COLUMN: Summitt's passing is a celebration of her success

By Rudy Coggins
Published in Sports on June 29, 2016 1:48 PM

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The news of Pat Summitt's battle with early onset dementia, Alzheimer's Type, shocked the basketball world five years ago.

Summitt succumbed to the disease Tuesday.

She was 64.

The outbreak of emotions extended worldwide for a woman who undoubtedly was the "John Wooden" of her profession. Her icy glare and intensity on the sidelines identified Summitt, who posted 1,089 wins -- the most of any Division I coach -- male or female.

The news broke my heart.

And I'm choking back tears as I write about one of the pioneers of women's basketball who gave her heart, soul, blood, sweat, tears and passion to the game she truly loved.

I had the pleasure of meeting Coach Summitt more than a decade ago. I stood there in awe -- a short moment that left quite a lasting impression. She spoke with an eloquence that had a slight southern drawl and shook hands with fans, young and old. She stopped to take pictures -- momentos frozen in time.

That, to me, spoke volumes about her as a person.

On the court, Summitt epitomized basketball.

She helped grow the sport during the old AIAW (Association of Intercollegiate Athletics for Women) days long before the NCAA resolved Title IX. She selflessly worked with legendary coaches Marianne Stanley of Old Dominion, Jody Conradt of Texas, Sonja Hogg and Leon Barmore of Louisiana Tech, Debbie Ryan of Virginia, the late Kay Yow of N.C. State, Chris Weller of Maryland, C. Vivian Stringer of Rutgers, Andy Landers of Georgia, Joe Ciampi of Auburn -- the list goes on -- to give women's basketball the exposure it deserved.

Then came the players.

Summitt coached four of the best -- Chamique Holdsclaw, Niya Butts, Tamika Catchings and Jody Adams-Birch, who was on the Lady Vols' 1991 national championship team. Holdsclaw gave an emotion-filled first-count story of her relationship with Summitt.

As did current UT coach Holly Warlick.

Another Summitt protege, current UNC head coach and Hall-of-Famer Sylvia Hatchell, donned the Tennessee uniform in the early 1970s. A cancer survivor, Hatchell has won more than 700 games in Chapel Hill.

The knowledge all of these women gained while playing for one the sports greatest mentors is undoubtedly invaluable.

You can't put a price tag on it.

That's why Summitt's passing is more like a celebration. She spent her life working to make women's basketball equal to the men's game. Summitt used the sport as a platform to demand excellence, to empower women and help them believe they can achieve anything -- and not take a back seat to anyone.

Rosa Parks would have been proud of her tenacity.

Summitt infused her competitive edge into her players. She wasn't afraid to hop on a plane and travel to play some of the country's top programs. Tennessee won six national crowns within a 12-year period.

In all, eight national championship banners hang over The Summitt, the court named after the late coach, inside Thompson-Boling Arena. It's an immortal recognition of a woman who believed in hoops and family. She learned how to cut tobacco and bale hay from her father. She never backed down against her older brothers as they battled on the basketball court.

Summitt's grace, dignity and courage while fighting a debilitating disease firmly characterized her a person who refused to quit. Those who follow women's college basketball with a passion like I do understand and mourn the loss. We're only human.

To those who have and will follow in her footsteps, I hope they carry her shining light and spirit within their soul. They, in typical Summitt fashion, should show the same respect for the game as she did for four decades.

Summitt will be greatly missed.

Rest in peace on Rocky Top, Pat.