Saturday, 21 December 2024

Bobby Knight

Contest: The US Athletic Hall of Fame - Coaches 2024
Embed from Getty Images
Sport(s): Basketball
Statistics: 3 NCAA Division I Championships (1976, 1981 & 1987)
5 NCAA Division I Final Fours (1973, 1976, 1981, 1987 & 1992)
1 NIT Championship (1979)
11 Big Ten Regular Season Championships (1973, 1974, 1975, 1976, 1980, 1981, 1983, 1987, 1989, 1991 & 1993)
1 Naismith College Coach of the Year Awards (1987)
3 AP Coach of the Year Awards (1975, 1976 & 1989)
8 Big Ten Coach of the Year Awards (1973, 1975, 1976, 1980, 1981, 1989, 1992 & 1993)
1 Olympic Gold Medal (1984)
1 Pan American Games Gold Medal (1979)
902-371 NCAA Record
Member of the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame
Member of the College Basketball Hall of Fame
As good as Bobby Knight’s teams became, the attraction would also be the fiery and short-fused coach. His antics were often worth the price of admission.

Knight coached Army for six seasons, taking the Cadets to four NIT tournaments. The University of Indiana noticed Knight’s success, and they signed him to be their head coach in 1971.

With a dedication to perfecting the motion offense, Knight’s players routinely got open and were always team first. It was a success, with the Hoosiers win two NCAA Championships with Knight and appearing in another three Final Fours.

Knight, who had a history of outbursts on the court and with his own players, was placed on a zero-tolerance policy by his school. He quickly blew it when a student said to him on campus, "Hey Knight, what's up?" Knight grabbed the individual by the arm and lectured the student on how he should be addressed. For anyone else, it would have gone unnoticed, but for Knight, it was Indiana's last straw.

He returned to coaching with Texas Tech, a team he brought to the NCAA Tournament four times. He retired during the 2007-08 season with 902 wins, an all-time record at the time.
We are proud to nominate Bobby Knight for the United States Athletic Hall of Fame.

Back to List