Former Maryland head coach Lefty Driesell passes away at 92

Former Maryland head coach Lefty Driesell passed away on Saturday morning, according to former Maryland star Tom McMillen. https://twitter.com/TomMcMillen611/status/1758849670590160954 While he was not in attendance due to health concerns, Driesell, 92, was honored by his former players and son at Xfinity Center during the Michigan State game back on Jan. 21. "It is with great sadness that we received this news today and our condolences go out to his family," said Maryland men's basketball coach Kevin Willard via release. "Words cannot express all that Coach Driesell embodied and the impact he made on the game. Most importantly, however, was his commitment to his players and the depth of relationships he made with all those around him. Maryland and the college basketball world lost one of its monumental figures today." Beginning in 1969, Driesell led Maryland to a 348-159 overall record and sits second in program history in wins. As head coach of the Terps for nearly two decades, Driesell led Maryland to eight NCAA Tournaments, including four consecutive appearances to end his career, along with winning the 1972 NIT Championship, 1984 ACC Tournament championship and a pair of ACC regular season titles. While Maryland has still never been ranked No. 1 in the AP Poll, Maryland was ranked as high as second nationally for four consecutive years from 1972 to 1976. Driesell, who was named ACC Coach of the Year twice, became a Naismith Hall of Famer back in 2018. “I’m just excited to recognize and to honor Lefty and those players who played in that era. I mean, wow. What a job that he did for us while he was here putting this program on the map. He’s always talking about making us the UCLA of the East and the number tournament appearances, the number of ACC championships, the number of high rankings. He was the best, fantastic for us. So extremely honored," AD Damon Evans said last month. Maryland men's basketball will look to honor the man who created Midnight Madness with a win on Saturday as 14th-ranked Illinois heads to the Xfinity Center. Related Links Preview: Terps prepare for top five road game vs. SyracuseGary Williams on '04 ACC championship, ACC days, thoughts on WillardLocal four-star edge still has Maryland in his top group (+) Maryland baseball set to kick off Matt Swope era vs. Georgia SouthernMaryland remains consistent with ’26 four-star Chris Hewitt Jr. (+) Maryland football’s 2024 defense ranks top-30 in preseason ESPN SP+ rankings