Fathering Success

By Jake Herb, Duke Chronicle

\Matt Danowski turned away from his half-finished glass of champagne to look at his father—he had a question to ask.

What do you think?

It was after midnight and the 2014 Duke men's lacrosse team was nearly home.

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Matt Danowksi sat with the rest of the Blue Devils' coaching staff aboard a rumbling charter bus. The dark cabin was alive with the sound of husky voices and clinking glasses.

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The past 24 hours had been an unbelievable journey for everyone on board. Nine months of hard work and perseverance had culminated with the ultimate prize in college lacrosse—the national championship.

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Jordan Wolf's empty netter in the closing seconds of regulation had guided Duke to an 11-9 victory against Notre Dame and the first back-to-back national titles in school history. With the win, John Danowski became just the ninth Division I head coach to win at least three national titles.

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Now, the team's coaches and trainers celebrated a successful end to the year's campaign. Eyes gleamed and bellies laughed. Someone popped the cork on another bottle of champagne, and glasses were topped off.

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In less than an hour, the bus would arrive among the Gothic architecture and loblolly pines of Duke University, the men would file out and the 2014 Duke men's lacrosse season would be over.

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But that was an eternity away in the minds of the passengers on board. This was their moment, and they were savoring every last second of it.

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Except for assistant coach Matt Danowski—son of head coach John Danowski.

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While everyone around him was caught up with the magic of the moment, he was thinking about the future.

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For Matt Danowski, the end of lacrosse season heralded the approach of a new chapter in his life—he was going to get married. Danowski's wedding to fellow Duke grad Virginia Crotty, slated for October at the Duke Chapel, was only six months away. Now, with the team's season finally over, it was time for him to start thinking about preparations.

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And with that in mind, Danowski eyed his glass on the victory bus after winning the national championship and prepared to ask his father to be his best man.

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“Virginia and I talked about it for a long time,” Matt Danowski said. “Apparently it's a Southern tradition to have your father be your best man, but I didn't know about that. I thought, 'I spend more time with my Dad than anybody and he probably knows me better than anybody,' so it would make sense for him to be the best man.”

What do you think?

What do you think?John Danowski's response was an overwhelming yes. Within a few seconds Matt was buried in his father's embrace.

“It was one of the greatest compliments Matt has ever paid me,” John Danowski said. “Matt's got a ton of friends from high school and college, so maybe he couldn't choose and I won by default…but to me it just spoke volumes about our relationship.”

To read the entire heartfelt story click here.

Players Mentioned

Jordan Wolf

Duke information