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Mark Few Finalist For Clair Bee Award
March 31, 2008
LUBBOCK, Texas - Gonzaga University head men's basketball coach Mark Few is one of five finalists for the Clair Bee Award which will be presented by Chip Hilton Sports and the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame at the Final Four in San Antonio, Texas, next Monday. Five of the nation's premier basketball players have also been named finalists for the Chip Hilton Award which will also be presented at the Final Four. Chip Hilton Sports and the Basketball Hall of Fame began presenting the awards in 1997 as a way to honor outstanding excellence and character in college basketball during the past season. The Selection Committee is composed of Dan Beebe, Jay Bilas, Dave Gavitt, Bob Hammel, Bob Knight, Pete Newell, Billy Packer, Dean Smith and Dick Vitale. The Clair Bee Coach of the Year Award honors a Division I men's basketball coach who through his actions on and off the court, makes an outstanding contribution to the sport of college basketball. The criteria for this award involves actions that inspire, motivate, coach and educate their teams to achieve their fullest potential and demonstrate outstanding character. Coach Clair F. Bee, the late Long Island University coach and Hall of Famer, compiled an .826 lifetime winning percentage, still the best in major-college coaching history. Known as the "Innovator", Clair Bee's influence on the game also extended to strategies, (1-3-1 zone defense), (3-second rule), sports camps (Camp All-America), (Kutsher's Sports Academy), writing technical coaching books, and conducting coaching clinics around the world. By the time he left coaching in the 1950s, Clair Bee had already begun writing the Chip Hilton Sports Series, which are considered the top sports fiction series ever written. The Chip Hilton Player of the Year Award honors a senior Division I men's player for demonstrating outstanding character, leadership, and talent similar to the qualities evident in the 24-book Chip Hilton sports fiction series. The books authored by Clair Bee enjoyed their first popularity in the late 1940s through the mid-1960s and were updated and re-released to a new generation of readers in 1999.
Few has comprised a career record of 236-60 for a winning percentage of .797 in his nine years on the Bulldogs bench. This past season he led the Bulldogs to their 10th straight NCAA Tournament appearance. He will be entering his 20th year with the Bulldogs next season, having spent 10 years as an assistant prior to becoming head coach. Through the efforts of Mark, his wife Marcy, and assistant coaches wives Robin Rice and Chanelle Lloyd, $2.95 million has been generated for Coaches vs. Cancer since 2002 through the BasketBALL and Gala held in Spokane. Few has also been involved locally in Habitat for Humanity and the Union Gospel Mission. Joining Few on the list of finalists are Trent Johnson, Stanford University; Ernie Kent, University of Oregon; Bob McKillop, Davidson College, and Rick Stansbury Mississippi State University. The finalists for the Chip Hilton Award are Jaycee Carroll, Utah State University; Adam Emmenecker, Drake University; Shan Foster, Vanderbilt University; Mike Green, Butler University, and Cliff Hammonds, Clemson University. Last season's Chip Hilton Award winner was of Acie Law IV of Texas A&M University, while Bo Ryan of the University of Wisconsin was the 2007 Clair Bee Award recipient. |
