1. George Edward "Skip" Prosser was an American college basketball coach who was head men's basketball coach at Wake Forest University at the time of his death.
28 Facts About Skip Prosser
1. 2.
Skip Prosser was the only coach in NCAA history to take three separate schools to the NCAA tournament in his first year coaching the teams.
3.
Skip Prosser spent his first year coaching at the collegiate level at Loyola College in Maryland, taking the Greyhounds to the team's first modern-day NCAA Tournament appearance.
4.
Skip Prosser was born and raised in the Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania suburb of Carnegie and graduated from Carnegie High School, where he played football and basketball.
5.
Skip Prosser played basketball and rugby union at the United States Merchant Marine Academy where he earned a degree in nautical science in 1972.
6.
Skip Prosser earned his master's degree in secondary education from West Virginia University while he taught at Wheeling Central.
7.
Skip Prosser coached 15 seasons as head coach at the collegiate level.
8.
Skip Prosser returned to Xavier precisely one year later, on April 1,1994, to succeed Gillen, who had accepted a similar position at Providence College two days prior.
9.
Skip Prosser became the second-winningest coach in Xavier history after Gillen.
10.
Skip Prosser began his career at Wake Forest in 2001 and led the Demon Deacons to the NCAA tournament in each of his first four years there.
11.
Skip Prosser is credited for sparking participation in the Wake Forest student Screamin' Demons and increasing attendance with game-time antics, like having the Demon Deacon mascot enter Lawrence Joel on a Harley Davidson and filling the coliseum with Zombie Nation's "Kernkraft 400" at tip-off and when the Deacons would go on a run.
12.
At Wake Forest, Skip Prosser won 100 games faster than all but two ACC coaches.
13.
Skip Prosser was the collegiate coach of current or former NBA players Aaron Williams, James Posey, David West, Josh Howard, Darius Songaila and Chris Paul; he won national recruiting wars for Paul and Eric Williams.
14.
Every senior whom Skip Prosser coached earned his degree in four years.
15.
Skip Prosser's teams were known for their fast tempo and offensive explosiveness.
16.
Skip Prosser would attend the class and write the required term paper.
17.
Skip Prosser had two sons, Scott and Mark, who are from his first marriage to Ruth Charles.
18.
An avid sports fan, Skip Prosser was a follower of the Pittsburgh Steelers since childhood and would often find sports bars to watch their games while on the road.
19.
Skip Prosser was at Three Rivers Stadium to witness the Immaculate Reception.
20.
Skip Prosser saw Roberto Clemente's 3,000th and final hit, and the last game ever played at Three Rivers Stadium.
21.
Skip Prosser earned a reputation in college basketball for a keen intellect and sense of humor.
22.
Skip Prosser enjoyed reading the books of Robert Ludlum, along with biographies and books on history, philosophy, and politics.
23.
On July 26,2007, Skip Prosser collapsed in his office around noon after jogging at the Kentner Stadium track adjacent to his office in the Manchester Athletic Center on Wake Forest's campus.
24.
Skip Prosser was rushed to Wake Forest University Baptist Medical Center, where he was pronounced dead at 1:41 pm from an apparent "sudden massive heart attack".
25.
The announcement of Skip Prosser's death was delayed until later in the day because his wife was traveling to Cincinnati and had not yet been reached.
26.
Skip Prosser ate lunch the previous day with his predecessor as Wake Forest coach, then University of South Carolina coach Dave Odom.
27.
Skip Prosser then ate dinner with his son Mark, who was in Florida recruiting, before flying to North Carolina Thursday morning.
28.
Skip Prosser was then buried at the Spring Grove Cemetery in Cincinnati.