration and outrage from the Bonaventure community.

“Bonaventure being such a small school, the alumni are very gathered around the idea of the NIT and I think that’s hard to understand," Elkins added.

Manhertz’s main argument against denying the bid was that it didn’t make sense logistically.

He also said he failed to communicate his decision to the players. Leaving them voiceless. Many students on campus who have close relationships with some of the players on the men’s basketball team like Jaeline Valdez say that this team could have kept their season going.

“I do believe if they had a say in the NIT tournament. They would’ve been more hesitant to enter the transfer portal and stay on campus," adds Valdez.

But there are fans and alums like Geremy Rheinwald who despite their frustration of not seeing the Bonnies in the postseason. Understand that the college sports landscape as a whole factors into that decision.

“As an alum, I’m a little disappointed that they did. But with the factors that go into college basketball nowadays like NIL, kids transferring, and injuries it’s understandable," says Rheinwald.

7 Sports did reach out to the St. Bonaventure athletics department for comment. They did not add anything more than what has already been published in Saturday’s press release about the resignation of Joe Manhertz.

On Tuesday, St. Bonaventure's president Jeff Gingerich released a video message:

Ryan Clingan and Barb Questa were named interim Co-Directors of Athletics and a spokesperson from the University says they will start the search for a permanent replacement after the upcoming Easter break.