why did bill guthridge retire
Whether Williams would have returned at that time is impossible to say. Even 22 years after turning down the Nittany Lions, Guthridge still couldnt quite bear to leave. Hed have been two years into a rebuild at Notre Dame, and perhaps less reluctant to leave. Theyd had their disagreements, yes. Guthridge was the longtime assistant to UNC coach Dean Smith, who died earlier this year. "We'd always say there were so many time zones -- Eastern Standard Time, Central Standard Time -- but the most important was GST: Guthridge Standard Time," Peterson said. For 30 of his 33 years at Carolina, Guthridge was the behind-the-scenes guy scouting opponents, making sure players got to class on time, disciplining players, getting the players on the bus or airplane and into the hotel, working with office staff on the smallest of details, and recruiting the latter, unlike many coaches, he said he enjoyed immensely. In fact, he communicated as much to Baddour after Baddour was tapped in late June to replace John Swofford as athletic director. How might everything be different? in education in 1963. You accomplished something that takes some other people 20-plus years to do. With Williams, it was the restoration of the family, three national championships and potentially many more years. As a coach, he was stubbornly competitive. Guthridge, his wife said, suffers from vascular dementia - a condition that's a result of reduced blood supply to the brain. He wasnt going to entertain a room full of boosters with behind the scenes stories. When employees came to work at the GAA on a rainy day, Elizabeth Morgan, warm, Bill Guthridge, who made his college basketball reputation as Dean Smiths trusted right-hand man then took Carolina to two Final Fours in three years as head coach after his mentor retired has died after a long illness. An assistant to Dean Smith for 30 seasons, Guthridge replaced his former boss when Smith retired in 1997 after 36 years as coach of the Tar Heels. Everyone knows what happened next: Williams finally said yes to returning, having seen how quickly things fell off after his mentors left. On one occasion, he actually accepted the head coaching post at Penn State, but stepped down from the post a few days later.[3]. Jordan is among many Tar Heels who had tremendous respect for Guthridge. The 1971-72 Tar Heels had finished 26-5 but were upset by Florida State (not an ACC member at the time) in the NCAA Final Four semifinals. The picture most Tar Heel fans will have of him is sitting slightly behind Dean Smith, perhaps leaning over to make a point to the head coach. Guthridge said a few weeks ago he planned to stay another five or six years despite intense criticism from fans and alumni after the teams worst regular-season record in decades. On this Wikipedia the language links are at the top of the page across from the article title. The University is currently operating under normal conditions. Ill really miss this next years team and what those guys have done for me, said Guthridge, whose team last season reached the Final Four before being eliminated in the semifinals. 1 "The End of Absence" Michael Harris, Pt. When Coach Smith died, Coach Guthridge knew that his friend was gone, but he quickly moved back to their time together when they were younger and dementia had not knocked on their doors yet. He bought into everything. In that scenario, Williams never leaves Kansas and Ford probably never leaves North Carolina. Im crying because I failed you guys. But Baddour explained to the chancellor that because of Williams respect for Guthridge, hed never have taken the job over his friend. Guthridge was a player and then an assistant coach at Kansas State . Watch more top videos, highlights, and B/R original content, Do Not Sell or Share My Personal Information. At Smith's retirement. He had interviewed for the Texas job, which went to Rick Barnes, after the 1998 season, after all. I enjoyed my 30 years as an assistant coach, and Ive enjoyed my three years as a head coach.. Ill just say this, says Dave Hanners, one of Smiths longtime assistants. Only different alternate realities. (LogOut/ Graduate of the University of North Carolina. "When Coach Smith announced he was retiring and that Coach Guthridge was taking over, then it all clicked into place for me," Hanners says. He knows where he is and who he is, but it's often difficult for him. On Oct. 9, 1997, Smith called it quits. How would his retirement alter the short- and long-term trajectory of a program built on consistency? His calm demeanorhe could sometimes be found sitting in the stands an hour before road games eating popcorn or a hot dogmasked a passionate love for the Tar Heels. As things went, by the end of the 1999-2000 season which concluded with a surprise Final Four run, Guthridges second trip in three seasons Smiths right-hand man was finally ready to step away himself. In other words, why Smith walked away at the exact moment he did. He said Friday he now knows how Smith felt in 1997 when he stepped down. He directed UNC to the 1998 Atlantic Coast Conference Tournament championship and was named the ACC Coach of the Year. Case in point. Copyright 2013 by Capitol Broadcasting Company. We offer our deepest condolences to the Guthridge family as they grieve the loss of a wonderful husband and father.. So I just feel like we got robbed.. Former UNC Director of Athletics Dick Baddour: Bill was one of the most respected and admired people I have known. Guthridge became head coach after Smith retired in 1997 and coached the team for three seasons.UNC coach Roy Williams called Guthridge a key . SCNext Top 25: Ranking the best high school boys' basketball teams in the 2022-23 season, Brown: There will never be another Bill Guthridge. Why would a healthy 66-year-old call it quits and relinquish the chance to coach that team? Revisionist history does offer some diverging paths, though. 33 yrs on UNC bench. I was just happy that the team had success. My guess is that Coach Guthridge probably never came back from that place after Coach Smiths death and I would speculate that Coach Smiths death may have been the final straw of an increasingly-unfamiliar and disconnected life for Coach Guthridge. One year against Laurinburg, Hanners squad was down about 18 with under nine minutes to play; suddenly, he felt Ford come up behind him. But I know thats something that bothered him to his death, Ndiaye says. Heading into what would have been the fourth year of a five-year contract, Guthridge compiled an 80-28 record, but had not received an extension. 1 team in America. Were the best North Carolina team that never won a championship. On the day of Smiths retirement, The Washington Post reported Smith wants his other longtime assistant, former Tar Heels point guard Phil Ford, eventually to become the coach, a source said. Ford was arguably Smiths best player ever, and UNCs all-time leading scorer at the time. That was probably six or seven years later where somebody else might recognize it. Buffalo Brothers - 1/2 Price Appetizers 4:30pm-6:00pm Monday - Friday, Holliday: State and Carolina headed in different directions for the final two weeks, Brownlow: Angst will be at an all-time high as NC State hosts hated rival UNC, Holliday: Miami puts the Heels back on the bubble, Brownlow: NC State, Duke and UNC all seek to avoid two losses in a row as crunch time hits, Holliday: Pivotal road trips for NC State and Duke, Brownlow: Saturday's matchup marks the beginning of a new Carolina-Duke era, Holliday: Could this be Keatts' best ACC season? Just like Smith, Guthridge found a way to impact his players beyond teaching them offensive and defensive principles. Former UNC Coach Bill Guthridge passed away last night at age 77 w/ family at his side. Hed grow bored of golf, and once that happened, his staff knew hed summoned up the energy for another go-around. Think about it: Youve been an assistant coach for 30-plus years. After Coach Guthridge's retirement in 2003, he and Coach Smith stayed in close contact, visiting each other frequently. The university made a huge misstep when it hired former UNC player, Matt Doherty, a young, untested coach in the league of the Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) and a 180-degreechange from the coaching styles of Coach Smith and Coach Guthridge, as its head basketball coach in 2000, when Coach Guthridge retired. He set NCAA records for most wins by a first-year head coach with 34, and for wins in his first two years with 58. After Dean Smith retired, Bill Guthridge took over for three years and at some point, we can't remember exactly which year, Boswell struck. Smith and Guthridge had long maintained they'd. That season, he led the Tar Heels to a 34-4 record and the final No. Dean Smith unexpectedly retired as head basketball coach at North Carolina just two months before the start of the 199798 season, and Guthridge was immediately named his successor. In Guthridge's final season, he went 18-13 -- at the time, the program's worst finish in decades -- but bounced back in the postseason to reach North Carolina's 15th Final Four before losing in the national semifinals to Florida. Because before we can consider what might have been, we have to understand why everything played out as it did. #RIP. But theres another alternate history with extreme on-court implications that might have forced his hand. But it really wasnt and we both knew it. In that July or August period, when Coach Smith basically told Coach Guthridge for the very last time in his life, Im not ready, Im not gonna do it again, then I think Coach Guthridge told him at that point that hed really like to try, Hanners says. . That includes two as a head coach at Carolina, 10 as a Tar Heel assistant coach and one each as a player and assistant coach at his alma mater, Kansas State. I remember telling the chancellor that, Baddour says. Assistant coach Phil Ford is at right. However, it was Coach Guthridges incurable heart condition that led to his development of vascular dementia, and with its progression, his placement for the last several years in a Chapel Hill assisted living facility. Following Smith's retirement in 1997, Guthridge was head coach of the Tar Heels for three seasons. Sad news. But the season, and that loss specifically, never faded from their collective consciousness. Guthridge did it all with a dry wit and style. "If he told me to run through that wall to make me better, I'd hit that wall," former North Carolina player and well-traveled college coach Buzz Peterson told The Associated Press. And then Bill can decide along the way what he wants to do.. Guthridge also gave to the University away from basketball. If Williams had said no, then who might have been offered the job? It was more a series of passing conversations, regular updates about the coachs state of mind. If Bill Guthridge doesnt look familiar to you as a UNC-Chapel Hill head basketball coach, theres a very good reason for that. His lack of recruiting is why they went 8-20 shortly thereafter. Subscribe to The Athletic for in-depth coverage of your favorite players, teams, leagues and clubs. I dont think he went in that summer thinking, Im not gonna be the basketball coach by fall, Baddour says. In 1976, he also served as an assistant coach to Smith as the United States won the gold medal in men's basketball at the Summer Olympics in Montreal. He was a lifetime assistant coach for whom Dean did a solid. The manager put down his stuff and rifled through his pockets. "I'm not up with it," Guthridge said at one point, when he tried to remember taking over as UNC's head coach in 1997 after Smith retired. Im like, Coach, we won it, congrats! Jamison remembers. When he reached the decision to step down during that summer of 1997, no one could have changed his mind, even if given the opportunity to do so. Why bring those up? [6], National champion Had it worked out where there wasnt a down year or whatever, maybe things end up differently, Frederick says. Certainly, what a marvelous run of three years.. Coach Smith began showing signs of cognitive impairment before Coach Guthridge did. In fact, Guthridge has been involved with 13 teams which have reached the Final Four-as a player at Kansas State in 1958, as an assistant coach with the Wildcats in 1964, as a Tar Heel assistant coach in 1968, 1969, 1972, 1977, 1981, 1982, 1991, 1993, 1995 and 1997, and as UNC's head coach in 1998.. Did Musselman coach in the NBA? Guthridge coached three years and took the Tar Heels to two Final Fours. Smith and Guthridge had long maintained theyd retire together, the natural conclusion to a three-decade partnership in Chapel Hill. And that brings us full-circle, back to the original what-if: What if Dean Smith had finished out his contract, which ran through the end of the 2000-01 season? Together, they taught us basketball is secondary. And as the confetti fell on UNCs first title A.D. After Dean Guthridge burst into tears alongside his former players. A Tar Heel passing him in the hallway might greet him with a quick head nod and a greeting of, Coach. Guthridge would invariably respond with a similar head nod and, Player.. The Parsons, Kan., native posted an 80-28 record in three seasons as Carolinas head coach, leading the 1998 and 2000 teams to the Final Four. Seeded eighth in the South region, North Carolina upset top-seeded Stanford in the second round and continued to the Final Four, where they lost to Florida. I will miss his kindness and wisdom. He is probably best remembered for his loyalty to Smith, who died in February at age 83. Matt Doherty, who succeeded Guthridge as Tar Heels coach and served in that capacity for three seasons, tweeted his condolences Wednesday. He is one of five people to have appeared in the Final Four as both a player and coach. But when Guthridge retired, Williamsthen playing with the Seattle Sonicsmade the effort to find a commercial flight to Chapel Hill, then flew out again as soon as the press conference was over. The Kansas native took over the role of head coach following Smith's departure. Heck, he might still be the coach at North Carolina. when UNC named longtime assistant Bill Guthridge as his successor. He would, however, have just lost his three best players at Kansas in Paul Pierce, Raef LaFrentz and Billy Thomas. Ndiaye comforted his coach, who had become a friend in time. What about Ford? But it was as if the whole contraption was tilted, resting at an incline so that the sand would never get to the bottom. With the number of Americans residing in assisted living communities nearing 1 million and growing, CEAL@UNCs work will be vital for ensuring that older adults nationwide have access to quality and supportive care that enables them to age with dignity and respect. Guthridge was completely content in the role of a lifetime assistant and the Smith/Guthridge combo would have been weakened had Guthridge retired early. North Carolina athletic director Dick Baddour has refused to comment directly on Guthridge's contract, saying the school's board of trustees discourages him from talking publicly about such personnel issues. "He was my coach, he was another mentor. It was the 14th time Guthridge participated in the Final Four. The family told team spokesman Steve Kirschner that Guthridge died of heart failure and that the coach had lived with a heart condition the past seven years. It has to be one of those., Williams talked Thursday night with Kansas athletic director Bob Frederick. Which put Baddour on the search for a long-term replacement for the first time. They made sure we knew it wasnt the most important thing in the world, but that we had been given a talent, and it was our job to use it., The Carolina community mourns the passing of Bill Guthridge, a great coach, devoted friend and loyal Tar Heel. What happened, happened. He, like Coach Smith, was more of a mentor and father figure than anything else. Lets say youve got a 35-year-old guy. He needed to hear that from Guthridge. 33 yrs on UNC bench. Guthridge spent 31 seasons as an assistant to Smith, the winningest coach in college basketball history. Its not fair, but thats just the way it is for assistant coaches, Smith said. Or perhaps someone else from Smiths coaching tree, such as George Karl or Eddie Fogler? For starters, Baddour says he still would have offered Guthridge the job first. One of the things that made (Smith) so special was his ability to be innovative so certainly, I think we would have had some other ways to attack in a game that we struggled, against Utah in the Final Four.. If my answer was no, then Roy wouldve had absolutely zero interest. Like his lifelong friend and mentor, Coach Dean Smith, he led by example instilling values of kindness, discipline and a strong work ethic. Panthers add Parks Frazier as passing game coordinator, Duke finishes 16-0 at home after 71-67 win over N.C. 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On June 30th in 1969, Bill Russell announced his retirement from professional basketball after a 13-year NBA career. He spurned offers to interview for head coaching vacancies, preferring to remain out of the spotlight and continuing to team with Smith. How close did Raleigh come to getting an NFL team? Then Guthridges voice wavered as he began to apologize I feel like its my fault. Hed grown up in North Carolina, graduated from the university, won a championship as an assistant under Smith and had built a successful program as the coach at Kansas. The emotion was there, its just that it was often Guthridge providing it. Then there are the other options from Smiths tree: Karl and Fogler and even Larry Brown. Ndiaye even tried cracking the ice by joking that Guthridges years as head coach probably hadnt hurt his wallet. Though he was a head coach for a short time, he gracefully carried on a culture and legacy that many thought could not be perpetuated. So why leave?, His dry sense of humor was legendary among his players. At which point, Baddour faced as unenviable a position as any athletic director in the country: Who do you hire to fill Dean Smiths shoes? He was a member of the Pi Kappa Alpha fraternity. Information from The Associated Press contributed to this report. Guthridge also took a less talented team to the Final Four in 2000. Whats best for the players future has to come first, Smith said of the way he dealt with McAdoo, who became the second overall pick the in 72 NBA draft. Because that was supposed to be something that we accomplished together.. CHAPEL HILL, N.C. -- Former University of North Carolina head coach Bill Guthridge, who also served 30 years as an assistant to Dean Smith, died Tuesday night at age 77, university officials confirmed on Wednesday. When Smith retired as Division I's winningest men's coach shortly before the 1997-98 season, Guthridge was promoted to replace him, and he guided the Tar Heels to two Final Fours in three seasons. Guthridge coached North Carolina to the Final Four in his first season before losing to Utah. He competed in one as a player at Kansas State in 1958, was an assistant coach at 11 before directing the Tar Heels at two as head coach. Guthridge would still call on Smith, after all, to speak to the team at certain times. Although his individual achievements showcased his ability as a head coach, Guthridge always seemed content working with Smith to develop a top program at North Carolina. But obviously, the better head coach -- one of four or so best head coaches of all time in his sport -- and the decision to retire was seriously flawed by emotion. (Ford) goes, Ah, you wouldve seen it sooner or later. Yeah right. He handed out handwritten notes instead. And everything that happened, for better or worse, led the program to where it is today. He was a perfect sidekick for Coach Smith. Both played college ball in that state -- Smith at Kansas, Guthridge at Kansas State -- and coached at their alma maters before coming to North Carolina. You come up one year, and that year you win the national championship. 3 "The End of Absence" Michael Harris. Its another tremendous loss for our University, our basketball program and our entire community. He was on the sidelines for a record 73 NCAA Tournament victories, including 71 at Carolina and two at Kansas State. Bill Guthridge is best known in Chapel Hill as an assistant coach to Dean Smith, but that isn't the complete picture of the legendary coach. Guthridge went 80-28 from 1997 to 2000 before retiring in June 2000. He was 77. Coaches, both within the program and across the country, still came calling to Chapel Hill every summer to pick his brains about Xs and Os. And come Monday, he got the fateful notice. Coach Smith had so many strengths and very few weaknesses. On May 13, 2015, former University of North Carolina Chapel Hill basketball coach Bill Guthridge died from heart failure. When Coach Smith announced he was retiring and that Coach Guthridge was taking over, then it all clicked into place for me, Hanners says. Hed told reporters he expected to honor the remaining four years on his deal. He once told a newspaper he never left the program because the other 300 Division I head-coaching jobs weren't better than his job as an assistant. Says losing Guthridge "is another tremendous loss. Really, a championship or not is the only major differentiator between Smith and Guthridge. Spend time with family. "I'm extremely saddened by the passing of Coach Guthridge, aka 'Coach Gut,' especially coming so close to the loss of Coach Smith," Jamison, who was national player of the year during Guthridge's first season as coach, said in a statement. 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