The finishing touches have been applied and the new scoreboard inside The Walter Pyramid is up and operational thanks to the generous donations of one man: Perry Moore.
The Perry Moore Scoreboard has been updated with newer light-emitting diode (LED) technology and although the scoreboard has his name emblazoned across the bottom, Moore doesn’t donate for attention.
“It’s kind of pretentious to see my name up there. This was something the school did without my knowledge,” Moore said. “As long as the players and fans like it, that’s what makes me happy.”
Moore is the 75-year-old former Long Beach State athletic director (1974-86) who is a permanent fixture in the front row of all LBSU games and practices. Moore is credited with turning around a sports department that was on the brink of being shut down by the National Collegiate Athletic Association for repeated violations when Jerry Tarkanian was the head coach of men’s basketball.
“When I came to Long Beach, we were on probation for four years by the NCAA,” Moore said. “The sports programs were bankrupt and had no money.”
“Long Beach was really stuck financially when I got here,” Moore said. “That’s when I started doing things behind the scenes that the university couldn’t afford.”
Before coming to Long Beach, Moore played football at Ohio State University. During his freshman season, he was called to serve in the Army during the Korean War and after completing his service, Moore enrolled at the University of Maryland where he played on the basketball team for four years under coach Bud Milligan, whom Moore credits as being his biggest influence on his career.
“They gave me a job right after graduation because I was in the Army and a little bit older,” Moore said. “Working for a coach who was really fundamentally sound and who you respected was a great opportunity.”
After graduation Moore became an assistant coach with the Maryland basketball team. Moore rose quickly through the coaching ranks and became the head coach of men’s basketball at both the University of Maryland and the University of Florida.
He was also the athletic director at Colorado State prior to working at LBSU. He said his best career choice came when he made the move from coaching to administration.
“I made a choice,” Moore said. “I would rather be the guy who hires and fires than the guy who gets hired and fired.”
Retired, Moore now spends his days at LBSU watching over the sports programs he helped develop under his watch as LBSU athletic director.
“Watching the sports programs win championships and have players become All-Americans, along with seeing the women’s programs progress, has been a true pleasure,” Moore said.
Moore and his wife have contributed to LBSU for more than 25 years and can’t think of a better way to donate their money.
“The university has been such a big part of my life for so long and we live in Long Beach,” Moore said. “That just seemed natural to want to contribute and to help a place that has meant so much to me and my wife.”
