[Congressional Record Volume 140, Number 12 (Wednesday, February 9, 1994)]
[Senate]
[Page S]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]


[Congressional Record: February 9, 1994]
From the Congressional Record Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]

 
  TRIBUTE TO DENNY CRUM--UNIVERSITY OF LOUISVILLE BASKETBALL COACH IS 
                  NAMED TO THE BASKETBALL HALL OF FAME

  Mr. McCONNELL. Madam President, it is with a great deal of pride that 
I rise today to pay tribute to a fellow Kentuckian. Denny Crum, head 
basketball coach at the University of Louisville, was named to the 
Basketball Hall of Fame yesterday and will be inducted on May 9 of this 
year. Anyone who has followed college basketball during the last 20 
years knows that this is an honor which is richly deserved by a man 
known as much for his class and calm demeanor as for his outstanding 
won-loss record.
  Coach Crum has been at U of L for 23 years and is currently enjoying 
one of his most successful seasons. This edition of the Cardinals 
currently posts an impressive 18-2 record and is leading the Metro 
Conference. Television analyst Dick Vitale said just last weekend that 
Coach Crum's team boasts the most talented starting five of any team in 
the Nation. Fans of the game should not be surprised however, Coach 
Crum has won 11 regular season Metro Conference championships and 9 
Metro Tournament titles.
  Coach Crum comes by his basketball prowess through strong bloodlines. 
Originally from California, Coach Crum learned the game from one of its 
giants, the wizard of Westwood, John Wooden of UCLA. He played for 
Coach Wooden at UCLA for 3 years and later coached for him until taking 
the Louisville job in 1971. Coach Wooden paid his pupil some high 
praise recently--when asked to describe the future Hall of Famer he 
said, ``He was born to coach.''
  Madam President, Denny Crum's record is more than just statistics, 
though his statistics speak for themselves. He was the second fastest 
college coach to reach 500 victories. He has coached more NCAA Final 
Four teams--six--than all other coaches except Wooden and Dean Smith of 
UNC. His teams have qualified for the NCAA tournament 17 times and came 
away champions in both 1980 and 1986. In fact, the University of 
Louisville was widely regarded as the team of the 1980's when they 
appeared in four Final Fours.
  Coach Crum, as is his style, would be the first to point out that a 
large number of people have helped him achieve his many successes. He 
has been blessed to have wonderful assistant coaches as well as an 
abundance of talent during his time at Louisville. What Cardinal fan 
could forget Darrell Griffith who led the ``Doctors of Dunk'' to the 
1980 title, or ``Never Nervous'' Pervis Ellison, who as a freshman 
helped the Cards win the 1986 crown. Coach Crum has had 22 former 
players go on to the next level and play in the NBA.
  But he has not won with talent alone. It has been his ability to take 
the non all-stars and make them produce that has made him a winner. 
Cardinal fans cannot forget Poncho Wright, Roger Burkman, Charles 
Jones, Tony Branch, Jerry Eaves, or Jeff Hall, solid players all, who 
Crum helped achieve success beyond their abilities as they contributed 
greatly to some of Louisville's finest teams. This is truly the mark of 
a great coach and leader.
  Madam President, I ask my colleagues to join me in honoring Coach 
Crum as he goes to Springfield, MA, to accept this wonderful honor. In 
addition, I ask that an article from the Louisville Courier Journal be 
included in the Record at this point.
  There being no objection, the article was ordered to be printed in 
the Record, as follows:

             U of L Coach Wins Spot Among Basketball Elite

                             (By Russ Brown

       University of Louisville basketball coach Denny Crum 
     finally blew his long-standing image as Cool Hand Luke 
     yesterday.
       It happened during a combination news conference/
     celebration in front of the media, members of the U of L 
     athletic department, close friends and his wife as Crum 
     answered questions about his election to the Basketball Hall 
     of Fame.
       Crum, who earned the ``Cook Hand'' nick-name for his 
     ability to remain unruffled under pressure during 23 years at 
     U of L, uncharacteristically lost control of his emotions as 
     he started to speak to the group of about 75 at the Student 
     Activities Center.
       His voice cracking and his eyes welling with tears, Crum 
     said: ``I can't tell you how nice it is to have you here to 
     share this special time. I guess it's normal to get emotional 
     at a time like this because it's not something that happens 
     every day.''
       And Crum admitted that, contrary to his earlier statements, 
     he was nervous about whether he would be elected after being 
     one of 11 nominated in November.
       ``I was anxious, I don't mind telling you now,'' he said. 
     ``I was trying to pretend like I wasn't, but you can't help 
     but be. Right now I just feel great.''
       Crum got official word of his election at 10:15 a.m. 
     yesterday in a phone call from a Hall of Fame official. Crum 
     joined two other coaches, Chuck Daly and Cesare Rubini, and a 
     pair of players, Carol Bizejowski and Harry ``Buddy'' 
     Jeannette, as members of the 1994 induction class.
       For induction, a nominee needed 18 of 24 votes from the 
     Honors committee, Enshrinement ceremonies will be May 9 at 
     the Springfield (Mass.) Civic Center.
       Crum will become one of only three active college coaches 
     in the Hall, joining North Carolina's Dean Smith and 
     Indiana's Bob Knight.
       Asked about his reputation of being calm, cool and 
     collected, Crum replied that his demeanor is misleading, and 
     his wife, Joyce, agreed.
       ``I'm not that cool, although it might appear that way,'' 
     said Crum, 56, who was given the Cool Hand Luke tag early in 
     his career by former Marquette coach and TV commentator Al 
     McGuire. ``Everybody shows their emotions in different ways, 
     and I usually don't show mine outwardly. But that doesn't 
     mean I don't have emotions. I do.''
       Joyce Crum said her husband has ``mellowed'' over the 
     years.
       ``One of his assets has always been that he is able to tune 
     everything else out and really focus,'' she said. ``Now he's 
     still able to focus but have fun too. I don't know anyone who 
     wouldn't have been a little emotional today.''
       True to form, Crum accepted the honor with humility, 
     crediting his assistant coaches, former players and U of L 
     administrators.
       ``No one could ever achieve this by himself,'' Crum said. 
     ``I'm very, very appreciative to everyone who has helped me, 
     and I'm thankful for all the good fortune I've had. I've been 
     really lucky over the years.''
       Each new Hall of Famer is required to walk to the podium 
     during the induction ceremonies with a current member, and 
     Crum said he will invite his former coach at UCLA, John 
     Wooden, to accompany him. Wooden, 84 said from his Los 
     Angeles home that he will try to attend if he is healthy 
     enough to make the trip.
       Crum, a native of Los Angeles, played for Wooden from 1956-
     58, and was his top assistant coach and chief recruiter from 
     1968-71 when he moved to U of L to succeed John Dromo. Crum 
     helped the Bruins win three of their seven consecutive 
     national championships.
       Wooden said he always suspected that Crum was ticketed for 
     greatness.
       ``He was born to coach,'' Wooden said recently: ``Even at 
     the time he was playing, it was evident he was going to be an 
     outstanding coach. He was the most inquisitive player I ever 
     had and was always learning.''
       Two veteran Metro Conference coaches, M.K. Turk of Southern 
     Mississippi and Sonny Smith of Virginia Commonwealth, said 
     Crum's election was long overdue.
       ``I think it was an automatic,'' Turk said. ``He is admired 
     throughout the coaching ranks. I can't think of anybody who 
     doesn't think Denny Crum is one of the finest coaches we've 
     had in our profession since Dr. Nalsmith hung up the peach 
     basket.''
       ``Denny Crum is one of the all-time greats in this 
     business, and I'm tickled to death for him,'' Smith said. 
     ``He does everything involved in coaching--on the practice 
     floor, during a game, recruiting and motivating--extremely 
     well.''
       Crum, whose current team is 18-2 and ranked seventh in the 
     nation, was also complimented by one of his biggest rivals, 
     Kentucky coach Rick Pitino, who said: ``I think it's 
     terrific. Anybody who can sustain that excellence for as long 
     a period of time as he has certainly deserves the Hall of 
     Fame.''
       U of L sophomore forward Brian Kiser said Crum deserves the 
     honor and that the players appreciate his low-key coaching 
     style.
       ``He's one of the most levelheaded persons around,'' Kiser 
     said. ``It's great to play for somebody like that who doesn't 
     rant and rave and bring a lot of attention to himself. He 
     just coaches; he's not in it for his own personal glory.''
       Center Clifford Rozier added his congratulations, too, but 
     couldn't resist a good-natured jab.
       ``He may use this as some leverage to get us to pay more 
     attention to his instructions,'' Rozier said, grinning. ``It 
     will be like, `Hey, I'm in the Hall of Fame, y'all need to 
     listen to me.'''
       U of L athletic director Bill Olsen spoke of Crum's 
     generous donations of time to civic, charitable and 
     university causes and called him a ``Hall of Fame person,'' 
     not just a Hall of Fame coach.
       ``Denny's coaching record speaks for itself, but his 
     accomplishments go well beyond victories and championships,'' 
     Olsen said. ``He has quietly and generously given his time 
     and efforts off the court without seeking self-promotion.''
       Crum's contract at U of L takes him through the 1997-98 
     season. His first coaching assignment as a Hall of Famer will 
     come tomorrow night against south Florida in Tampa, which is 
     where he notched his 500th career victory last season.

                        WINNINGEST ACTIVE COACHES                       
       [NCAA division I men's basketball, through Monday's games]       
------------------------------------------------------------------------
                        Coach                            Years     Wins 
------------------------------------------------------------------------
1.Dean Smith, North Carolina..........................       33      793
2.James Phelan, Mt. St. Mary's (Md.)..................       40      718
3.Don Haskins, Texas El Paso..........................       33      640
4.Bob Knight, Indiana.................................       29      633
5.Lefty Driesell, James Madison.......................       32      630
6.Norm Stewart, Missouri..............................       33      628
7.Lou Henson, Illinois................................       32      621
8.Gene Bartow, Alabama-Birmingham.....................       33      612
9.Gary Colson, Fresno State...........................       33      542
10.Denny Crum, Louisville.............................       23      536
------------------------------------------------------------------------


                         MOST NCAA TOURNEY WINS                         
------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                                           Tournament   
                   Number and coach                    -----------------
                                                         First    Latest
------------------------------------------------------------------------
55Dean Smith, North Carolina..........................     1967     1993
47John Wooden, UCLA...................................     1950     1975
38Bob Knight, Indiana.................................     1973     1993
35Denny Crum, Louisville..............................     1972     1993
35Mike Krzyzewski, Duke...............................     1984     1993
------------------------------------------------------------------------

                                                                 

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