2012 Distinguished Alumni Award Winner
Pat Summitt—the iconic Lady Vols basketball coach—transcends the game of basketball and has come to represent all that is positive in sports and in life.
As the all-time winningest basketball coach in NCAA history (for both men and women), she has brought notoriety and acclaim to the University of Tennessee for the past thirty-eight years. Among her many professional accomplishments are eight NCAA Women’s Basketball Championships, sixteen SEC Women’s Regular Season Basketball Championships, sixteen SEC Women’s Tournament Championships and 1,098 wins Summitt was named the Naismith Basketball Coach of the Century, appeared on the Sporting News list of Greatest Coaches of all time in all sports, and is a member of the inaugural class of the Women’s Basketball Hall of Fame, a member of the Basketball Hall of Fame, eight-time SEC Coach of the Year, seven-time NCAA Coach of the Year, Sports Illustrated’s 2011 Sportswoman of the Year, and “Americas Best Leaders for 2007” by U.S. News & World Report.
During her illustrious career, Summitt has been a mentor to hundreds of Lady Vols, and has more than seventy former players, coaching staff, and assistants who have gone on to careers in basketball. She teaches her student-athletes to be good citizens— not just basketball players—and has a 100 percent graduation rate for women who have completed their eligibility at UT.
Through it all, she has still found time to be active with United Way, Race for the Cure for Juvenile Diabetes, and has now started the Pat Summitt Foundation to benefit Alzheimer’s research.
What advice would you go back and give yourself as a college freshman?
Believe it or not, I was very shy as a college freshman, so I would advise myself to be more confident and assertive…to speak up more.
How did UT affect your life?
UT gave me a platform to teach, cultivate, and inspire young women to reach their full potential in the classroom, on the court, and in their daily lives.
Pat Summitt—the iconic Lady Vols basketball coach—transcends the game of basketball and has come to represent all that is positive in sports and in life.
As the all-time winningest basketball coach in NCAA history (for both men and women), she has brought notoriety and acclaim to the University of Tennessee for the past thirty-eight years. Among her many professional accomplishments are eight NCAA Women’s Basketball Championships, sixteen SEC Women’s Regular Season Basketball Championships, sixteen SEC Women’s Tournament Championships and 1,098 wins Summitt was named the Naismith Basketball Coach of the Century, appeared on the Sporting News list of Greatest Coaches of all time in all sports, and is a member of the inaugural class of the Women’s Basketball Hall of Fame, a member of the Basketball Hall of Fame, eight-time SEC Coach of the Year, seven-time NCAA Coach of the Year, Sports Illustrated’s 2011 Sportswoman of the Year, and “Americas Best Leaders for 2007” by U.S. News & World Report.
During her illustrious career, Summitt has been a mentor to hundreds of Lady Vols, and has more than seventy former players, coaching staff, and assistants who have gone on to careers in basketball. She teaches her student-athletes to be good citizens— not just basketball players—and has a 100 percent graduation rate for women who have completed their eligibility at UT.
Through it all, she has still found time to be active with United Way, Race for the Cure for Juvenile Diabetes, and has now started the Pat Summitt Foundation to benefit Alzheimer’s research.
What advice would you go back and give yourself as a college freshman?
Believe it or not, I was very shy as a college freshman, so I would advise myself to be more confident and assertive…to speak up more.
How did UT affect your life?
UT gave me a platform to teach, cultivate, and inspire young women to reach their full potential in the classroom, on the court, and in their daily lives.
