Lefty Driesell, Legendary Maryland Men’s Basketball Coach, Dies at 92
Charles “Lefty” Driesell, the Hall of Fame Maryland men’s basketball coach who built the program into a consistent competitor, died on Saturday morning at 92 years old, the school announced.
Driesell was a college head coach for 41 seasons with four different teams, but made his mark while leading Maryland’s program. After coaching Davidson for nine years, leading the Wildcats to three NCAA tournaments and two Elite Eights, Driesell took over a Maryland team that had only been to one NCAA tournament between 1923 and ’69.
What followed was one of Maryland’s most successful eras of basketball. Driesell won 348 games with the Terrapins, made eight NCAA tournaments in 17 years and won the NIT championship, although the program didn’t reach the Final Four under his watch.
In 1986, Driesell resigned from his position over the fallout of the death of former standout Len Bias. Driesell soon became the coach at James Madison, where he led the Dukes for nine years before finishing his career leading Georgia State. He ended his career as the only coach to win 100 games at four different schools.
Driesell was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in 2018 after years of nominations. His 786 wins is currently ranked No. 16 among all-time men’s college basketball coaches.
