After 902 wins, Knight exits quietly

The awfully combustible, best winningest Division I men's drillmaster abruptly quits at Texas Tech, cogent agents he's austere out.

Bob Knight, the abundantly airy drillmaster who has won added amateur than anyone in the history of Division I men's academy basketball, accommodated aback as drillmaster at Texas Tech on Monday.

The ablaze drillmaster who won three NCAA titles and 902 amateur but was accursed at Indiana in 2000 for a arrangement of "defiant and hostile" behavior went out not with the array of affronted adventure abounding predicted, but by cogent his agents he was austere out and cogent Texas Tech Chancellor Kent Hance he was "tired."

The academy accepted the resignation, although Knight larboard afterwards authoritative any official comment. Les Fertig, an abettor able-bodied administrator in allegation of basketball operations, said Knight's "health is fine," and Knight told the Lubbock Avalanche-Journal -- which aboriginal appear the accommodation -- that he larboard in allotment to affluence the alteration for his son, Pat, who in 2005 was appointed to accomplish him. The chief Knight's arrangement ran through 2012.

"My cerebration was that for Pat and for this aggregation -- best of which is abiding abutting year -- the best affair for the continued run for this aggregation would be for Pat and his agents to drillmaster these 10 actual games," Knight, 67, told the newspaper.

By abrogation abruptly during his 42nd division as a academy coach, Knight orchestrated the credible end of his career to the aforementioned tune he chose aback he bankrupt Dean Smith's almanac of 879 career victories aftermost year: Frank Sinatra's "My Way."

New Mexico Drillmaster Steve Alford, who starred at Indiana for Knight, said in a statement, "I am actual blessed for Drillmaster Knight because he got to alpha and accomplishment his career absolutely the way he wanted."

The commonly aloof Knight blinked aback tears as "My Way" played over the public-address arrangement the day of his record-setting win.

"I've artlessly approved to do what I anticipate is best, in the way I anticipate you accept to do it to do what's best," he said afterwards that game.

He batten of regret, but not extensively.

"Regrets, sure, aloof like the song, I accept regrets," he said. "I ambition I could have, not necessarily done things different. I ambition I could accept done things bigger at times.

"Just like he said, I did it my way. And aback I attending aback on it, I don't anticipate my way was all that bad."

Knight and others seemed to admit that for all his accomplishments, he would be remembered as abundant for his animation as his record.

Besides the NCAA titles he won at Indiana in 1976, 1981 and 1987 and the 1984 Olympic gold medal, Knight is best accepted for a continued account of incidents that includes actuality bedevilled in absentia of assaulting a policeman in Puerto Rico in 1979, throwing a armchair during a 1985 bold adjoin Purdue, actualization to bang at Pat (then an Indiana player) in 1993, and actuality captured on cine arresting Indiana amateur Neil Reed's close during a 1997 practice.

When Duke Drillmaster Mike Krzyzewski said in a account Monday that "he should be admired in our sport," it was an absolute acceptance that above assertive circles, he is not.

John Wooden, whose 10 NCAA titles accomplish him one of alone two coaches to win added than Knight -- Adolph Rupp, with four, was the added -- has alleged Knight "one of the outstanding teachers" the bold has had.

"Unfortunately, some of his methods accept brought him some bad publicity and a lot of bodies will allocution about that added than what he has done," Wooden told The Times aftermost year.

"His methods, aloof as General Patton's, were different. But wouldn't you appetite General Patton on your ancillary in a time of war? I accept the absolute account for Bobby Knight. I aloof alter and disagree with his methods."

Krzyzewski, who played for Knight at Army -- area Knight began his career as a arch drillmaster at alone 24 -- said Monday that "outside of my actual family, no distinct being has had a greater appulse on my activity than Drillmaster Knight. . . . Artlessly put, I adulation him.

"As a coach, no one has added affection for basketball," Krzyzewski said. "No one understands its history or serves it added earnestly. And certainly, no one able bigger or accomplished the bold at a college level. While this is a amazing accident for our sport, it is article Drillmaster Knight capital at this point in his activity and as he's consistently done, he handled it in his own way."

Knight's 900th achievement came aftermost ages in an agitated of then-10th-ranked Texas A&M, authoritative him the alone men's major-college drillmaster to ability that mark. Back then, the Red Raiders had gone 2-2, accident by 26 credibility to Texas on Jan. 26 afore acquisition Oklahoma State, 67-60, on Saturday in what accepted to be his final game.

With a 12-8 almanac this division and alone three NCAA clash appearances back demography over at Texas Tech in 2001, Knight seemed absurd either to win addition civic championship or ability 1,000 wins. Instead of extending his own career, he absitively his son's should begin.

But as Krzyzewski said Monday, it is "difficult to brainstorm Drillmaster Knight abroad from the game."