Pat Summitt, the winningest coach in Division I college basketball history who helped boost the women’s game to the big time in a 38-year career at Tennessee, has died at 64.
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Summitt announced in 2011 that she was battling early onset dementia. Beyond the players and coaches she mentored, Griffin said that Summitt was equally influential with broadcasters.
Honors: Courts at Tennessee-Martin (Pat Head Summitt Court) and Tennessee (The Summitt) named in her honor. The Lady Vols played a game at LSU in 1979 that was the opener of doubleheader featuring a Tennessee-LSU men’s game.
Sen. Lamar Alexander was president of the University of Tennessee when Pat Summitt coached the Lady Vols to the 1989 NCAA title. A crowd of 24,563 turned out, which was then a world record for single-game attendance at a women’s basketball game.
On Tuesday, he called her a patriot, a “proud Tennessean” and an unparalleled victor. If anyone could pull out a miracle it would be coach Summitt.
Tyler’s statement said “since 2011, my mother has battled her toughest opponent, early onset dementia, “Alzheimer’s Type”. and we can all find peace in knowing she no longer carries the heavy burden of this disease”.
Former NFL quarterback Peyton Manning, who developed a close relationship with Summitt during his career at Tennessee, recalled leaning on her for advice when weighing whether to turn pro after his junior season in Knoxville. Also, her teams racked up 31 consecutive NCAA tournament appearances.
“She is a legend and has touched so many lives”, said Parker, who plays for the WNBA ” s Los Angeles Sparks, after the visit.
“Pat was so much more than a Hall of Fame coach; she was a mother, mentor, leader, friend, humanitarian and inspiration to so many”, the school said.
“I think that was a motivating factor for Pat that no more was women’s basketball treated as a stepchild or second-hand citizen”.
Fulmer coached from 1992-2008 during Summitt’s tenure and says they had “wonderful personal times talking about life, our respective teams, or helping each other recruit”.
“Even though she was clearly hurting, the stool and Sharpie came out on the court, and every little girl in line got her autograph”, Perry wrote.
The letter meant so much to Griffin, a college basketball analyst for 16 years, that she donated it to the Women’s Basketball Hall of Fame upon her induction in 2014.
“We had kind of joked over the years, we’ve signed so many (copies), whenever we had gotten one that somebody wanted signed, I said, ‘If it’s signed by you, I’ll sign it, ‘ ” Krzyzewski said.
Cronan says “the legacy she leaves is huge”. Griffin called Summitt “more than transformative”, adding that her contributions went beyond women’s basketball. Cronan called her the “most courageous person I’ve ever known in fighting this disease” and she was “determined to make a difference” in bringing attention to it.
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“Pat’s vision for the game of women’s basketball and her relentless drive pushed the game to a new level and made it possible for the rest of us to accomplish what we did”, Auriemma said at the time of her retirement. “She was driven to perfection and always remained true to her standards”. The Lady Vols never had a losing season under her. You know, you can upset them, but when you push to the point of breaking someone’s spirit, now you’ve got a real problem, and you never know when they’ll come back.
