Upon Further Review: Congratulations Tara VanDerveer, Ken Niumatalolo
Too much going on it seems. My old friend John Williams pointed out that I should've given a shout out to Tara VanDerveer in yesterday's blog for becoming the winningest college basketball coach of all time.
Even though I've written about Tara on several occasions, he was right. Her signal accomplishment deserves recognition, not only for the achievement itself, but for how she did it.
I've always said, there are three things certain in life: death, taxes, and Tara.
Stanford women's basketball has been one of the premier programs in the country for over 30 years. As in three national championships, 14 Final Fours and 25 Pac-12 and Pac-10 regular season championships. She also took a year off to direct the 1996 U.S. Olympic Team, which posted a 60-0 record and won the gold medal.
But Tara VanDerveer is an icon in my mind because of the way she has conducted herself...always classy, always humble, always crediting others. She's been a mentor to too many coaches and players to count.
Perhaps more than anyone, she has been responsible for the growth of women's basketball in this country.
Congratulations, Tara!
Spartans Name Niumatalolo: We also should give a shout out to newly-appointed San Jose State football coach Ken Niumatalolo, who previously directed a highly successful program at the Naval Academy.
Niumatalolo is Navy's all-time winningest coach, going 109-83 in 15 seasons through 2022. He took the Midshipmen to 11 bowl games, had eight seasons with eight or more wins, and finished in the top 25 twice. He spent last year with Chip Kelly's staff at UCLA.
I got to know Kenny and his family when we hosted Navy in the 2012 Kraft Fight Hunger Bowl. He's a class act, and I'm sure he will do a fine job at SJS.
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