Don Haskins facts for kids
Don Haskins, November 29, 2005, upon the renaming of Glory Road, the street the Don Haskins Center is on, at the UTEP campus, El Paso, Texas
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| Biographical details | |
|---|---|
| Born | March 14, 1930 Enid, Oklahoma, U.S. |
| Died | September 7, 2008 (aged 78) El Paso, Texas, U.S. |
| Playing career | |
| 1949–1952 | Oklahoma A&M |
| Coaching career (HC unless noted) | |
| 1955–1956 | Benjamin HS (TX) |
| 1956–1960 | Hedley HS (TX) |
| 1960–1961 | Dumas HS (TX) |
| 1961–1999 | Texas Western / UTEP |
| 1972 | United States (assistant) |
| Head coaching record | |
| Overall | 719–353 |
| Accomplishments and honors | |
| Championships | |
| NCAA University Division tournament (1966) 7 WAC regular season (1970, 1983–1987, 1992) 4 WAC tournament (1984, 1986, 1989, 1990) |
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| Awards | |
| 2x WAC Coach of the Year (1983, 1987) | |
| Basketball Hall of Fame Inducted in 1997 |
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| College Basketball Hall of Fame Inducted in 2006 |
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Donald Lee Haskins (March 14, 1930 – September 7, 2008) was a famous American basketball coach. People often called him "The Bear." He played college basketball for three years. His coach was Henry Iba at Oklahoma A&M.
Haskins became the head coach at the University of Texas at El Paso (UTEP) in 1961. The school was called Texas Western College until 1967. In 1966, his team won the national championship. They beat the University of Kentucky's team, coached by Adolph Rupp. This game was very important. It helped end racial segregation in college basketball.
During his time at Texas Western/UTEP, he won 719 games and lost 353. He only had five losing seasons. His Miners team won 14 conference championships. They also won four conference tournament titles. Haskins led UTEP to 17 seasons with 20 or more wins. He was also an assistant coach for the U.S. Olympic team in 1972. He was added to the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in 1997. His entire 1966 championship team was also inducted in 2007.
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Becoming a Coach
After college, Don Haskins started coaching high school basketball. He coached in small Texas towns from 1955 to 1961. He then took a job at Texas Western College in 1961. This was a chance to coach at a college.
Before Haskins arrived, Texas Western already had African American players. This was unusual at a time when many college teams were all white. Haskins inherited three Black players. One of them, Nolan Richardson, later became a national championship-winning coach himself.
In his first year (1961–62), Haskins' team won 18 games and lost 6. The next year, they won 19 games. They also made their first trip to the NCAA tournament under Haskins. His 1964 team also played in the NCAA Tournament. Haskins often said that team could have won the tournament.
The 1966 Championship Team
The Texas Western Miners had a great season in 1965–66. They finished with 23 wins and only 1 loss. They were ranked third in the nation.
In the NCAA Tournament, they kept winning. They beat Oklahoma City and Cincinnati. Then they won against Kansas in double overtime. They also defeated Utah in the semifinals.
The championship game was against the top-ranked University of Kentucky. Kentucky's team was all white. Coach Haskins made a big decision. He started five African American players. This was the first time this had happened in a championship game. The Miners took the lead and never gave it up. They won 72 to 65. This made them the champions with a 28–1 record.
Haskins later said he didn't think much about starting five Black players. He just wanted his five best players on the court. He said, "I just wanted to win that game." Even though his decision helped change college basketball, he wrote in his book, Glory Road, that he didn't expect to be a "racial pioneer."
After the Championship
After winning in 1966, Haskins' team didn't win another NCAA title. However, he is still a very important person in basketball history. Many players he coached later became NBA stars. These include Nate Archibald, Tim Hardaway, and Antonio Davis.
Haskins also helped many future coaches. Nolan Richardson and Tim Floyd were some of them. He was an assistant coach for the U.S. Olympic team in 1972.
A street in El Paso is named after him. In 1998, the Special Events Center at UTEP was renamed the Don Haskins Center. This was done to honor him.
Glory Road Film
A movie called Glory Road was made about the 1966 championship season. It was released in 2006. Actor Josh Lucas played Don Haskins in the film.
On November 29, 2005, a street in El Paso was renamed "Glory Road." This was to celebrate the movie and the team's victory. Haskins himself appeared in the movie as a gas station attendant.
The movie was based on Haskins' book, also called Glory Road. He wrote it with Dan Wetzel. The book became a national best seller.
Death
Don Haskins passed away at his home on September 7, 2008. He was survived by his wife Mary and three sons. His fourth son, Mark, had passed away earlier. His son Steve is a professional golfer. Don Haskins is buried in Santa Teresa, New Mexico.
See also
- List of college men's basketball coaches with 600 wins
- List of NCAA Division I Men's Final Four appearances by coach
- List of teachers portrayed in films
