D owney has had a passion for basketball since the age of seven . Before attending Fordham Prep , he was the manager for his second-grade JV basketball team and then joined the JV team in fourth grade at St . Margaret ’ s .
“ I ’ d been playing competitive basketball pretty much ever since then until college ,” he noted .
For college , Downey remained in the Bronx as a commuter student at Fordham University where he got a degree in Communications . Staying at Rose Hill has its perks , as he was able to begin coaching at the Prep in 1995 while studying at the university .
Downey also coached baseball ( circa 1997 ), another sport he enjoyed playing as a student . Before becoming Head Coach at the Prep in 2014 , he taught for five years at a private school in Manhattan and then became an assistant coach for All Hallows ’
Downey graduated in 1995 . His younger brother , Michael Downey ’ 99 and three younger cousins also attended the Prep .
Downey ( seventh from left ) was named CHSAA “ A ” Division Coach of the Year in February 2022 .
basketball team . When he found out that the position of Head Coach was available at the Prep , “ it became a dream spot for ( him ) to start coaching again .”
“ I wanted to get back into the building ,” he recalled .
His Prep basketball teams hit their stride in 2017 , advancing to their first CHSAA “ A ” Division finals . Unfortunately , they lost that game and subsequent finals in 2018 and 2019 . However , in 2020 , a mere 10 days before Fordham Prep shut down due to the Covid pandemic , the team won its first CHSAA City Championship in 83 years . The pandemic canceled the 2021 season , but a number of key members of that historic team remained . In March of 2022 , they again captured the City Championship . While separated by a year , Downey still considers his 2020 and 2022 CHSAA titles “ back to back .”
When Downey learned that he was named CHSAA “ A ” Division Coach of the Year in February 2022 , he couldn ’ t help but reminisce about all the legendary coaches he had looked up to since beginning his journey as a coach in 1995 .
“ To be even in the same group and the same kind of classification with these Hall of Fame legends in my eyes — it ’ s
an honor ,” he said . “ When you really think about all the other coaches that were in the CHSAA basketball league , it ’ s in my opinion — and in many other opinions — some of the best basketball in the country . So it was a huge honor and I was humbled by it ,” he added .
When he ’ s not running up and down the court with his players , Downey is helping to keep the Bronx safe as a member of the New York City Fire Department . He started out on Ogden Avenue in 2003 at Engine 68 / Ladder 49 ( also known as “ Yankee Bombers ”/” House on the Hill ”) and is now over on Randall ’ s Island helping to train probies .
TOP LEFT : Downey pulls up for a jumper at a Prep basketball game .
ABOVE LEFT : Downey at his restaurant , Downey ’ s Bar & Grill , in the Bronx .
ABOVE RIGHT : Downey ( front ) is also a firefighter with the FDNY .
WINTER 2023 VOLUME 43 , ISSUE 1
13