The outpouring is intense.
Basketball has lost a legend. Tennessee has lost a daughter.
In the hours that followed the announcement of University of Tennessee Lady Volunteers basketball coach Pat Summitt’s death, well-wishers have set social media circles, radio talk shows and television reports ablaze.
Her name is trending almost everywhere.
Facebook, Twitter, Instagram.
People across the city, the county, the state, the nation and the world are honoring, praising and remembering the trailblazing Summitt for her accomplishments both on and off the basketball court.
The thoughts comes from her family, her friends, teammates, opponents, colleagues, acquaintances, people she barely met and people she never knew.
The theme is constant: People are saddened; her character was beyond reproach; she won’t be forgotten.
Tributes emerged throughout Tuesday, from President Barack Obama to educators, athletes and longtime friends.
Obama issued a statement saying he and first lady Michelle Obama offered their condolences.
"For four decades, she outworked her rivals, made winning an attitude, loved her players like family, and became a role model to millions of Americans, including our two daughters. Her unparalleled success includes never recording a losing season in 38 years of coaching, but also, and more importantly, a 100 percent graduation rate among her players who completed their athletic eligibility.
"Her legacy, however, is measured much more by the generations of young women and men who admired Pat’s intense competitiveness and character, and as a result found in themselves the confidence to practice hard, play harder, and live with courage on and off the court. As Pat once said in recalling her achievements, “What I see are not the numbers. I see their faces.”
Summitt, the president said, treated everyone the same.
"When she would play basketball against her older brothers in the family barn, they didn’t treat her any differently and certainly didn’t go easy on her. Later, her Hall of Fame career would tell the story of the historic progress toward equality in American athletics that she helped advance."
UT President Joe DiPietro said the coach was "an icon" to the world.
“To women’s basketball, she was a pioneering legend. To the University of Tennessee, she will always be our beloved hero. Pat Summitt has left us far too soon, and we in the UT family offer our deepest sympathies to Pat’s family and loved ones,” he noted.
U.S. Sen. Bob Corker, R-Tenn., agreed.
“There is perhaps no one who left a more indelible mark on his or her profession than Coach Summitt,” he said. “Through her 38 years as head coach of the University of Tennessee Lady Volunteers, she amassed a historic record of achievement and blazed a trail for women across our country. The impact she had on her players, the University of Tennessee, the Knoxville community, and the game of basketball will be felt for years to come.”
Summitt died early Tuesday morning at age 64.
During 38 seasons as head coach of the Lady Vols from 1974-2012, Summitt compiled a 1,098-208 record. The Lady Vols won eight national championships in 1987, 1989, 1991, 1996, 1997, 1998, 2007 and 2008.
The mark is surpassed only by the 10 titles won by UCLA men's basketball coach John Wooden, and the 11 titles won by UConn women's basketball coach Geno Auriemma.
Summitt, though, did more than just win championships.
“She changed the lives of the young women she coached, she showed us the measure of a real champion and her fight against Alzheimer’s set an example for us all,” said U.S. Sen Lamar Alexander, who served at UT’s president from 1988 to 1991.
Gov. Bill Haslam said: “It’s not an exaggeration at all to say that Pat changed the lives of so many people – some of us in a direct way, but everyone in a way by having this vision . . . that there was a bigger vision than just winning basketball games.”
The governor also noted that she “never lost sight of the bigger picture” by making sure her players graduated and “were prepared for life.”
U.S. Rep. John J. Duncan Jr, R-Knoxville, also remembered Summitt's goal to ensure that her players graduated, something he called her "most impressive" achievement.
“Pat Summitt was certainly the most admired and respected woman in Tennessee, sports, and this Nation," Duncan said. "Her fans and influence reach far beyond the borders of Tennessee.
Added Knox County Mayor Tim Burchett: “Her character went beyond the basketball court, and she worked to ensure her players knew the same was expected of them.”
Burchett said their families met years ago when his grandfather was her family’s banker.
“She was always kind to my family, and I appreciated her encouraging words when my parents passed away,” he said. “I pray that Tyler (her son) and the rest of Pat’s family can find peace at this time.”
Burchett’s counterpart in the city – Knoxville Mayor Madeline Rogero – said she’s asked the city to change the lights on the Henley Bridge to orange, white and blue tonight “in remembrance of Coach Summitt's deep devotion to Knoxville.”
Said UT President Emeritus Joe Johnson, who worked with Summitt for many years: “Pat Summitt set a high standard for excellence in women’s basketball while she inspired her student athletes to achieve at a remarkable level on the basketball court, in the classroom and in the community. She always represented the University of Tennessee in an exemplary way in whatever she did. And, she was a stellar example of high character for her student athletes and the rest of us."
Former player Ariel Massengale warmly remembered her old coach in a conversation with 10News. From the start, the former point guard said, Summitt told her that if she came to play for her she would become an extension of Summitt herself.
Massengale said she was warned when she weighed whether to come to Tennessee that Summitt would be a hard coach to play for. But Massengale said that's what she wanted - someone who would make her play at a higher level.
"I wanted to be part of her legacy," she said. "I'm so grateful I had that opportunity."
Massengale also talked about the famous Summitt Stare - that look the coach gave players and others when she was not happy.
"That stare was intimidating, it was very scary but you knew she had a good meaning behind it," she said. "She was always there for us and we knew we could always count on her. You knew (the stare) was coming from a place that was nowhere but love."
Summitt, who coached more than 160 women during her career, also touched the lives of athletes who never played for her.
“She was one of the people I consulted with following my junior year when I was deciding whether to turn pro early or stay in college,” said former UT quarterback Peyton Manning, who would go on to win Super Bowl titles with the Indianapolis Colts and the Denver Broncos. “She gave me some very valuable advice during my time.
“It would have been a great experience to play for her," Manning added. "She could have coached any team, any sport, men’s or women’s. It wouldn’t have mattered because Pat cold flat out coach. I will miss her dearly, and I am honored to call her my friend. My thoughts and prayers are with Tyler and their entire family.”
Butch Jones, UT’s football coach, said he stood “in awe of Pat” and she was someone he admired when he wanted to get into coaching.
“You study all the great coaches, the traits that made them successful, and you try to incorporate those into your own program and teams,” he said. “She demanded excellence and her teams played to her personality.”
But, Jones noted: “It was about more than basketball for her – it was about life. She wanted every player that left the program to be prepared for the next stage of their life. Every player received a degree, and that was as important to her as any win on the court. She wouldn’t settle for anything but the best effort on the court and in the classroom.”
Former Vols Coach Phil Fulmer praised Summitt for being not only a great coach but also a great friend and parent.
"We shared a lot of years working together and spreading the word about Tennessee Athletics. We had wonderful personal times talking about life, our respective teams, or helping each other recruit," Fulmer's statement reads. "Her legacy as a basketball coach is iconic, but her greatest legacy may well be through The Pat Summitt Foundation and her role in leading the battle against Alzheimer's!"
Those who also never met her offered their praise.
Pat Summitt's character, and the ethics that defined her life and her career, made her one of those special human beings that was admired worldwide," said Bishop Richard F. Stika, Diocese of Knoxville. "We should all take comfort knowing that those traits have now opened a door for her to everlasting peace in heaven; and I have no doubt, in the presence of Jesus, that Pat is now free of the pain she has suffered these past few years. God bless her, her family, and all those many players, coaches, colleagues and friends who Pat Summitt influenced in such a positive way throughout her wonderfully fulfilling life.
Summitt, at the age of 59, announced her diagnosis of early-onset dementia, Alzheimer’s type. She founded The Pat Summitt Foundation, a fund of East Tennessee Foundation, in November 2011, with the mission of making a difference in the fight against Alzheimer’s disease by advancing research for a cure and providing education and caregiving services for patients and their families.
She stepped down from coaching a year later.
“On behalf of the Board, I want to express our deep sorrow to Pat’s family on her passing,” said James A. Haslam II, advisory board chairman for the Pat Summitt Foundation. “Alzheimer’s is such a horrific disease and as you know currently has no cure. Since Pat was diagnosed in 2011 she dedicated her life to this Foundation in the hope of helping find a cure. We will continue that work on her behalf and in fact will open The Pat Summitt Alzheimer’s Clinic at The University of Tennessee Medical Center by the end of this year.”
Joan Cronan, former UT women’s athletic director, also touched on her battle with Alzheimer’s.
“Pat Summitt was the most courageous person I’ve ever known in fighting this disease,” Cronan said. “She was determined to make a difference in bringing attention to the disease and she has done that. She fought the good fight and all of us who loved her will continue that fight on her behalf through the Pat Summitt Foundation.
“As you know I worked with Pat for over 30 years,” Cronan added. “People would refer to me as her boss and I always remarked, Pat Summitt has no boss. She was the ultimate leader who led by example with strength, character and integrity but also with care. She loved her family and players with a fierceness equaled only by that renowned stare of hers.”
Summitt’s son, Tyler, said the family will hold a private service and burial in Middle Tennessee. A Celebration of Life Service honoring the life of Pat Summitt is set for Thursday, July 14 at 7:00 p.m. at Thompson-Boling Arena. It will be open to the public and more information will come at a later date.
“For 64 years, my mother first built her life upon a strong relationship with her Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ,” he said. “Her foundation was also built upon love of her family and of her players, and love of the fundamentals of hard work which reflected her philosophy that ‘you win in life with people."