Pat Summitt

Education: Cheatham County High School, University of Tennessee at Martin, University of Tennessee

Significance: Pat Summitt was a former American basketball coach. She spent thirty-eight years coaching the University of Tennessee Lady Volunteers. She was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease in 2011. She retired following the 2011–12 season and then gained the title of head coach emeritus.

Background

Patricia Sue Head Summitt was born on June 14, 1952, in Clarksville, Tennessee, daughter of Richard and Hazel Albright Head. She had four siblings, with whom she grew up on the family farm. The children were reared in a disciplined household, and each child had specific daily chores. Summitt excelled in school, never missing a day, and was a prominent basketball player.

In 1970, Summitt graduated from Cheatham County High School in Ashland City, where she was a starter on the basketball team all four years. She continued her education at the University of Tennessee at Martin, where she was the school’s all-time leading scorer. During this time, she became part of the US women’s national basketball team. As part of the team, Summitt won a silver medal at the US World University Games in 1973. She graduated with a bachelor of science in physical education from the University of Tennessee at Martin in 1974.

While pursuing her master’s degree at the University of Tennessee in Knoxville, Summitt served as a graduate teaching assistant. She was asked to be assistant coach of the University of Tennessee Lady Volunteers (UT Lady Vols) team; however, two weeks later, head coach Margaret Hutson quit, and Summitt was offered the position of head coach. After much thought, Summit accepted the offer.

Life’s Work

Summitt began her tenure of head coach of the Lady Vols during the 1974–75 season. She was twenty-two years old, the same age as some of the seniors on the team. The team finished the season with a 16–8 record. In addition to her coaching duties her first year, Summitt finished her master’s degree and taught physical education classes. She also continued to play with the national team, winning a gold medal at the 1975 Pan American Games.

After the following season, Summitt participated in the 1976 Olympic Games in Montreal, Quebec, where her team took home a silver medal. Summitt was appointed the coach of the US junior national team in 1977. She helped guide the team to two gold medals and one silver medal over the next few years. In 1980, the Lady Vols were the Southeastern Conference (SEC) champions and won the SEC tournament. That summer, Summitt served as the assistant coach of the US Women’s Olympic team; however, the United States did not attend the games.

In 1984, Summit was named the US Women’s Olympic head basketball coach. She led the team to a gold medal victory at the games, which were held in Los Angeles. She then guided the Lady Vols to the SEC championship and the SEC tournament title in 1985.

After much hard work and determination, the Lady Vols secured its first National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division I Women’s Basketball Championship title in 1987. The team became SEC tournament champions in 1988 and 1989 and won its second NCAA title in 1989.

The Lady Vols became SEC champions in 1990 and secured their third NCAA title in 1991. The team easily won multiple SEC championships and SEC tournaments in the years that followed. In 1996, the Lady Vols won another NCAA title and then repeated the feat in 1997 and 1998. The team also won the SEC championship and the SEC tournament in 1998 and 1999.

Summitt’s hard work with the Lady Vols continued to pay off into the first decade of 2000. The team won the SEC championship each year from 2000 to 2004 and secured SEC tournament titles in 2000, 2005, and 2006. In 2007, Summitt guided the team to another NCAA title, a feat the team would repeat the following year. The Lady Vols became SEC champions in 2007 and SEC tournament champions in 2008. In 2010 and 2011, the Lady Vols won both the SEC championship and the SEC tournament.

Around this time, Summitt had become forgetful, losing her keys and showing up late to practice. She started forgetting to call plays during games. Thinking the symptoms were related to her arthritis medication, Summitt saw a doctor—and then another. The doctors ran tests and confirmed Summitt’s fear: she had early-onset Alzheimer’s disease.

Soon after, Summitt told her team and went public with the diagnosis. She stayed on for one more season, retiring after the Lady Vols became SEC tournament champions in 2012. Summitt then was named head coach emeritus of the team and was immortalized by a bronze statue on Pat Summitt Plaza.

Summitt ended her career with eight NCAA titles and thirty-two SEC titles, becoming the winningest female basketball coach in history. She won various awards throughout her coaching career. She was an eight-time SEC Coach of the Year, a seven-time NCAA Coach of the Year, and a five-time Naismith College Coach of the Year. President Barack Obama presented her with the 2012 Presidential Medal of Freedom. That same year, National Football League (NFL) star Peyton Manning presented her with the Arthur Ashe Courage Award at ESPN's ESPY Awards. Summitt’s condition had taken its toll on her, however, and as of 2016, she was staying at a retirement facility.

On June 28, 2016, Summitt succumbed to the complications of Alzheimer's and passed away at the age of sixty-four at Sherrill Hills retirement facility in Knoxville. She is survived by her son.

Impact

While Summitt was known for her icy stares and stern demeanor on the court, she was a very caring and thoughtful woman who cared deeply for everyone in her life, including her players. She ensured that her players worked as hard in the classroom as they did on the court; her players had a nearly 100 percent graduation rate, and many went on to become coaches themselves. After her diagnosis, Summitt formed the Pat Summitt Foundation Fund to raise money for Alzheimer’s disease research. Both players and significant figures in the sports world honored her upon hearing of her passing, stating that she would be remembered not only as one of the winningest coaches of college basketball in history, but also as a positive mentor.

Personal Life

Summitt was married to R. B. Summitt for twenty-six years; they divorced in 2007. The couple had one son, Ross "Tyler" Summitt. Summitt, who went by the names Tricia or Trish during her early life, never corrected the officials at the University of Tennessee when they called her Pat, so she became known by that name.

Bibliography

Fleser, Dan. "Pat Summitt Staying at ‘Upscale Retirement Resort.’" Knoxville News Sentinel. Gannett, 24 Mar. 2016. Web. 26 May 2016.

Hays, Graham. "Pat Summitt, Winningest Coach in Division I History, Dies at 64." ESPN. ESPN, 28 June 2016. Web. 2 Sept. 2016.

Jenkins, Sally. "Pat Summitt, Tennessee Women’s Basketball Coach, Diagnosed with Alzheimer’s Disease." Washington Post. Washington Post, 23 Aug. 2011. Web. 26 May 2016.

"Pat Summitt." Pat Summitt Foundation. East Tennessee Foundation, n.d. Web. 26 May 2016.

"Pat Summitt." Tennessee Athletics. CBS Interactive, n.d. Web. 26 May 2016.

"Pat Summitt." University of Tennessee Lady Volunteers, utsports.com/sports/womens-basketball/roster/coaches/pat-summitt/608. Accessed 30 Sept. 2024.

"Pat Summitt, Winningest Coach in Division I History, Dies at 64." ESPN, 28 June 2016, www.espn.com/womens-college-basketball/story/‗/id/16577486/legendary-tennessee-lady-vols-coach-pat-summitt-dies-64. Accessed 30 Sept. 2024.