[Congressional Record Volume 151, Number 38 (Wednesday, April 6, 2005)]
[Senate]
[Pages S3238-S3239]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




   COMMENDING PAT SUMMITT, HEAD COACH OF THE UNIVERSITY OF TENNESSEE 
                        WOMEN'S BASKETBALL TEAM

  Mr. FRIST. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Senate now 
proceed to the consideration of S. Res. 97, which was submitted earlier 
today.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will state the resolution by title.
  The legislative clerk read as follows:

       A resolution (S. Res. 97) commending Patricia Sue Head 
     Summitt, head women's basketball coach of the University of 
     Tennessee, for three decades of excellence as a proven 
     leader, motivated teacher, and established champion.

  There being no objection, the Senate proceeded to consider the 
resolution.
  Mr. FRIST. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the resolution 
be agreed to, the preamble be agreed to, and the motion to reconsider 
be laid upon the table.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
  The resolution (S. Res. 97) was agreed to.
  The preamble was agreed to.
  The resolution, with its preamble, reads as follows:

                               S. Res. 97

       Whereas Pat Summitt, in her 31st year as head coach of the 
     Lady Volunteers (the ``Lady Vols''), has become the Nation's 
     all-time winningest NCAA basketball coach (men's or women's) 
     with her 880th career victory, surpassing the legendary coach 
     Dean Smith of the University of North Carolina;
       Whereas Pat Summitt, at the age of 22, took over the 
     women's program at Tennessee in 1974, when there were no 
     scholarships and she had to wash the uniforms and drive the 
     team van;
       Whereas Pat Summitt won her first game on January 10, 1975, 
     and continued to win games as she became the youngest coach 
     in the nation to reach 300 wins (34 years old), 400 wins (37 
     years old), 500 wins (41 years old), 600 wins (44 years old), 
     700 wins (47 years old), and 800 wins (50 years old);
       Whereas Pat Summitt has coached the Lady Vols to 15 30-plus 
     win seasons, including a perfect season of 39-0, 13 
     Southeastern Conference (SEC) regular-season titles, and 11 
     SEC tournament championships;
       Whereas Pat Summitt has appeared in more NCAA tournament 
     games (107), and has won more tournament games (89), than any 
     other collegiate coach, including a record of 36-0 in the 
     first two rounds, 16 NCAA Final Four appearances, and 6 NCAA 
     Championship Titles, including the NCAA's first back-to-back-
     to-back women's titles in 1996, 1997, and 1998;
       Whereas Pat Summitt played on the 1976 United States 
     Olympic team and later

[[Page S3239]]

     coached the United States women's basketball team to its 
     first Olympic gold medal in 1984;
       Whereas Pat Summitt has been named SEC coach of the year 6 
     times and national coach of the year by several associations, 
     including the Sporting News Coach of the Year, the Naismith 
     Coach of the Year, and the Associated Press Coach of the 
     Year;
       Whereas Pat Summitt and the Lady Vols were selected by ESPN 
     as the ``Team of the Decade'' (1990s), sharing the honor with 
     the Florida State University Seminole's football team, and 
     Summitt became the first female coach to appear on the cover 
     of Sports Illustrated;
       Whereas Pat Summitt was officially accepted to the Women's 
     Basketball Hall of Fame in 1999, and was then inducted to the 
     Basketball Hall of Fame on October 13, 2000, as only the 4th 
     women's basketball coach to earn Hall of Fame honors;
       Whereas Pat Summitt's Lady Vols have a remarkable 
     graduation rate, as each student-athlete who has completed 
     her eligibility at Tennessee has received her degree or is in 
     the process of completing all of the requirements; and
       Whereas Pat Summitt has recently been honored by the 
     University of Tennessee, as the court at Thompson-Boling 
     Arena will be named ``The Summitt'': Now, therefore, be it
       Resolved, That the Senate commends the University of 
     Tennessee women's basketball coach, Patricia Sue Head 
     Summitt, for three decades of excellence as a proven leader, 
     motivated teacher, and established champion.

  Mr. FRIST. Mr. President, I rise to speak to the resolution that was 
just passed, along with my fellow Lady Vol fan and colleague, Senator 
Lamar Alexander, who is currently occupying the Chair.
  This is a resolution honoring our friend Pat Summitt, head coach for 
the University of Tennessee women's basketball team, as one of the 
greatest coaches in NCAA basketball history.
  For 31 seasons, Pat Summitt has served as the head coach of the 
Tennessee Lady Volunteer basketball team. When she first took the 
position in 1974 as a 22-year-old graduate teaching assistant, her team 
consisted of non-scholarship players who depended on her to wash their 
uniforms and drive the team's van. Only 53 fans witnessed Coach 
Summitt's first win that season. But from that day forth, Coach Pat 
Summitt and the Lady Vols started what is now an unprecedented winning 
tradition.
  This season, Pat became the Nation's all-time winningest NCAA 
basketball coach, men's or women's, with her 880th career victory, 
surpassing the legendary Coach Dean Smith of the University of North 
Carolina. Along the way, Pat Summitt has achieved unparalleled results 
on the court, elevating the Lady Vols to one of the elite programs in 
all of sports.
  Her resume consists of 15 30-plus win seasons, including one 
undefeated season record of 39 to 0. Pat has coached her team to six 
national titles, including back-to-back-to-back championships in 1996, 
1997 and 1998. The Lady Vols played in their 16th Final Four this past 
Sunday as Pat Summitt set a new all-time record for Final Four 
appearances.
  Following her remarkable run in the 1990s, the Lady Vols were named 
``Team of the Decade'' by ESPN, tying with the Florida State football 
team, and on October 13, 2000, Coach Summitt became only the fourth 
women's coach inducted into the Basketball Hall of Fame. The University 
of Tennessee has recently honored Pat Summitt by renaming the court at 
Thompson-Boling Arena ``The Summitt.''
  Today I join together with the many Lady Vols fans in acknowledging 
Coach Pat Summitt for her service to her team, the University of 
Tennessee, and the game of basketball. Her dedication to excellence 
over the past 31 years has been exemplary and has made her a role model 
for future generations of students, players, and coaches.
  Congratulations, Pat Summitt.
  I yield the floor.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER (Mr. Vitter). The Senator from Tennessee is 
recognized.
  Mr. ALEXANDER. Mr. President, I join my colleague, the majority 
leader, in saying a word about Pat Summitt.
  I am delighted the majority leader scheduled time for this discussion 
of Pat Summitt and submitted the resolution, which I am proud to 
cosponsor.
  There are a great many superlatives one could offer about Coach 
Summitt. Perhaps the most obvious is sustained excellence over such a 
long period of time--as the majority leader said, 16 Final Four 
appearances, three back-to-back national titles, 107 NCAA tournament 
games, virtually undefeated on the floor of the Thompson-Boling Arena, 
which is now renamed The Summitt in her honor, always playing the 
toughest schedule, always high expectations.
  I was president of the University of Tennessee for nearly 3 years. I 
remember going to a year-end Lady Vols basketball banquet because I 
remember the team had won the Southeastern Conference Championship and 
did not make the Final Four. Pat Summitt congratulated the players, but 
I remember the atmosphere was more like a funeral than a celebration 
because, obviously, the team did not meet the expectations Coach 
Summitt had for her players.
  We live in a society of televised images in which we meet a steady 
stream of people who are at the top of their game for 15 minutes or for 
a few months or for a few years. But for Pat Summitt, it has been 31 
years at the top of her game, and there is no end in sight.
  There are a couple of other less obvious superlatives about Coach 
Summitt. One of these is unselfishness. The coaches whom she regularly 
defeats will tell you, to a woman or a man, that no one has done more 
to build the game of women's basketball than Pat Summitt. When she 
started, there were three girls at each end of the court playing in an 
empty gym. Today it is my favorite game to watch on television because 
of the skill of the players, because of the team play, because of the 
good coaching, and now because of the parity of the sport.
  There are a lot of good teams, a lot of good coaches, and many of 
them are former assistants to Pat Summitt. It seems she always has a 
good word to say about this program or that program, this opponent or 
that opponent. Her objective is to build the game up as much as it is 
to win the game.
  The final superlative is Pat Summitt's emphasis on academic 
achievement. Every young woman who has ever played for her over 31 
years has either graduated or is working today on the requirements for 
graduation. That is almost as difficult as winning back-to-back NCAA 
championships. It certainly sets the right tone for college sports.
  I know how proud I was as a university president to have that most 
visible symbol of our university have such high values. It is mentioned 
at all the games, people see it all the time. It is a superlative 
achievement.
  This past year, Nicky Anosike, one of eight children of a mother from 
Nigeria now living in the United States, became a sudden star at the 
University of Tennessee as a freshman. There were six great recruits 
said to be the best recruiting class ever in the history of this 
country. Four of them were hurt. Nicky Anosike was not hurt, and she 
suddenly became a starter on the team and one of its best starters. 
Some people say she is a female Scottie Pippen at the top of his game.
  As I suspect happens with many of Pat's freshman students, Nicky 
Anosike called home the next few weeks discussing with her mother how 
difficult it was to play for Pat Summitt because she demanded so much. 
Her mother said: What does she expect of you that I did not expect of 
you? That is the reason why I believe parents and young women want 
those young women to go to the University of Tennessee to play for Pat 
Summitt when they might be admitted to any school in the country. It is 
that for 31 years, Pat Summitt has brought out the best in those young 
women.

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