University of Tennessee Lady Vols Basketball (1960-) - Ranked for 31 Consecutive Years in the AP Top 25 Poll

[DonRocks]

And it isn't exactly like they're "bad" this year - their current record is 16-11 - but that streak of consecutive years being in the Top 25 is ridiculous.

"Lady Vols Fall Out of AP Poll for First Time Since 1985" on espn.go.com

[DaveO]

There is a powerful personal story behind that extraordinary record:  Ranked in the top 25; every week, for over 30 years.   Its the story of Pat Summitt, Tennessee's record breaking coach.  She had a 38 year coaching career:  She led the "lady Vols" to 1,098 basketball victories, the most victories of any coach in NCAA history.  One could go on and on about her legacy as a coach....but there is far more to the personal story.

Prior to the 2011-2012 season Pat Summitt announced she was diagnosed with early-onset Alzheimer's disease.  She coached that season, being in the public eye...very remarkable.  She also turned over many of the responsibilities of coaching that season to her chief assistant.  Following that season she became "head coach emeritus".  In following seasons she was visible.  Probably not now:

Currently U of Tennessee and its sports teams are facing a Title IX oriented law suit connected to alleged rape by two former male athletes and the claim of sexual abuse by the athletes and the athletic administration.  In light of this situation a very recent article references Pat Summitt, her wisdom, her authority on that campus....and the loss the community faces without her leadership.   I'll merely quote from the article:

"What she said mattered," said Mickey Dearstone, voice of the Lady Vols. "If she said it, they'd take it to the bank."

Dearstone can't be blamed for lugging around a certain sadness these days. He's doing play-by-play for a team that has fallen out of the AP Top 25 for the first time in 31 years. It's another sign that Summitt's dynasty seems to be fading.

It's another reminder his old friend isn't on the bench. They were besties, Mickey and Pat. All the battles, the championships, the strides made. That Title IX law that is so central to the lawsuit turns 44 this year. It prohibits sex discrimination in any federally funded activity.

You want to talk irony? Summitt was a Title IX pioneer, playing at Tennessee-Martin the year the law was enacted (1972). UT, a beacon of women's opportunity under Summitt, is doggedly fighting allegations it violated federal law.It's been four-plus years since Summitt was diagnosed. She soldiered on through that final 2011-12 season with equal parts determination and spunk.

"There's not going to be any pity party," she said that season, "and I'll make sure of that."

Now "¦

"I'm not sure that she knows who I am unless I tell her," Dearstone said. "People that were really close to her, it's really sunk in."

That final sentence is very tough.  2011 to spring 2012, Pat Summitt was all there, visible, courageous, and still coaching.  Now the impact of Alzheimer's has set in.

In any case that 31 year record of excellence is mostly attributable to one courageous person.  A very moving story.