Formula For Success

If you have ever witnessed the Tennessee Lady Vols away from Thompson Boling Arena, you know one thing for certain. Tennessee fans travel well. Attendance at home is over 15,000 fans (per game) but I have a sneaky suspicion that their fan presence is big at away games as well. And according to utladyvols.com it is. Beth Bass, CEO of the WBCA tweeted the other night about how she ran into a UT pep rally at a local tavern "lots of orange and rocky top, I will this for all WBB programs." I assumed she is talking about their fan base. The Lady Vols basketball team is one of the most successful women's athletic programs ever! Is there success determined by their following year after year? What is the key to the success of the program? Winning? Passionate fans? The leadership of the University to support the women's team? The coach? Or could it be all of the above?

I've had the pleasure of seeing the Lady Vols in action on the road a few times. I was there in 1999 when Tennessee lost to Duke in the Mideast Regionals in Greensboro, N.C., ending Chamique Holdsclaw's bid to win a 4Th consecutive National Title. Most recently I attended the 2010 SEC Conference Championships at the Gwinnett Arena in Duluth, GA. You know how most conference tournaments have a distinct section where the fans of a particular team are seated,...not Tennessee. There was a multitude of orange all over the arena. So the real question is, how can all programs learn and duplicate what Coach Summit and the Lady Vols have?

School Leadership
Who knows what the University of Tennessee administration thought would happen when they offered a 22 year old the keys to their women's basketball team back in 1974, but 36 years later, based on her success Summit, who was already a million dollar coach, signed a contract extension that will run through 2014. Not only is the coach cared for, the players are rewarded with top notch training facilities, travel venues and state of the art locker rooms.

Fan Frenzy
UT fans are passionate about Lady Vol basketball! They treat their team like royalty and Summit is the queen. A first hand account of their schmoozing goes like this. They give a standing ovation when the team enters the court before the tip-off. Coach Summit enters last and is greeted by cheers, loud applause and an onslaught of "We love you, Pat!" Pat responds with an appreciative wave. The fans continue to stand until the first bucket is made for the Lady Vols. They repeat the routine to start the second half. UT fans are loud and colorful, knowledgeable and appreciative of the success of their program. Who wouldn't want fans like that.

Just Win Baby
In order to have a winning season you have to have great players. How is Coach Summit able to year after year recruit at such a high level? Frankly, what does the city of Knoxville, TN have to offer a 20 something? It's not the mecca of pop culture. It's got to be the history of the program. The Lady Vols have 28 consecutive appearances in the NCAA tournament, winning 8 National Titles. A combined 29 SEC conference championships and tournament titles. 12 Olympians, 19 Kodak All-Americans, 72 All-SEC performers, 46 international participants and 43 professional players round out their accolades. One of the most impressive statistics has to be the 100% graduation rate for all Lady Vols who have completed their eligibility at Tennessee. The second most impressive statistic,...did you know every Lady Vol (since 1976) has played in at least one Final Four during her career at Tennessee. WOW!

There are some top programs which of course rival Tennessee,...UCONN, Stanford and Duke come to mind. And there are a mass of other up and coming programs Baylor? Nebraska? Ohio State? There is also a talented crop of young enthusiastic coaches eager to make a name for themselves and their programs. How about Caldwell and UCLA? Staley and South Carolina? Harper at N.C. State? Ironically I just mentioned three programs with ties to Tennessee. Caldwell served as an assistant at Tennessee. Harper was point guard for Tennessee during the 1995-99 season, she was Kellie Jolly then. Two former Lady Vols, Carla McGhee and Nikki McCray, are assisting Dawn Staley in her bid to build a winning program at South Carolina. So not only does it pay dividends to play for coach Summit and the Lady Vols, but it could put you on the fast track in the coaching ranks.



It is not my intent to paint Tennessee as the ultimate women's basketball program in the country. There are arguably a host of other programs well qualified to challenge Tennessee. But after seeing the Lady Vols win against Kentucky in the SEC Championship game, witnessing the ocean of orange, I was just compelled to sing their praises. They are great ambassadors for the game.

For those programs that aren't at the top of the mountain, I join Beth Bass in,... "willing this for all women's basketball programs!"