He has been a member of Rotary International for more than 20 years. A Coaching Life on Apple Books Slocum, who has been undergoing chemotherapy treatments, helped him make peace with his decision. You played baseball in college. Blair was intrigued by the universitys facilities, its athletic prowess in other sports and its location. He said thats the right time to retire because the program is strong and he needs to spend more time with his wife, Kyla, and their children and nine grandchildren. [3] At South Oak Cliff, Blair coached Debra and Kim Rodman, Dennis Rodman's sisters. The team also won the 2008 Big 12 conference tournament title. But he drew in others, like Sydney Colson and Danielle Adams around the same time, both of whom were on the Aggies 2011 national championship team. The girls asked me if I'd coach them. Sonja Hogg is the first lady of college basketball: she knew how to dress, how to press, and she knew how to recruit. Thats when I went to South Oak Cliff High School and got one of few jobs that were open. Texas A&M Coach Gary Blair Once Built a Dynasty in South Oak Cliff It makes you appreciate the road of women in sports. A&M's Blair, Arkansas-based wife make marriage work - Chron This is a reflection year more than anything, and I'm trying to get organized. 2023 Maroon & White LP. "Just because of the impact that he's had on the women's game. That was a special time for the game, he said. On Thursday night, Blair will coach the Texas A&M women's team at . Early in his first season, he offered four free tickets to a game during an interview on a local radio station. After serving on former Georgia coach Andy Landers' staff in Athens from 2011 to 2015, Taylor had a breakthrough season in 2020-21, as the Lady Bulldogs went 21-7 and advanced to the SEC . There is the good, the bad and the ugly of social media. The sport was narrowly on his radar in 1972 when he was a PE teacher at South Oak Cliff in Dallas. Sometimes you have to wait for things. For me, hes been almost like a grandfather, she said. After his tour, he lived in the Los Angeles area, running a restaurant in Costa Mesa and Culver City. Texas A&M women's basketball coach Gary Blair will retire after the 2021-22 season, officially making the announcement in a school release Thursday morning. One of my biggest pet peeves is adults who refuse to admit to mistakes. Fantasy women's basketball: Will the addition of Candace Parker shake up fantasy values on the Aces? Long-time assistant coach Kelly Bond-White is obviously helping with those recruiting efforts. Guard Destiny Pitts said Blair has influenced her beyond basketball. I love competition. Brent Zwerneman is a staff writer for the Houston Chronicle covering Texas A&M athletics. I switched my major to kinesiology. We were in Okinawa when everyone was trying to pull troops back. Postseason invitational champion I play golf about four days a week in the mornings. Soon-to-retire Texas A&M women's coach Gary Blair talks with South Carolina counterpart Dawn Staley before the top-ranked Gamecocks' 89-48 victory Thursday night. "Thank you and Gig 'Em. The Aggies (14-12, 4-10 SEC) will miss the NCAA Tournament this season unless they stun in the conference tournament. Hes the winningest coach in Texas A&M history with a 430-170 record in 18 seasons. Request a review copy, Professors: Whatever social media tells them to do, they live it in that moment. We all want to make this season special for us and for him.". Coachs Chair: Gary Blair, Texas A&M University, No. [14] This marked the first time in Aggie history that the women's basketball team had earned consecutive NCAA tournament berths. The wit and wisdom of Blair, 75, will again be on a national stage starting at 5 p.m. Monday, when the second-seeded Aggies face No. The beers were in the apartment office where she walked in, so I told my friends, 'I'm going to get a beer. We finished third, first, first, second and first. We missed out on plenty of them, he said, laughing. A&M women's basketball coach Gary Blair. He was a good kid, and he grew eight inches after high school. A member of the Basketball Hall of Fame, the 76-year-old Blair has a career record of 838-333in 36 seasons at Stephen F. Austin, Arkansas and Texas A&M. Texas A&M women's basketball coach Gary Blair to retire at end - ESPN Our fans were getting restless, he offered in his typical bemused delivery. What else can they do to us? Blair wondered Monday night of the selection committee. Those were special years.. Taylor succeeds hall of famer Gary Blair and is inheriting a program that is one of eight schools in the past 20 years to have a national title. . "That makes this harder on Gary. Ive got a saying: today I gave all I had, and what I kept Ive lost forever. He would drive me to ball games and couldnt come in and watch (due to NCAA rules), so he would sit in the parking lot and work with what whatever Internet we had around 2000. Ive been at basketball schools all the way, to (A&M). tears streaming down the faces of former players . Hes a treasure not only on the floor but off the floor.. our players and coaches wildly celebrating the biggest win in womens basketball history at Texas A&M . He got the nickname "The Worm" from playing pinball back in the day. I got the girls involved in an intramural program, and that's when Title IX was passed. 2,868 Views | But things have changed so much. "This is an incredible honor," Blair said. Weve got plenty of time for that, Bjork said The great thing about the timing from only that perspective is you have all season to analyze, look at the landscape of college basketball, see what coaches are out there, see what the future holds and be able to analyze what that landscape is. All rights reserved. We cant get separation on teams, no one plays us close, our defense is solid but were not stopping people theyre scoring on us. This outlines how and why we collect, store and use your personal data when you use our website. Although I am excited to begin a new chapter in my life, I am even more excited to compete this year. I usually ask experienced coaches how young people have changed since you first began coaching, but you have 45 years of experience. Melissa Gregg is a Dallas police officer. Coach's Chair: Gary Blair, Texas A&M University It didnt take long five successful seasons for others to come calling for Blair. In his final season with the Lady Razorbacks, the team finished the season ranked 24th nationally and reached the second round of the NCAA Tournament. Barbara Brown McCoy went on to be a standout guard at Stephen F. Austin before going into high school coaching herself. It will be nearly impossible for Texas A&M to replace women's basketball coach Gary Blair, who announced Thursday that he will retire at the end of the 2021-22 season. Im not playing kids just to keep them from transferring. I play golf in the mornings and try to walk all the time. I remember thinking that I wished I could somehow stop time., GARY BLAIR, head womens basketball coach at Texas A&M University since 2003, led the Aggies to an NCAA national championship in 2011. The Blairs own a home in the Traditions development in Bryan that Nan designed. How can you be No. "They just feed off each other so well.". He is a stepfather to her two children, Callie and James, and is also a father to Paige and Matt Blair from his previous marriage with Nan Smith. 8 b&w photos. He can tell you all about their kids, their jobs, their successes. Thats when we brought in Johnnie Harris, who did a wonderful job for me. Three years earlier, Garrido had deadpanned why it was important UT had made the CWS in 2011. ", Texas A&M naming court in honor of retiring Blair, The top 35 women's college basketball players in the transfer portal, Ex-Louisville star Van Lith picks champion LSU, New Big Ten boss Petitti ready to lead 'new era', Wake Forest's Spear, top-5 ACC scorer, in portal, Survey: Male athletes unsure of Title IX process, Oregon State AD Barnes released from hospital, S. Carolina brings on former Oregon PG Paopao, Ex-Iowa St. guard Donarski transferring to UNC, How Hailey Van Lith's transfer impacts NCAA champion LSU. Overall, Blair has 852 career wins, 12th all-time in Division I history, and has led the Aggies to 16 NCAA tournaments, eight Sweet Sixteens, three Elite Eights and five conference titles along with the the 2011 national championship. Been engaged a year to a wonderful lady. a reporter reminded Blair he had defeated Nebraska in the 2010 Big 12 tournament when the Cornhuskers were 30-0 and ranked No. teacher, while waiting for an offer to coach the baseball team, but when asked to coach the girls' team, he accepted. And thats OK. We (coaching staff) spent two hours last night with current recruits, Blair said. She was named to the Texas High School Hall of Fame and she was the first female athletic director in Dallas ISD in 2001. As older coaches, we have to change with todays kids. He was raised in the Forest Hills neighborhood of Dallas. Things get started with the dinner Thursday, May 6 at the Brazos County Expo at 6 p.m. Plates are $20 for all-you-can-eat catfish. Blair still marvels at the serendipity that brought him to coaching. In the final game, the USA beat South Korea to finish the competition with a perfect 93 record. . If its about money, Garrido said with a wry smile, well play in Austin.. Gary Blair is the son of Lee, a plaster foreman, and Jean, a housewife. As for life after coaching, Blair said quality time with his family is at the top of his list. Early in his high school career, he was the most average guy that you had ever seen. I pull for all the older men and women. They asked for volunteers to coach (girls) basketball (at South Oak Cliff), and the girls next door asked me if Id coach. I do not miss that, but I miss the evaluations. I have no regrets and just hold my colleagues, my players and the game in such high regards. 5 Aggies", "With Title, Texas A&M Coach Has Another Story to Tell", "Former SFA head coach to be inducted into Ladyjack Hall of Fame", "Click here to find out more! I try to take the time to really reflect on my career and to really enjoy each and every moment of these last games of my career.. The Astros gave four underdog pitchers a shot. I just need an arena with 94 feet to be able to compete., - Gary Blair on being honored in opposing gyms this season. [7] He also started the boys and girls golf team, and served as its first coach as well. She coached a gold medal team for USA Basketball, and that always helps in recruiting. Coach Gary Blair and the A&M women are ranked No. 0. "Skinny," Nan said, chuckling, of the man who would later lead Texas A&M to a national title thanks in part to his recruiting acumen. Im around all the other events; Im the only coach thats in a civic club. Coach Blair has been a tireless advocate for women's basketball in general and was inducted into the Women's Basketball Hall of Fame in 2013. 9 seed for the NCAA Tournament and reached the NCAA Final Four. I will not be second-guessing. Joni Taylor is doing very well. Stroud: Analyzing two pro days, Q&A with Texans chairman Cal McNair on GM, new coach and draft, Entering 2nd season, Jeremy Pea a celeb who doesn't act like one. Blair did the impossible. He has also held his "Celebrity Golf Classic" to benefit Special Olympics for over 15 years; recently, the program has raised over $100,000 annually. During his stint at Arkansas, the womens game evolved in a way Blair had always hoped to see. When I max out, Im juggling lot of hats. My weakness is Im not hard enough to fire someone. It was back then Old Dominion, Louisiana Tech, Long Beach State, Western Kentucky and Cheney State that were the big dogs. Bobby Knight would have a hard time coaching today, and Barmore. 6.12 x 9.25 x 0 in 288 pp. You dont ever say that, but sometimes youve got to admit somebody might be better than you particularly in the changing world that were living in today.. He was stationed in Okinawa during his duty. Gary Blair - Wikipedia It would have been 16 had the 2020 tournament not been canceled because of the COVID-19 pandemic. Gary Claude Blair (born August 10, 1945)[1] is a retired women's basketball head coach. If youve ever spent any time with Blair, you know the story or pieces of it, anyway. "She doesn't have a job and I don't have a job," Gary said. It's good to be back. We would pack them in to the old field house, and after two years when we won National Championships, we moved (the venue) to the new assembly center. Ask Liucci: Spring football takeaways, A&M's spring sports & more, Follow The Money - Ep. "We both have careers. Timing is everything in coaching. "When they're together, you can just tell how much they care about each other," A&M guard Sydney Carter said. I dont want kids to transfer, I want them to realize when they come back to a reunion like the one we had (earlier this month). [3] For the first time in his career, however, one of Blair's team suffered a losing season. We were just coming off of a state championship team and I had just got married. Kit Lyle was with me at Stephen F., and more recently he was Chennedy Carters coach for her last two years of high school Mike Neighbors was a high school coach at Cabbot making $72,000 a year. Last: How long do you want to ignore this user? He even gave out his home address for the lucky first four who showed up. Nan drove in from Fayetteville on Friday night in time for the Aggies' first-round NCAA Tournament game against Albany starting 5:35 p.m. Saturday in Reed Arena. Theres no one in my generation who will ever eclipse his achievements. All the ones youve met and coached and had in your life. He stresses offensive rebounding and defense to his teams,[2] and his 2007 Texas A&M team ranked among the nation's best in scoring defense, blocked shots, and steals. Texas A&M's Gary Blair Texas associate head coach Johnnie Harris has worked alongside Vic Schaefer since 2007.
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