3 minute read

Bobby Knight

Chronology



1940 Born October 25 in Massillon, Ohio
1958 Graduated from Orrville (OH) High School
1958 Enters Ohio State, where he'll play basketball for three years
1960 Wins NCAA Championship as member of Ohio State basketball team
1962 Graduates from Ohio State with a B.S. in History and Government
1962 Becomes assistant basketball coach at Cuyahoga Falls High School (in Ohio)
1963 Takes position as assistant basketball coach at U.S. Military Academy at West Point
1965 Becomes head basketball coach at U.S. Military Academy at West Point (youngest varsity coach in major college history)
1971 Decides to leave Army coaching job with a record of 102-50
1971 Begins tenure as head coach at Indiana University
1973 Leads Indiana to its first Big 10 conference title (they will win 11 titles under Knight)
1973 Indiana plays in first Final Four (by the time he is fired he will have coached Indiana in five Final Fours)
1976 Upset over a few turnovers, grabs sophomore Jim Wisman by jersey and jerks him into his seat
1976 Records 200th career coaching victory
1976 Leads Indiana to an undefeated season and wins first of three NCAA Championships
1979 Leads Hoosiers to victory in NIT Tournament Championship
1979 Coaches Pan-Am Team to Gold Medal
1979 Tried and convicted (in absentia) for hitting a Puerto Rican policeman at Pan Am practice. Sentenced to six months in jail, which he does not serve because he has already left country
1980 Earns 300th career win
1981 Wins second NCAA Championship at Indiana
1981 While at Final Four in Philadelphia, shoves an LSU fan into a garbage can
1983 Stands at midcourt and swears at Big Ten commissioner Wayne Duke over what Knight calls "the worst officiating I have seen in 12 years"
1984 Coaches U.S. Olympic team to gold medal
1984 Becomes one of three coaches in history to win "Triple Crown" of coaching (NCAA, NIT and Olympic Gold Medal)
1985 Allows reporter John Feinstein access to Indiana's program for '85-'86 season. Feinstein would write about what he saw in A Season on the Brink
1986 Recieves technical foul in a game against Illinois, then kicks a megaphone and yells at Indiana cheerleaders for disupting a free throw attempt by Steve Alford
1987 Puerto Rico drops charges on Knight and ceases attempts to extradite him
1987 Wins third NCAA Championship at Indiana
1988 In interview with Connie Chung, Knight says, "If rape is inevitable, relax and enjoy it." Knight claims that the quote was taken out of context
1989 Gets 500th win in a victory over Northwestern in January
1989 Becomes winningest coach in Big 10 history
1991 Had asked not to be considered for his induction into Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame, calling his rejection in 1987 "a slap in the face"
1992 Gives a mock whipping to Hoosier Calbert Cheaney. Claims it wasn't racially motivated and apoligizes; this same year he bars a female AP reporter from the Indiana locker room
1993 Wins 600th career game; wins 11th Big Ten regular season title. Ties for first among all Big Ten coaches
1994 Head-butts a player while screaming at him on the bench. Claims it was unintentional
1995 Fined $30,000 for an outburst at a post-game news conference
1997 Earns 700th victory on March 5
1999 Accidentally shoots hunting partner in the back and is cited for failing to report incident
2000 Accused of grabbing freshman Indiana student by the arm in fall of '99. Knight yelled at him for "disrespecting him." The student had said, "What's up, Knight."
2000 Fired from Indiana University in September
2001 Named head coach at Texas Tech University on March 23
2001 Compiles a 23-10 record at Texas Tech in his first season as coach

Additional topics

Famous Sports StarsBasketballBobby Knight Biography - Growing Up, Youngest College Coach, The Hoosier Era, Chronology, Knight The Enigma, Pan Am Mishap - SELECTED WRITINGS BY KNIGHT: