Carolyn Peck

Last updated

Carolyn Peck
Carolyn Peck.jpg
Personal information
Born (1966-01-22) January 22, 1966 (age 58)
Jefferson City, Tennessee, U.S.
Listed height6 ft 4 in (1.93 m)
Career information
College Vanderbilt (1985–1988)
Position Center
Coaching career1993–2007, 2016–2018
Career history
As coach:
1993–1995 Tennessee (assistant)
1995–1996 Kentucky (assistant)
1996–1997 Purdue (assistant)
1997–1999Purdue
1999–2001 Orlando Miracle
2002–2007 Florida
2016–2018 Vanderbilt (associate HC)
Career highlights and awards
Career coaching record
WNBA44–52 (.458)
NCAA129–87 (.597)
Women's Basketball Hall of Fame
Medals
Women's basketball
Assistant coach for Flag of the United States (23px).png  United States
William Jones Cup
Silver medal icon (S initial).svg 1997 Taipei Team competition

Carolyn Arlene Peck (born January 22, 1966) [1] is an American television sportscaster and former college basketball coach. She was the head coach for the women's basketball teams of Purdue University and the University of Florida, and also the first head coach-general manager in the history of the WNBA's Orlando Miracle. Peck was also an associate head coach for her alma mater, Vanderbilt University.

Contents

Basketball career

As a senior at Jefferson County High School [2] in Dandridge, Tennessee, Peck, a 6-4 center, was named Tennessee's Miss Basketball after averaging 35 points and 13.2 rebounds per game. She played college basketball at Vanderbilt University from 1985 to 1988, averaging 10.6 points and 5.8 rebounds per game. She also blocked 180 shots, to break a Vanderbilt women's basketball career record.

Peck graduated from Vanderbilt with a Bachelor of Arts degree in communications in 1988. She passed up an opportunity to play professionally in Spain to work as a marketing consultant at a Nashville television station, as well as sell pharmaceutical products for a Fortune 500 company for two years.

Peck returned to basketball in 1991, quitting her job to play professionally in Italy for three weeks, then for Japan’s Nippondenso Corporation for two years. During her second year in Japan, her team won the league championship.

Coaching career

Assistant coach

Peck's coaching career began in 1993. She returned to her home state to serve as an assistant coach for the Tennessee Lady Vols under coach Pat Summitt for two seasons. The Lady Vols posted 30-win seasons and won the Southeastern Conference championship during both seasons: 312 in 199394, and 343 in 199495. The latter team lost to the undefeated, Rebecca Lobo-led Connecticut Huskies in the NCAA Championship game, the school's and head coach Geno Auriemma's first national championship.

Peck went on to serve as an assistant coach at the University of Kentucky during the 199596 season. After this season, she received another assistant coaching job, this time at Purdue University under Nell Fortner, who had just replaced the fired Lin Dunn. The Boilermakers finished 1711 during the 199697 season and advanced to the second round of the NCAA tournament. At the end of this season, Fortner was offered the position of head coach of the USA Women's basketball team for the 2000 Summer Olympics and was leaving Purdue. She handed over the reins of head coach to Peck, who became Purdue's third head coach in as many seasons. After time as a head coach and in broadcasting, in 2016 Peck joined Vanderbilt's women's basketball team as an associate head coach under Stephanie White. [3] [4]

Head coach

Purdue University

During Peck's first season as head coach (199798), Purdue went 2310 with an Elite Eight appearance. Things appeared to be looking up for the following season; the bulk of the team was returning.

Meanwhile, in April 1998 the young WNBA announced that it was expanding from ten teams to twelve, with one of the new franchises to be based in Orlando, Florida. Pat Williams, senior executive vice president of the Orlando team-to-be, began his search to find a head coachgeneral manager. The original list of prospects had six candidates, including Summitt, Duke's Gail Goestenkors and Florida's Carol Ross but not Peck. After all six candidates turned down the offer, Williams then called Peck upon the recommendation of both Ross and Goestenkors. In June 1998 Peck accepted the job with a four-year contract.

Despite accepting this new role, Peck was faced with a dilemma: having to return to Purdue to tell her team that they would once again have to play under a new coach. After she broke the news, some of her players felt betrayed and angry, some of them even telling her so personally. So after struggling with the idea of leaving Purdue after just one season as their coach, Peck again called Williams, asking him if she could remain at Purdue for the 1998–99 season and then go to Orlando for the start of the WNBA season. He granted her request.

In July it was announced that Peck would be the first head coach and general manager of the Orlando team (now named the Miracle), and coach at Purdue for one last season.

The friction between Peck and her players eased, after the team took a preseason trip to Switzerland and France for exhibition games. By the start of the season, the team was together, and Peck would neither discuss the fact that she was leaving nor answer any questions about Orlando.

Led by Katie Douglas, Stephanie White and Ukari Figgs, the Boilermakers posted a 281 record during the regular season, the lone loss coming by one point against Stanford. The team won the 1999 NCAA Division I women's basketball tournament (the first national championship in Purdue women's basketball history, winning all six of its games by at least 10 points, including a 6245 victory over Duke in the title game. Peck became the first African American to coach a women's Division I basketball national championship team; she has since been joined by Dawn Staley, who coached South Carolina to the 2017 National Championship. Peck was named Women's Basketball Coach of the Year by the Associated Press, [5] as well as becoming the first woman and the first African American to win the Winged Foot Award (which honored the best coach in college basketball) from the New York Athletic Club. Two weeks after guiding Purdue to the title, Peck was in Orlando preparing the Miracle for their upcoming season.

Peck was awarded the US Basketball Writers Association (USBWA) Coach of the Year, the WBCA Coach of the Year, the AP College Basketball Coach of the Year and the Naismith College Coach of the Year awards in 1999. [6] [7] [8] [9]

To date, Peck, at 33 years old, is the youngest person to coach a women's Division I basketball national championship team. The title is also the only one in women's college basketball by a Big Ten Conference school.

Orlando Miracle

During Peck's three seasons as WNBA coach, the Miracle, which featured Shannon Johnson, Taj McWilliams-Franklin, Nykesha Sales and fellow Vanderbilt graduate Sheri Sam, posted a 4452 record, narrowly missing out on the playoffs in 1999 and qualifying for them in 2000, where they lost to the Cleveland Rockers 2 games to 1.

University of Florida

On April 3, 2002, Peck returned to coaching college basketball, this time leading the Florida Gators women's basketball team of the University of Florida.

During her five seasons at Florida (200203 through 2006-07), the Gators posted a 7275 record with two NCAA tournament berths. The 200304 team, which posted a 1911 record after going 919 the season before, was eliminated by Baylor in the second round of the 2004 NCAA tournament, after defeating New Mexico in the first round before 16,029 fans at Albuquerque. The 200506 team posted a 217 record and received a No. 6 seed in the NCAA tournament, but this time New Mexico got revenge on Florida, defeating them by 24 points in the first round.

The 200607 season was a disaster—the Gators suffered through a 14-game losing streak and finished 922. Following the losing streak, the university fired Peck in February but allowed her to finish the season as coach. Former Florida Gators player Amanda Butler replaced Peck for the 200708 season. Peck was not out of basketball for long, however: ESPN hired her as a basketball analyst within months.

After 9 years of working for ESPN, Peck was hired by her alma mater (Vanderbilt) to be an assistant coach in June 2016. After the 2017-18 season, Peck stepped down from coaching to return to ESPN.

Peck's younger brother Michael served as one of her assistant coaches both with the Orlando Miracle and at the University of Florida. He is currently a coaching consultant.

USA Basketball

Peck served as the assistant coach, under head coach Gail Goestenkors, for the USA representative to the 1997 William Jones Cup competition The event was held in Taipei, Taiwan during August 1997. The USA team won their first six games. Four of the six were decided by six points or fewer, including the semifinal game against Japan which went to overtime. In the gold medal game, the USA faced undefeated South Korea. The USA team played to a six-point margin early in the second half, but could not extend the margin. South Korea came back, took the lead, and held on to win the championship and the gold medal 76-71. [10]

Head coaching record

Statistics overview
SeasonTeamOverallConferenceStandingPostseason
Purdue Boilermakers (Big Ten)(1997–1999)
1997–98Purdue 23–1010–6T-3rd NCAA Elite Eight
1998–99 Purdue 34–116–01st NCAA Champions
Purdue:57–11 (.838)26–6 (.813)
Florida Gators (SEC)(2002–2007)
2002–03Florida 9–191–13T–11th
2003–04Florida 19–118–6T-4th NCAA second round
2004–05Florida 14–155–98thWNIT First Round
2005–06Florida 21–98–6T-5th NCAA first round
2006–07Florida 9–222–1211th
Florida:72–76 (.486)24–46 (.343)
Total:129–87 (.597)

      National champion        Postseason invitational champion  
      Conference regular season champion        Conference regular season and conference tournament champion
      Division regular season champion      Division regular season and conference tournament champion
      Conference tournament champion


Legend
Regular seasonGGames coachedWGames wonLGames lostW–L %Win–loss %
PlayoffsPGPlayoff gamesPWPlayoff winsPLPlayoff lossesPW–L %Playoff win–loss %
TeamYearGWLW–L%FinishPGPWPLPW–L%Result
Orlando 1999 321517.4694th in East----Missed Playoffs
Orlando 2000 321616.5003rd in East312.333Lost Eastern Conference Semi-Finals
Orlando 2001 321319.4065th in East----Missed Playoffs
Career964452.458312.333

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dawn Staley</span> American basketball player and coach (born 1970)

Dawn Michelle Staley is an American basketball Hall of Fame player and coach who is currently the head coach for the South Carolina Gamecocks. Staley won three Olympic gold medals with Team USA as a player and later was head coach of another U.S. gold-medal winning team. Staley was elected to carry the United States flag at the opening ceremony of the 2004 Summer Olympics. After playing point guard for the University of Virginia under Debbie Ryan, and winning the gold medal at the 1996 Summer Olympics, she went on to play professionally in the American Basketball League and the WNBA. In 2011, fans named Staley one of the Top 15 players in WNBA history. Staley was inducted into the Women's Basketball Hall of Fame in 2012. She was elected to the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in 2013.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Katie Douglas (basketball)</span> American basketball player

Kathryn Elizabeth Douglas is an American former professional basketball player. Her primary position was shooting guard, her secondary was small forward. She was known league-wide as one of the most prominent two-way players for her long-range shooting and high scoring abilities on offense as well as her defensive abilities.

Sheri Lynette Sam is an American professional women's basketball coach and player who played in the WNBA. She was born and raised in Lafayette, Louisiana as the youngest of eight siblings, and where she was a standout at Acadiana High School. She graduated from Vanderbilt University in 1996. She was an assistant coach at Eastern Illinois University.

William Leon Barmore is a college women's basketball coach best known for his 35-year association with the Louisiana Tech University Lady Techsters. After five years as an assistant coach, he served as head coach from 1982 to 2002, serving the first three years as co-head coach with Sonja Hogg, who had begun the program in 1974. Upon his retirement, Barmore's .869 winning percentage was the best in major college basketball history, for both men and women's basketball. His nine appearances in the Final Four was second most in NCAA women's basketball history, and as of 2023 it is tied for fourth most all-time. Barmore was inducted into the Women's Basketball Hall of Fame in 2003.

Tari L. Phillips is an American former professional women's basketball player. Her cousin Tayyiba Haneef-Park played for USA Volleyball.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">DeLisha Milton-Jones</span> American basketball player

DeLisha Lachell Milton-Jones is an American retired professional basketball player and head coach of Old Dominion. Milton-Jones played college basketball for the University of Florida. She was a first-team All-American and SEC Player of the Year her senior season.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lin Dunn</span> American basketball coach

Lin Dunn is an American women's basketball coach, currently general manager with the Indiana Fever. She is most known for being the first coach and general manager for the Seattle Storm. She has more than 500 wins to her name.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pokey Chatman</span> American basketball player and coach

Dana "Pokey" Chatman is currently an assistant coach for the Seattle Storm in the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA). Chatman is the former head coach of the Indiana Fever and Chicago Sky of the WNBA. She is also the former head coach of the LSU Lady Tigers basketball team and the Spartak Moscow women's basketball team.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Gail Goestenkors</span> American basketball coach

Gail Ann Goestenkors is an American basketball coach who is currently an assistant coach for the Kentucky Wildcats women's basketball team.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Brenda Frese</span> American basketball player and coach

Brenda Sue Frese is an American women's basketball head coach and former player. Since 2002, she has served as the head coach of the University of Maryland women's basketball team. In her fourth year as head coach, she won the 2006 Women's National Championship. She won the 2009 ACC Regular Season and Tournament Championships – the women's first ACC Championship since 1989. She won another ACC Championship in 2012 and reached another Final Four in 2014. Maryland moved to the Big Ten for the 2014–15 season and Frese led the Terrapins to an undefeated 18–0 conference record and a Big Ten Regular Season Championship in their first year in the Big Ten. The Terrapins advanced to their second straight Final Four and third under Frese in 2015. She was voted AP National Coach of the Year in 2002 and 2021, ACC Coach of the Year in 2013, Big Ten Coach of the Year in 2002, 2015, 2019, and 2021, and MAC Coach of the Year in 2000. At Maryland, she's coached four ACC Players of the Year and four ACC Freshmen of the Year.

Mickie Faye DeMoss is a former American college basketball coach and player. She was the women's head coach at the University of Florida and the University of Kentucky. She was also an assistant coach at Louisiana Tech University, University of Tennessee, University of Texas, Auburn University, Memphis State University, and the WNBA's Indiana Fever. DeMoss was inducted into the Women's Basketball Hall of Fame in 2018 as a Contributor - Assistant Coach. She retired after 45 years of coaching basketball in some capacity in July 2022, while chief of staff for Georgia Tech women's basketball.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">1999 NCAA Division I women's basketball tournament</span>

The 1999 NCAA Division I women's basketball tournament began on March 12, 1999, and concluded on March 28, 1999, when Purdue won its first national championship in any women's sport. The Final Four was held at the San Jose Arena in San Jose, California, on March 26–28, 1999. Purdue defeated Duke 62-45 in Carolyn Peck's final game as head coach for the Boilermakers. She had previously announced her intention of leaving Purdue after two seasons to coach the expansion WNBA Orlando Miracle.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Nell Fortner</span> American basketball player and coach

Nell Fortner is the current women's college basketball coach at Georgia Tech. She is most well known for leading the 2000 Olympics team to a gold medal. She has received numerous awards including the 1997 National Coach of the Year, the 2000 USA Basketball Coach of the Year and the 2008 SEC Coach of the Year. In April 2018, she was inducted into the Texas Sports Hall of Fame.

Tiffany Jackson-Jones was an American basketball player and coach. She played college basketball for the Texas Longhorns, earning All-American honors. Jackson played professionally in the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA) for the New York Liberty, Tulsa Shock, and Los Angeles Sparks. She also played in the Israeli Premier League for Maccabi Ashdod. She later returned to Texas as an assistant coach for the Longhorns.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Stephanie White</span> American basketball player and coach

Stephanie Joanne White is a former professional basketball player and head coach of the Connecticut Sun of the WNBA. She was previously head coach of the Vanderbilt Commodores women's basketball team from 2016 to 2021. Prior to Vanderbilt, she was the head coach of the Indiana Fever of the WNBA for the 2015 and 2016 season. As an intercollegiate athlete, she was named the winner of the Wade Trophy in 1999, which recognizes the top female basketball player in the nation.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Florida Gators women's basketball</span>

The Florida Gators women's basketball team represents the University of Florida in the sport of basketball. The Gators compete in Division I of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) and the Southeastern Conference (SEC). The Gators play their home games at the O'Connell Center located on the university's Gainesville, Florida campus, and are currently led by head coach Kelly Rae Finley, following the resignation of Cameron Newbauer. The Gators have appeared in 15 NCAA tournaments, with a record of 12–15.

Carol Ross is an American college and professional basketball coach. Ross has served as the head women's basketball coach for the University of Florida and the University of Mississippi, and also as the head coach of the Los Angeles Sparks of the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">1998–99 Purdue Boilermakers women's basketball team</span> Intercollegiate basketball season

The 1998–99 Purdue Boilermakers women's basketball team was the first Purdue basketball team to win an NCAA national championship. The team was undefeated in conference play and finished the regular season with one loss.

Nicki Collen is an American basketball coach and is currently the head women's basketball coach at Baylor University.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Aliyah Boston</span> American basketball player (born 2001)

Aliyah Boston is an American professional basketball player for the Indiana Fever of the Women’s National Basketball Association (WNBA). She plays the power forward and center positions. She was named 2023 WNBA Rookie of the Year in a unanimous vote and the AP Rookie of the Year. She played college basketball at the University of South Carolina.

References

  1. "Women's Basketball Coaches Career". NCAA. Retrieved September 22, 2015.
  2. "Vanderbilt's Carolyn Peck a 'superstar' assistant coach". The Tennessean .
  3. "Vanderbilt confirms hiring of coach Stephanie White". The Tennessean .
  4. "Vacancy filled at Vanderbilt". May 23, 2016.
  5. "Ap Cites Holdsclaw, Peck As Player, Coach Of Year". tribunedigital-orlandosentinel. Retrieved April 20, 2016.
  6. "USBWA WOMEN'S HONORS". USBWA. Archived from the original on December 23, 2004. Retrieved May 8, 2010.
  7. "Naismith College Coach of the Year". Atlanta Tipoff Club. Archived from the original on March 2, 2013. Retrieved January 5, 2013.
  8. "Past Russell Athletic/WBCA National Coaches of the Year". Women's Basketball Coaches Association. Archived from the original on March 5, 2016. Retrieved June 30, 2014.
  9. "Ap Cites Holdsclaw, Peck As Player, Coach Of Year". tribunedigital-orlandosentinel. Retrieved April 19, 2016.
  10. "1997 WOMEN'S R. WILLIAM JONES CUP". USA Basketball. Archived from the original on April 28, 2013. Retrieved May 15, 2013.