36 Facts About Lefty Driesell

Charles Grice "Lefty" Driesell was an American college basketball coach.

Lefty Driesell was the first coach to win more than 100 games at four different NCAA Division I schools, Driesell led the programs of Davidson College, the University of Maryland, James Madison University, and Georgia State University.

Lefty Driesell attended Granby High School and quickly became a star on the basketball team.

Lefty Driesell earned the city's most outstanding player trophy and All-State recognition while leading Granby to the Virginia State Basketball Championship.

Lefty Driesell was named tournament MVP, totaling 59 points in three games.

Lefty Driesell graduated with a bachelor's degree in education in 1954.

Lefty Driesell found time to renew his playing career by joining the Virginia semi-pro ranks, where he once scored 59 points in a single game and earned a tryout with the then Minneapolis Lakers of the National Basketball Association.

Lefty Driesell was given a chance to enter the coaching profession when his prep alma mater offered him its junior varsity position for both football and basketball.

Lefty Driesell served as the head coach at Davidson from 1960 to 1969.

Lefty Driesell cinched his wooing of college prospect Don Davidson by telling him "I'll put your name on the front [of your jersey]".

Lefty Driesell was hired by the University of Maryland, College Park in 1969.

At Maryland, Lefty Driesell began the now nationwide tradition of Midnight Madness.

Lefty Driesell traditionally began the first practice with a requirement that his players run one mile in six minutes, but found that the players were too fatigued to practice effectively immediately afterwards.

On July 12,1973, Lefty Driesell saved the lives of at least ten children from several burning buildings.

Lefty Driesell broke down a door and rescued several children from the fire that eventually destroyed four townhouses.

Lefty Driesell had his detractors despite achieving a relative level of success at Maryland.

Once Lefty Driesell is placed in a position where pressure decision-making, not hard work, produces a victory, he has problems.

In 1984, Lefty Driesell led the team to the school's second ACC Tournament Championship.

Lefty Driesell allegedly told Bias' friends to remove drugs from the room where Bias took the cocaine that killed him.

Lefty Driesell worked as a television analyst during college basketball games.

Lefty Driesell resumed his coaching career as the head coach of the James Madison University Dukes in 1988, staying until 1996.

Lefty Driesell's teams captured five Colonial Athletic Association regular season championships, one tournament championship, and an appearance in the NCAA tournament in 1994.

Lefty Driesell then moved to Georgia State, which he led to four Atlantic Sun Conference regular season championships and one tournament championship in six years.

Lefty Driesell led four of his squads to the NCAA Tournament's Elite Eight, but was unable to ever advance to its Final Four.

Lefty Driesell earned conference Coach of the Year honors at each of his destinations.

Lefty Driesell was named the Southern Conference Coach of the Year four times at Davidson, twice named the Atlantic Coast Conference Coach of the Year at Maryland, twice named the Colonial Athletic Association Coach of the Year at James Madison, and once named the Atlantic Sun Conference Coach of the Year at Georgia State.

Lefty Driesell was awarded the NCAA Award of Valor for helping save lives from a July 12,1973, structure fire.

In 1995, Lefty Driesell was inducted into the Virginia Sports Hall of Fame.

On May 25,2011, Lefty Driesell was inducted into the Southern Conference Hall of Fame.

Lefty Driesell accepted the honor alongside of numerous former players, assistant coaches, and family.

Lefty Driesell was nominated numerous times for the Basketball Hall of Fame, receiving wide support from contemporaries.

In 2018, Lefty Driesell was selected for induction into the Hall of Fame.

Lefty Driesell's son, Chuck, is a basketball coach who served as an assistant for Driesell at James Madison.

Lefty Driesell was a Presbyterian, but often attended churches affiliated with other Christian denominations.

In 2003, Lefty Driesell retired to Virginia Beach, Virginia His wife died in 2021.

Lefty Driesell died in Virginia Beach on February 17,2024, at the age of 92.