Since 1974 Pat Summitt has been coaching the Lady Vols Womens Basketball Team to victory. It is no secret that Pat is valued and respected in the Tennessee community. But a recent surge in Summitt support has proven just how loved she is.
 This week, Coach Summitt released a statement to students, faculty and fans everywhere that she was diagnosed with early onset dementia, Alzheimer’s type, at age 59. From the moment the announcement was released, support for Summitt went viral.
A Facebook group titled “Wear Orange to Support Pat Summitt” gained nearly 50,000 participants in just a few days. During the event, taking place today, Summitt fans from around the world have posted their words of encouragement and photos of the orange they are sporting for our coach.
Another Facebook page, “We’ve got you back Pat” reached 20,ooo fans today. Even fans from rival schools are showing their support for the beloved coack. One Alabama fan posted, “I may bleed crimson and white and say ‘roll tide,’ but I will wear an orange tie because I am on Pat Summitt’s side.”
Coach Summitt was a campus celebrity long before her recent announcement. She made it clear that it would be business as usual telling GoVolsXtra.com, “There’s not going to be any pity party and I’ll make sure of that.”
Summitt is respected both on and off the court for her work with the Lady Vols. During her time as head coach, the Lady Vols have won eight NCAA championships and 29 Southeastern Conference tournament and regular season championships. Coach Summitt is a dedicated role model, educator and supporter of her athletes and has a 100 percent graduation rate for all Lady Vol athletes who completed their eligibility at Tennessee.
Even before she made headlines as head coach at UT, Summitt had already solidified her name in basketball history. In 1976 Summitt co-captained the first United States women’s national basketball team and helped lead them to a silver medal in the Summer Olympics. She returned to the Olympics in 1984, this time as a coach. She led the U.S. women’s team to a gold medal victory making her the first U.S. Olympian to win basketball medals as both a player and a coach.
Summitt has put her time, money, sweat, and love into the UT women’s basketball program. In a 2009 interview with Time Magazine, Summitt remembered the state of women’s basketball at the beginning of her coaching career. “I had to drive the van when I first started coaching. One time, for a road game, we actually slept in the other team’s gym the night before.”
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It is truly inspiring to see how far our basketball program has come under the direction of Pat Summitt. And the winningest coach in NCAA basketball history has no plans to stop coaching.She told fans in her statement that she will “continue coaching at the University of Tennessee as long as the good Lord is willing,” and UT will be behind her every step of the way.
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It is an honor to attend a university with such an amazing, strong woman. Read more about Summitt’s accomplishments and contributions to UT on her Lady Vols bio. Also, I encourage you to look at the photos and comments on the Facebook event. It will make you proud to call yourself a Tennessee Vol.
Ribbon designed by Paul Lee Spears and posted on the “We’ve got your back Pat” Facebook page.