Iona Hosts Meet and Greet with Mets Legends Doc Gooden, Mookie Wilson

NEW ROCHELLE, N.Y. — New York Mets baseball legends Dwight “Doc” Gooden and William “Mookie” Wilson visited Iona University for a meet and greet and Q&A discussion on April 4, 2023. Gooden and Wilson shared their exclusive insights on professional sports, the importance of teamwork and their experiences in the 1986 World Series.

The event was presented by Iona’s Media & Strategic Communication Department and moderated by Mike Damergis '89, '06MS, senior clinical lecturer and coordinator of the Sports Communication & Media Graduate Program.

"The event was a hit,” Damergis said. “There was so much excitement and energy created by the faculty, students and guests. Iona's Sports Communication & Media graduate students also had the opportunity to interview these legends, which can be showcased on their professional portfolios. I am grateful to Dean Joseph Stabile, Ph.D., for supporting the event and Mookie Wilson and Dwight Gooden for sharing their World Series memories."

Graduate students Ray Jarvis ’24MA and Julius Luchs ’24MA had the unique opportunity to conduct one-on-one interviews with Gooden and Wilson respectively. During the interviews, they discussed their professional careers, what it meant to win a championship for New York and the camaraderie of the team.

“There’s probably some teams that are more talented, but we were a great team,” Wilson said. “We had what we call chemistry. We respected each other, and we trusted every player to do his job.”

They also offered behind the scenes insights of winning the World Series.

“Everybody had one goal and that was to win the World Series,” Gooden said. “Everything came together from the front office to the players.”

Click below to watch the full interviews.

DWIGHT GOODEN INTERVIEW WITH RAY JARVIS '24MA
MOOKIE WILSON INTERVIEW WITH JULIUS LUCHS '24MA