Pat Summitt, the all everything, all world coach of the Tennessee Vols Women's basketball program went viral today and announced that she has been diagnosed with early onset of dementia, Alzheimer's type by physicians at the Mayo clinic. I was at lunch in a Vietnamese restaurant just on the outskirts of China town with my friend Jane, discussing the microcosm of our lives when Jane dropped the news of Coach Summitt's irreversible brain disease. I almost choked on my clay pot. WTF? Pat Summitt is 59 years old. She is the all time winning coach in NCAA history. Think about that fact for a second. She has coached and won more games than any man or woman at the college Division 1 level. Ever. After experiencing cognitive lapses of team practices and meeting times, lost keys, tardiness, and on several occasions inability to recollect schemes or set plays during games, Coach Summitt suspected something was wrong. Years ago, I remember watching a video of the Tennessee Vols filmed in a season after they had won the NCAA title. 96-97? The documentary was a ferocious profile of Summitt and her players battling through losses, injuries, adversity and inter squad conflicts. Summitt was relentless, jawing with players who screwed up, or cutting them down with her infamous'withering' stare, which was far worse than a stone cold tongue lashing and a slap upside the head. At the end of the season, suffering through ten excruciating losses to teams like ODU, FLA and LATech, the team dug deep, found a load of grit, and rose up to beat UConn and then ODU for another NCAA title. Back to back, baby. Slowly, the boys at Sports Illustrated woke up and took notice. In 1998 Pat Summitt, featured on the front cover of SI, is not holding a trophy or a basketball. Those who have seen her on the sidelines through the decades recognized the simplicity and the ferocity of the cover photograph. In a nod to the legend, the cover is vintage Summitt with the 'stare.' The one that launched a 1,000 wins, y'all. And something I'll always remember. Especially this season as she defies the odds and continues to coach.
excellent post! I've often thought that Summit is 'too much' -- too hard on her players, etc. -- but I have always admired her accomplishments and the impact she's had on sports. Her coaching tree (bball coaches who got their start as one of her players or assistants) is unbelievably impressive.
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