In 1946, Coach Rupp was given the highest individual coaching honor in the cage world when he was elected to the Collegiate Basketball Hall of Fame sponsored by the Helms Athletic Foundation of Los Angeles, Calif. The New York Basketball Writers' Association named him "Coach of the Year" for the re-building job he accomplished on the sophomore-studded 1949-50 Wildcats who succeeded the "Fabulous Five."
He was made an honorary citizen of New Orleans for the second time in 1951 and, at the same time, received the first plaque of appreciation ever awarded by the Sugar Bowl committee in recognition of his contributions to their annual tournament.
The Wildcat chief has written books on virtually every phase of the game of basketball, including a good seller entitled "Championship Basketball," and is in great demand during the off season to make speaking engagements and conduct clinics. He also has his own twice-weekly radio show during the season and often is referred to in the press by such titles as "Mr. Basketball," "The Bluegrass Baron of Basketball," and "The Man In The Brown Suit," the latter stemming from his superstitious preference of brown as the color of his game-night wardrobe.
Born in Halstead, Kansas, Sept. 2, 1901, Rupp attended the University of Kansas where he played guard under the firey Phog Allen. Following graduation in 1923, he coached high school ball one year at Marshalltown, Iowa, and then at Freeport, III., for four seasons before coming to Kentucky in 1930.
Although the competition was nowhere near as rugged as the schedules played by today's nationally-recognized Wildcat brigades, Rupp's very first team complied a respectable 15-3 record and Kentucky basketball has been on a winning plane ever since. The most games lost in a single season since Rupp added his touch was eight in 1940-41, but even that year was a winning campaign (17-8) and the remarkably low average number of losses per season in the Rupp Era is three.
Before Coach Rupp came on the scene, the Wildcats in 26 years won 196 games while losing 129. Tournament invitations were almost unheard of then. Kentucky played in only three and were eliminated each time.
Today, when one thinks of the sport of basketball, one thinks of Kentucky and Adolph Ruppmaker of champions.
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