[Congressional Record Volume 158, Number 60 (Wednesday, April 25, 2012)]
[House]
[Page H2077]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                       HONORING COACH PAT SUMMITT

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The Chair recognizes the gentleman from 
Tennessee (Mr. Fleischmann) for 5 minutes.
  Mr. FLEISCHMANN. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor a woman who is a 
living legend in my home State of Tennessee. A star basketball player, 
Pat Summitt played at the University of Tennessee at Martin and served 
as cocaptain on the 1976 U.S. Olympic women's basketball team.
  Pat Summitt began coaching Lady Vols basketball at the University of 
Tennessee just before the start of the 1974 1975 season. Starting as a 
graduate assistant, she was quickly promoted to head coach, where she 
earned $250 a month and drove the team van. Thirty-eight years and 
1,098 wins later, Pat Summitt is now the winningest coach in NCAA 
basketball history for either a men's or a women's team. She is the 
only NCAA coach with over 1,000 wins, and she still has never had a 
losing season as head coach.

                              {time}  1040

  This is a pretty impressive record in its own right, but the legacy 
of Pat Summitt does not end there. Indeed, I could speak about her 
accomplishments through the entire morning-hour. I could mention her 
eight NCAA championships, 16 Southeastern Conference seasons, 16 SEC 
tournament championship titles, or her unmatched career .840 winning 
percentage. It is clearly evident that Pat Summitt is an unmatched 
coach on the field.
  Her off-the-field accomplishments are even more impressive. In an era 
rife with collegiate sports scandals, Pat Summitt has upheld the track 
record of uncompromised integrity, while encouraging and maintaining a 
100 percent graduation rate for her team.
  Coach Summitt produces more than just great athletes. She produces 
young women of character whose academic success prepares them to be 
good citizens in the world, as well as great basketball players. Eleven 
of her former players were on the WNBA roster last year, and she has 
coached two WNBA MVPs. Sixteen collegiate head coaches have either 
played or coached under her. The success of her players, both on and 
off the court, is a testament to the dedication she has given to the 
well-rounded development of her players.
  When I return back to the University of Tennessee--my alma mater--the 
legacy of Coach Pat can be found everywhere, from the students in Lady 
Vols attire, to Pat Head Summitt Street in Knoxville, and the Summitt 
basketball court in the Thompson-Boling arena.
  Throughout Tennessee, her legacy is strong as well. She has a gym 
named after her at UT-Martin and at her high school. Pat Summitt's true 
legacy, however, is the alumni who have succeeded due to her hard work 
and the thousands of young women who have pursued excellence in sports 
and have been successful due to her example.
  Pat Summitt retired from coaching April 18 and will continue to serve 
the Lady Vols as head coach emeritus. She now faces a battle against 
early-onset Alzheimer's disease. Like her coaching career, I know she 
will face this battle with courage and determination. We will be 
praying and thinking of her throughout this battle, and I know we will 
miss her input on the landscape of Tennessee.

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