Tag: Bob Knight

Athletes and sports figures who have died in 2023

The notable athletes, broadcasters, and sports figures we’ve lost so far in 2023.

WATCH: Tom Izzo comments on passing of NCAA basketball legend Bob Knight

Tom Izzo comments on passing of NCAA basketball legend Bob Knight

This week, the college basketball world lost an absolute legend as famed Indiana basketball coach Bob Knight passed away.

Michigan State basketball coach Tom Izzo has always spoken highly of Bobby Knight, who, coincidentally, was the opposing coach when Izzo got his first Big Ten win as a head coach against Bob Knight and the Hoosiers.

Izzo shared his thoughts on Coach Knight, which you can watch below:

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Remembering Bob Knight’s time at Texas Tech

Remembering the legendary head coach and his time at Texas Tech.

On Wednesday night I heard the news about the legendary basketball coach Bob Knight and his passing, there were some emotions I didn’t really expect. As a fan of the Texas Rangers, I was trying to enjoy the moment of their first World Series championship. Once the game ended I thought about Knight’s time at Texas Tech.

As a teenager in Lubbock, Texas, I enjoyed the early 2000s as a fan of Texas Tech athletics. Two very polarizing head coaches were on campus at the time with Mike Leach running the football program and Bob Knight putting his stamp on the basketball program. For someone who never had the opportunity to sit down with Coach Leach or Coach Knight, their passings still had quite an impact on me. Leach gave me a love for Air Raid offenses and Knight gave me a love for passionate basketball.

Bob Knight wasn’t always easy to get along with from what I have heard from others in the industry, but for those of us who attended games at the United Supermarkets Arena, we were mostly fond of him. He after all led us to four NCAA Tournament appearances during his time and one of his assistants, Chris Beard, came close to bringing the first national championship to Lubbock in men’s basketball.

Despite all that he did on the basketball court, my favorite memory of Bob Knight didn’t come on the hardwood. On the night of his passing, I remembered a moment that was 15 years prior to the day. It was on the morning before the Texas vs Texas Tech football game when Michael Crabtree gave Red Raider fans a moment we still cherish.

That morning on College Gameday, Knight was the guest picker and I couldn’t help but laugh and cheer along with all those Red Raider fans who gathered to see Tech finally get to host the weekly event.

Rest in peace coach. As we remember the legendary coach, here are several photos from his time on the Plains of West Texas.

Social media reacts to passing of college basketball legend Bob Knight

RIP to a legend.

You can probably count on one hand how many coaches in any sport ever drew the attention that one Bobby Knight did.

You can also count on one hand how many college basketball coaches have ever been as successful as Knight.

The legendary college basketball coach that led Indiana University to three national championships (1976, 1981, and 1987) died on Tuesday.  He was 83 years old.

Knight’s story is about as complex as it gets.

On one hand he was as successful of college basketball coach as we’ve seen.  He clearly believed in the “student” part of student athlete as he constantly graduated his players while competing for the highest of stakes.

His story also can’t be told without mentioning the controversies and there were plenty that led ultimately led to his firing in the fall of 2000.

As you can expect, when news of his passing broke on Tuesday the college basketball world shared their thoughts and memories, including Notre Dame head coach Micha Shrewsberry.  See that and plenty of more reaction below.

Bob Knight passes away

R.I.P. “General.”

Former Indiana basketball head coach Bob Knight has passed away at the age of 83.

“It is with heavy hearts that we share that Coach Bob Knight passed away at his home in Bloomington surrounded by his family,” the Knight family said in a statement. “We are grateful for all the thoughts and prayers, and appreciate the continued respect for our privacy as Coach requested a private family gathering, which is being honored. We will continue to celebrate his life and remember him, today and forever as a beloved Husband, Father, Coach, and Friend.”

Though he’s known mostly for his time coaching the Indiana basketball team, make no mistake, Knight is a Buckeye, having played on the Ohio State national-title-winning 1960 team, and hailing from Orrville, Ohio. He starred in high school and came to Columbus to play for Hall of Fame coach Fred Taylor from 1959 to 1962.

After his college days, Knight took up coaching at the ripe old age of 24 as the head coach of the Army Black Knights where he stayed from from 1965 to 1971. He was then named head coach of Indiana later in 1971 where he became a legend. Knight won eleven regular season Big Ten championships, took home three national titles, and took the Hoosiers to five Final Fours.

Known for his passion and motivating players with a no-nonsense style of coaching. He amassed a record of 902-371 during his 42-year coaching career that also had a stop at Texas Tech from 2001-2008. He was named the AP Coach of the Year in 1975, 1976 and 1989 and is a member of the 1991 Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame class and the 2006 College Basketball Hall of Fame class.

Knight will be remembered for as long as basketball is played and is survived by his wife Karen and his sons Tim and Pat.

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Roy Williams reflects on the late Bob Knight

Former UNC coach Roy Williams reflects on the passing of Bob Knight.

The sports world suffered a major loss Wednesday with the announcement of the death of one of college basketball’s greatest head coaches, Bob Knight.

Knight, who was 83, was instrumental in advancing the game of basketball, with a historic career stamped for the rest of time. Knight ended his collegiate coaching career with a record of 902-371, winning three national championships.

Knight was the mentor to many coaches, including former UNC head coach [autotag]Roy Williams[/autotag], who shared his thoughts on the legendary coach passing in a statement released by the school.

“Coach (Dean) Smith was certainly my mentor, but the next guy for me was Bob Knight. I played golf with him, watched baseball with him, watched his practices my first year as a head coach, but more importantly I appreciated the help he gave me in my coaching career. He acted like I was one of his guys and made me so much better. He was one of my heroes and I will be forever grateful to him.”

Knight will truly be missed, and Tar Heel Wire sends our condolences to the family and loved ones.

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Sports world reacts to death of Indiana basketball coach Bob Knight

Controversial basketball legend Bob Knight has died at 83.

Bob Knight, the legendary Indiana basketball coach and firebrand courtside personality, died at the age of 83 on Wednesday, his family confirmed in a statement.

From winning three national titles with the Hoosiers to being ejected for throwing a chair onto the basketball court in frustration in 1985, Knight became synonymous with college basketball, for better and for worse.

After joining the Hoosiers in 1971 following a stint at Army, his Indiana teams were some of the most ferocious of the 1970s and 1980s, and he entrenched himself in Bloomington as the most notable sports figure in Indiana history.

Knight’s career cannot be remembered without his infamous temper and a lengthy history of violent acts, like in 1997 when he was videoed choking one of his Indiana players.

He played college ball at Ohio State and coached at Texas Tech after he was fired from Indiana in 2000. He led the Red Raiders from 2001 until 2008, where he would win his 900th game and eventually retire. His son Pat coached at Texas Tech for three seasons after his father’s exit.

After his coaching days, Knight worked as a broadcaster at ESPN until 2015. He finally returned to Indiana in 2020, roughly two decades after his firing, for a basketball game.

Many in the sports world offered condolences for Knight’s passing, remembering his coaching and his short fuse.

Legendary coach Bob Knight dies at 83

Rest in peace, Coach.

Basketball Hall of Fame coach Bob Knight has died at the age of 83. In 42 seasons coaching college basketball, Knight accumulated 902 wins, the sixth-most of all-time. He made 28 NCAA Tournaments and came away from three of his five Final Fours with national championships, all of them with Indiana.

Notre Dame was a regular opponent of Knight’s Hoosiers, who asserted their dominance in the series with 21-6 record during those years. However, the Irish won their first game against Knight in the 1968 NIT, when he was coaching Army.

The Irish also were witnesses to one of the many incidents Knight was involved in during his career. In a 1993 game between the teams, he screamed at and kicked his son, Pat, and subsequently was suspended for one game.

In 2010, two years after Knight coached the final game of his career for Texas Tech, he got in some digs at Notre Dame during a public speaking engagement. He began by referring to Sam Perkins and fellow Hall of Famer Chris Mullin, two players he coached to the gold medal in the 1984 Olympics:

“They were two smart Catholic boys. They should advise Notre Dame to go in the Big Ten, because there are some dumb Catholic boys up there. They have no idea how much it would change their recruiting.”

Since then, of course, Notre Dame has joined the Big Ten for hockey and the ACC for all other sports but remained independent in football. Still, that had to have ruffled a few feathers in South Bend at the time.

In spite of everything, Knight accomplished a lot in his career and deserves to be celebrated for it. May he rest in peace.

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Jordan and Ewing were consensus …

Jordan and Ewing were consensus All-Americans in 1984; the U.S. roster included four of the five players honored that year. “It was just a fun team,” Alford said. “I was 19 years old and a complete gym rat. The pick-up games (were competitive). Just practicing against Alvin Robertson, Vern Fleming, obviously Jordan; it was just an amazing group of guys that I got to practice against, from a guard standpoint, every single day. “I told Alvin years later, it’s the only time that I’ve ever done any kind of hiding in practice, (if) I knew coach (Indiana and national team coach Bob Knight) was going into a drill where you were going to get matched up against somebody.”