Lefty Driesell, the legendary college basketball coach, has died at the age of 92.
Driesell began his collegiate coaching career at Davidson where he led the Wildcats to five Southern Conference regular season championships and three NCAA tournament appearances.
In 1969 Driesell was hired by Maryland and over 17 seasons he built the program into one that brought home an NIT title (1972), two ACC regular season titles, three Sweet 16 appearances, and a trip to the Elite Eight.
During Driesell's tenure with the Terrapins, he helped develop star players like Len Bias, Tom McMillen, Len Elmore, Buck Williams, and John Lucas, among many others.
I am deeply saddened to share that Coach Lefty Driesell passed away this morning. He was a legend both on and off the court and instrumental in my life. I am grateful that we shared some time together a couple weeks ago. We will miss him dearly.
— Tom McMillen (@TomMcMillen611) February 17, 2024
One of Driesell's lasting legacies in college basketball is starting the tradition of Midnight Madness, the annual opening of public practices, which has turned into a big-time event at schools.
When the tradition began, there was little madness.
From a 2014 story in Sports Illustrated:
Did you know Midnight Madness started with a midnight run?
It's true. Happened on Oct. 15, 1971. Byrd Stadium, University of Maryland, College Park. At three minutes after midnight (to make sure they were not starting too early in violation of NCAA rules), the members of the school's basketball team began a mandatory one-mile run on the track. The stadium lights were off, so the only illumination came from the headlights of a few cars parked at one end of the stadium. The workout was not publicized, but some 800 students had gathered to watch. Word of mouth had spread, apparently.
Driesell's time in College Park, Md. came to an end in 1986 after 348 wins, which is second only to Gary Williams (461) in school history. He left Maryland months after Bias' death and returned to coaching two years later at James Madison.
Over nine years with James Madison, Driesell added 159 more wins to his total and led the Dukes to five straight Colonial Athletic Association titles, four NIT appearances, and one NCAA tournament.
Driesell's final coaching stop was at Georgia State where he won four Atlantic Sun Conference regular season titles and one tournament championship. He retired in Jan. 2003 with the fourth-most NCAA Division I coaching wins at the time. He is the only coach to win at least 100 games with four different schools.
Driesell is also a member of both the College Basketball Hall of Fame (2007) and Basketball Hall of Fame (2018).
This story will be updated.
Sign Up
