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TagsBY BOB HOLT
NEWJERSEYNEWSROOM.COM
Collingswood, New Jersey native Gary Williams received an extended standing ovation from the crowd at the news conference announcing his retirement, and raised his arm, which resembled his classic fist pump.
Williams spent 33 years as a head coach, 22 of them at the University of Maryland, according to umterps.com.
At the beginning of his coaching career, www.coachgarywilliams.com reports Williams led his first team at Woodrow Wilson High School in Camden to a perfect season and the state title.
The Washington Post reports that Williams took Maryland to 14 NCAA tournament appearances, seven appearances in the Sweet 16 and two slots in the Final Four. They also took three ACC regular season titles and the tournament championship in 2004.
But the grind got tougher for Williams in recent years. Williams said to the Washington Post, “After Debbie Yow left, I thought I might enjoy it more this year. But I think I’d been worn down by the previous 15 years with Yow. It grinds on you.”
In April, the Baltimore Sun reported that Yow, the North Carolina State athletic director, accused Williams of sabotaging the Wolfpack's efforts at hiring a new men's basketball coach.
Yow was supported by Gregg Doyel of CBS Sports, who called Williams a "spineless little fraction of a man.”
According to sbnation.com, reporter/commentator John Feinstein disagreed with Doyel, saying, "Debbie Yow's ego wouldn't fit inside the Comcast Center. Gregg obviously doesn't know Debbie Yow very well."
Feinstein felt that Yow criticized Williams out of embarrassment at the North Carolina coaching search, as she was turned down by a lot of candidates. "I think she's been publicly embarrassed, and she's not used to that,” he said.
Meanwhile, Williams continues to receive tributes from his friends and colleagues upon his retirement. The president of Maryland University, Wallace D. Loh, told Terrapins Insider that Williams is "one of the great coaches of all time" and "somebody who represents the heart and soul of this university.”
“Gary is one of the best X-and-O coaches in college basketball. He will be greatly missed by Terps everywhere," said N.C. State Athletic Director Debbie Yow, to Terrapins Insider.
