Bob Knight

Robert Montgomery Knight (October 25, 1940 – November 1, 2023) was an American men's college basketball coach.

Often referred to as Bobby Knight and nicknamed "the General", he won 902 NCAA Division I men's basketball games, a record at the time of his retirement and sixth all-time record at the time of his death.

Knight was born on October 25, 1940, in the town of Massillon, Ohio, and grew up in Orrville, Ohio.

His father Pat worked for the railroad and his mother Hazel was a school teacher.

He began playing organized basketball at Orrville High School.

Knight continued at Ohio State in 1958 when he played for Basketball Hall of Fame coach Fred Taylor.

Despite being a star player in high school, he played a reserve role as a forward on the 1960 Ohio State Buckeyes team that won the NCAA championship and featured future Hall of Fame players John Havlicek and Jerry Lucas.

Knight was also a member of the 1961 and 1962 Buckeyes teams that lost in the finals to the Cincinnati Bearcats.

Due in part to the star power of those Ohio State teams, Knight usually received scant playing time, but that did not prevent him from making an impact.

In the 1961 NCAA championship game, Knight came off the bench with 1:41 on the clock and Cincinnati leading Ohio State, 61–59.

In the words of then–Ohio State assistant coach Frank Truitt:

"Knight got the ball in the left front court and faked a drive into the middle. Then [he] crossed over like he worked on it all his life and drove right in and laid it up. That tied the game for us, and Knight ran clear across the floor like a 100-yard dash sprinter and ran right at me and said, 'See there, coach, I should have been in that game a long time ago!'"

To which Truitt replied, "Sit down, you hot dog. You're lucky you're even on the floor."

In addition to lettering in basketball at Ohio State, it has been claimed that Knight also lettered in football and baseball; however, the official list of Ohio State football letter earners does not include Knight.

Knight graduated with a degree in history and government in 1962.

After graduating from Ohio State University in 1962, he coached junior varsity basketball at Cuyahoga Falls High School in Ohio for one year.

Knight then enlisted in the U.S. Army and served on active duty from June 1963 to June 1965 and in the U.S. Army Reserves from June 1965 to May 1969.

He conducted initial training at Fort Leonard Wood, Missouri and was transferred to West Point, New York, in September 1963.

He became a private first class.

Knight was the head coach of the Indiana Hoosiers from 1971 to 2000.

His 1975–76 team won the 1976 NCAA tournament, and is the last men's team in Division I college basketball to go undefeated during an entire season (32–0).

They remain, as of the 2022–23 season, the last team to be undefeated National Champions.

Knight sparked controversy with his outspoken nature and his volatility.

He once threw a chair across the court during a game and was ejected, was once arrested following a physical confrontation with a police officer, and engaged in verbal conflicts with members of the press.

After Knight was accused of choking an Indiana player during practice in an incident that was recorded on video, the university instituted a "zero tolerance" policy specifically for Knight.

In 1984, he coached the U.S. men's Olympic team to a gold medal, becoming one of only three basketball coaches to win an NCAA title, an NIT title, and an Olympic gold medal.

He was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in 1991.

While at Army, Knight led the Black Knights to four post-season tournament appearances in six seasons, winning two-thirds of his games along the way.

After taking the job at Indiana, his teams won three NCAA championships, one National Invitation Tournament (NIT) championship, and 11 Big Ten Conference championships.

Following a subsequent run-in with a student, Knight was fired in the fall of 2000.

He also coached the Texas Tech Red Raiders (2001–2008) and Army Black Knights (1965–1971).

He went on to coach at Texas Tech, mostly without incident, from 2001 to 2008.

In the seven full seasons that Knight coached the Red Raiders, his teams qualified for a post-season tournament five times.

He retired partway through the 2007–2008 season and was replaced by his son Pat Knight at Texas Tech.

Knight remains "the object of near fanatical devotion" from many of his former players and Indiana fans.

Knight was also successful on the international stage.

In 2008, Knight joined ESPN as a men's college basketball studio analyst during Championship Week and for coverage of the NCAA Tournament.

He continued covering college basketball for ESPN through the 2014–15 season.

Knight was one of college basketball's most successful and innovative coaches, having popularized the motion offense.

He received national coach of the year honors four times and Big Ten Coach of the Year honors eight times.