Sometimes it is truly mind-boggling to realize what Pat Summitt has accomplished during her illustrious career. As a player, she won an Olympic silver medal in 1976 and won a Pan American championship. She coached the Women’s Olympic team to its first gold medal in 1984. And in 38 years as head coach of the University of Tennessee Lady Vols, her accomplishments are literally too numerous to list! Eight NCAA titles, 32 SEC tournament and regular season championships, 11 Olympians, 16 Kodak All-Americans named to 28 teams, 55 All-SEC performers and over 1,000 victories – what a resume! And after her 1997-98 perfect season of 39-0, Pat became the first female coach to grace the cover of Sports Illustrated. It’s no wonder that in 2000, she was inducted into the Basketball Hall of Fame in Springfield, Mass., the first time she was eligible for the Hall’s ballot. Summitt became just the fourth women’s coach to earn Hall of Fame honors. The year before, Summitt was inducted into the Women’s Basketball Hall of Fame in the inaugural class of 1999. Summitt’s achievements are unparalleled in the collegiate coaching ranks. In addition to her inductions into the Halls of Fame, she was named as the Naismith Coach of the Century in April 2000. She was doubly honored when former Lady Vol Chamique Holdsclaw was selected as the Naismith Player of the Century. Prior to those announcements, ESPN selected her program as the “team of the Decade” (1990’s). She was named Naismith Coach of the 20th Century Off the court, Summitt is equally celebrated. She travels the country as a popular motivational speaker, is the subject of best-sellers and an HBO documentary, and has received numerous awards for her work with charities. Summitt was also awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom by Barack Obama in 2012.
