CoSIDA joins the rest of the world in mourning the loss of iconic University of Tennessee Head Women’s Basketball Coach Pat Summitt
CoSIDA joins the rest of the world in mourning the loss of iconic University of Tennessee Head Women’s Basketball Coach Pat Summitt, who was the recipient of the organization’s Dick Enberg Award in 2007 for her tireless commitment to the values of education and academics. Summitt, the all-time winningest Division I basketball coach of all time with 1,098 victories, saw all 161 of her four-year student-athletes earn their degrees during her 38 seasons.
Summitt passed away on Tuesday morning at the age of 64 due to complications from early onset dementia, of which she was diagnosed in 2011. She led the Lady Vols to eight national championships during her career, and her legacy as a pioneer in women’s athletics is one that will be celebrated by generations to come.
“So often in times of loss we hear about the achievements, the numbers, the legacy that an individual created,” Enberg, the Hall of Fame voice of the San Diego Padres and longtime spokesperson for CoSIDA’s Academic All-America program, said of Summitt. “In Pat’s case, her legacy will forever be touching the lives of countless young women--some that she coached and some that she never met.
“One of her greatest beliefs is one that always struck me and remember to this day: ‘Your attitude, not your aptitude, will determine your altitude’, and she certainly took her players to great heights.” Enberg continued. “I’ve had the privilege of knowing the two greatest basketball coaches that ever lived, John Wooden and Pat Summitt, and their dedication to instilling lessons that last through generations will not only be forever woven into the fabric of sport, but of society as well. Barbara and I join the world in mourning Pat’s loss, and I will always be humbly grateful that she accepted an award nine years ago that embodies our shared passion for and commitment to education.”
Tributes have poured in from across the globe to honor Summitt’s legacy, including one from President Barack Obama, who presented her with the Medal of Freedom in 2012. 2014 Enberg Award recipient Ann Meyers Drysdale, who like Summitt was a pioneer in women’s athletics and a fellow Olympian, also offered fond remembrances of her teammate:
“There were those that loved and respected Pat Summitt as much as I did,” Meyers Drysdale said. “I was her teammate on the first Olympic team in 1976 and played for her three years later. Her preparation, passion, desire and dedication, along with her love for the game, her players, coaches, administrators, friends and people she met for the first time, was second to none. She expected your best because she expected her best.
“Her relationship with Coaches Billie Moore and John Wooden reflected her relationship with everyone else—making an impact on others by giving back,” Meyers Drysdale continued. “I, along with my family and countless others, were blessed to have had Pat Summitt touch our lives. To Tyler, Pat’s family and very close friends, we join together knowing that she now rests in peace with no more suffering. Love you, Pat!”
Two of the nation’s most successful basketball coaches who have also been honored by the Academic All-America program over the years shared their own perspectives on Summitt’s impact:
"There are few people in every sport who will be a household name forever and ever,” Kim Mulkey, a 2003 Academic All-America Hall of Fame inductee and longtime Head Women’s Basketball Coach at Baylor University, said to the Dallas Morning News. “Pat Summitt is one of them in women's basketball. I feel we were all robbed of how much more she had to give.”
And this from 2013 Enberg Award recipient and Duke University’s Mike Krzyzewski, the winningest Division I men’s basketball coach of all-time, as told to CBS Sports.com:
"There's no question, [she] was really one of the greatest coaches of any sport...[She's] really the gold standard of women's college basketball. She produced so many pros and set the bar at a really high level for basketball... [She was] a tremendous person, teacher and competitor. We shared a great honor in 2011 where we were both picked as Sportsperson of the Year by Sports Illustrated. We shared a cover, and we joked over the years as we signed so many. Whenever I got one that someone wanted signed, I said 'If it's signed by you, then I'll sign it. What a terrific person and coach."
Additionally, Summitt was the 2013 recipient of CoSIDA’s Keith Jackson Eternal Flame Award for her lasting contribution to intercollegiate athletics and long and consistent commitment to excellence, an honor also won by Enberg in 2001. Summitt’s longtime friend and confidant, CoSIDA Hall of Famer Debby Jennings, received a Lifetime Achievement Award from the organization earlier this month at its annual convention in Dallas.