O’Brien Name Continues to Resonate

Few names are as synonymous with Seattle University as O’Brien and while it’s been 75 years since Johnny and Eddie O’Brien first arrived on the SU campus, their name continues to resonate deeply among Redhawks.

The O’Brien Twins landed at Seattle University after getting recruited from South Amboy, N.J. by men’s basketball coach Al Brightman in 1949. In three seasons they led SU to a 90-17 record, reaching the 1951 National Catholic tournament, the 1952 National Invitational Tournament and the 1953 NCAA Tournament. Along the way, they led Seattle University to an 84-81 win over the Harlem Globetrotters behind 43 points by Johnny. Johnny is SU’s career leader in points, field goal percentage, free throws made, second in career points per game and his 1,051 points in the 1951-52 season are a program record and was the first time a NCAA player scored at least 1,000 points in a season.

But it wasn’t just on the basketball court that the O’Briens excelled. On the baseball diamond they led Seattle University to a 62-14, reaching the 1952 NCAA Tournament. Johnny holds the school record for batting average in a season (.566 in 1951) and Eddie finished his career with 54 stolen bases. Though they were both drafted by the NBA’s Milwaukee Hawks in 1953, they chose baseball instead with both signing with the Pittsburgh Pirates. They each played five seasons with Pittsburgh, Eddie as a shortstop and pitcher and Johnny as a second baseman and pitcher. Eddie finished his career with a .236 batting average and Johnny, who also played for the St. Louis Cardinals and Milwaukee Braves, hit .250.

After retiring, both continues to make their mark, both in business and at Seattle University. Eddie served as SU Athletic Director from 1958-80 and coached the baseball team for 14 years, winning 276 games. Both remained especially close to the men’s basketball program and were active supporters of Seattle University returning to NCAA Division I.

In 2011, the building at 1218 East Cherry Street was dedicated as the O’Brien Center for Athletic Administration, honoring the brothers for their years of support. At the time, then-SU Athletic Director Bill Hogan said “The O’Briens are a treasure to Seattle University, and it is fitting that we honor them in this way so that they will always be a part of the athletics program. Eddie and Johny played a major role in our return to Division I with their personal involvement in several projects and we wanted to make sure we thanked them for their inspiration over the past 60 years

Eddie O’Brien passed away in 2014 and Johnny O’Brien passed in June, 2025.