32 Facts About Hugh Durham

Hugh Nelson Durham was born on October 26,1937 and is a retired American basketball coach.

Hugh Durham was head coach at Florida State, Georgia, and Jacksonville.

Hugh Durham is the only head coach to have led two different programs to their first Final Four appearances.

Hugh Durham was an all-state quarterback and all-region in basketball.

Hugh Durham chose to play basketball in college and accepted a scholarship offer from Florida State University.

At Florida State University, Hugh Durham is one of the most prolific scorers in Seminole basketball history.

Hugh Durham appears prominently in the Florida State record book as both a player and head coach.

On January 19,1957, Hugh Durham scored 43 points against Stetson University.

Hugh Durham played prior to college basketball adopting the three-point shot.

Hugh Durham was a member of the Phi Delta Theta fraternity.

Hugh Durham was elevated to head coach at Florida State at the age of 29.

Hugh Durham is one of the youngest head coaches in NCAA Division I basketball history.

Hugh Durham was head coach at his alma mater for 12 seasons, is the school's all-time most successful coach, led the Seminoles to the 1972 NCAA Championship game and three NCAA Tournaments.

Five seasons later, Hugh Durham would take a team with five African-American starters to the NCAA Championship game.

Cowens had been a part of Hugh Durham's first recruiting class as the head coach at FSU that had included Lenny Hall.

In 1972, Hugh Durham led Florida State to the greatest basketball season in school history.

Hugh Durham's talented, defensive-oriented but underrated squad was led by Ron King, Reggie Royals, Rowland Garrett and diminutive point guard Otto Petty.

Florida State was not a member of a conference for the first ten seasons Hugh Durham was head coach in Tallahassee.

Hugh Durham remains the only coach to ever lead Florida State to the NCAA final Four.

Hugh Durham immediately embarked on a remarkable transformation project that produced the most prolific era of Georgia basketball still to this date.

Hugh Durham's efforts produced virtual overnight success as from 1981 to 1991, he led Georgia to five NCAA Tournaments, four NIT Tournaments, the 1983 NCAA Final Four, the 1982 NIT Final Four, the 1983 SEC tournament championship and the 1990 SEC Championship.

In that same span, Hugh Durham was named SEC Coach of the Year four times.

That season, Hugh Durham led Georgia to the school's first ever post-season tournament as the Bulldogs received an NIT bid.

Hugh Durham again shocked the basketball world by leading the Bulldogs to the 1983 NCAA Final Four.

Hugh Durham was voted SEC Coach of the Year for the fourth time in ten seasons.

Hugh Durham remains the only coach to ever lead Georgia to the NCAA Final Four.

In March 1997, Hugh Durham came out of retirement at the age of 59 to try to help rebuild the struggling basketball program at Jacksonville University.

Hugh Durham was signed to be the assistant athletic director.

In 2000, Hugh Durham was named athletic director in addition to his basketball head coaching duties.

Hugh Durham served in the dual roles from 2000 through 2004.

Hugh Durham coached at Jacksonville for eight seasons, retiring in March 2005 as the most successful coach in Jacksonville history with 106 victories.

Hugh Durham was inducted into the Florida State University Hall of Fame in 1980, the Kentucky High School Hall of Fame in 1994, the Florida Sports Hall of Fame in 1999, the Georgia Sports Hall of Fame in 2009, the Kentucky Sports Hall of Fame in 2012, and the National Collegiate Basketball Hall of Fame in 2016.