Deb is in the hall of fame
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tmcats
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shalee lehning was in for the deb ceremonies. jacob pullen said it was a highlight meeting both her and jordy nelson at the event. pullen seemed touched by it all.
https://teamalytics.com/team/shalee-lehning/
https://teamalytics.com/team/shalee-lehning/
"'Oh, what dust we raise,' said the fly upon the chariot wheel." Aesop
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tmcats
- Posts: 24835
- Joined: September 3rd, 2013, 1:09 pm
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article appearing in today's manhattan mercury.
Deb Patterson cements K-State legacy with hall of fame induction 10 years after firing
A decade ago, Kansas State ousted Deb Patterson as its women’s basketball head coach. On Friday, the school inducted her into its athletics hall of fame.
That’s not the typical course of events for a fired coach, but it reflects the complexity of Patterson’s 18 years in Manhattan, which saw their share of prosperity, disappointment and controversy.
And perhaps her admittance to the 2024 class is a vindication of sorts, a recognition — at least from the K-State Hall of Fame committee — that her tenure was, ultimately, a triumph. After all, she’s still the winningest head coach in Wildcat women’s basketball history.
But to hear Patterson tell it, her abrupt firing and newly institutionalized distinguished status don’t belong in the same conversation.
“I look at this completely as a celebration of the young people who I had an opportunity to coach: who they were and what they brought to Kansas State, to one another, to the lives of all of the fans and people in this area during those 18 years,” she told The Mercury. “Nothing about this recognition is about anything more to me than celebrating them and the great assistant coaches I had an opportunity to work with side-by-side.”
There certainly was much to celebrate. From 1996 to 2014, Patterson posted a 350-226 record and led K-State to two Big 12 regular-season championships, nine NCAA tournament appearances and a WNIT title. She was the Big 12 Coach of the Year twice, and 11 players she brought in made it to the WNBA.
During a stretch from 2001 to 2005, the Wildcats went a combined 104-27 and were ranked in the AP Top 25 for 65 straight weeks, surging as high in the polls as No. 2. The crowds came in droves to see K-State play, with more than 10,000 fans filling Bramlage Coliseum 18 times in those seasons.
Things didn’t always go swimmingly, though. Patterson’s teams had five losing seasons and failed to reach the NCAA tournament nine times. In 2006, the Kansas City Star published an expose in which some players and staff reported alleged mistreatment and that Patterson overstepped the limits on her ability as a state employee to press her religious faith on those under her tutelage.
The Wildcats went 19-18 and 5-13 in the Big 12 in 2012-13, and the following year, they repeated that 5-13 mark in conference play but paired it with an 11-19 overall record. Then-athletics director John Currie had had enough, and he relieved Patterson of her duties.
If Patterson has any lingering hard feelings, they don’t seem to affect her positive sentiments about her inclusion among the K-State greats or the community at large.
“I would never, ever put (the hall of fame induction) in context with having been released from Kansas State,” Patterson said, “because to me, that was an individual decision by an individual.”
These days, Patterson is the director of player personnel and program analytics at Washington State, where she works under head coach Kamie Ethridge, Patterson’s longtime assistant at K-State. Also on staff there is Laurie Koehn, who played for Patterson from 2001 to 2005.
Patterson made the trip to Manhattan for the hall of fame induction ceremony Friday evening, which coincided with her 67th birthday. It was only her second time back in town since her firing, and she was all smiles — if a bit hampered by allergies — during an interview with The Mercury Friday morning. She even briefly stepped away from the interview to embrace former men’s basketball star and fellow 2024 class member Jacob Pullen, telling him, “You are my all-time favorite men’s basketball player during my time at K-State.”
Pullen returned the love, saying, “You’re really my favorite coach ever.”
The moment captured the soft spot Patterson still has for K-State and the impact she had there, despite the unceremonious conclusion to her employment.
“I absolutely love Manhattan, loved every bit of Kansas State,” Patterson said. “There’s not one thing I could say I don’t miss about Kansas State or Manhattan. I absolutely love this place, the people, the place, the environment. There’s nothing I could say I miss the most because I miss it all.”
After K-State, Patterson became an assistant at Northern Colorado, where Ethridge became the head coach. A year later, Koehn joined the staff, and they led the Bears to their first-ever NCAA tournament appearance in 2018. Ethridge and Koehn jumped to Washington State following that season, and Patterson joined them there in 2019.
“Kamie is one of the best coaches in the country,” Patterson said. “She has proven and established that everywhere she goes. Programs elevate, and they win. That’s been extremely meaningful and wonderful to watch and to be a part of. And to have Laurie Koehn there as her associate head coach — Laurie was a tremendous player, but she’s also a tremendous teacher of the fundamentals of the game.”
In 2020-21, the trio took the Cougars to their first NCAA tournament since 1990-91. They returned to the dance the next two seasons, which included a first-round matchup against K-State in 2022.
The Wildcats — led by Patterson’s successor, Jeff Mittie — won that game 50-40.
Patterson said she doesn’t know Mittie well, but she’s kept up with the program from afar, becoming a “huge fan” of 6-foot-6 All-America center Ayoka Lee, “next-level point guard” Serena Sundell and recently graduated Gabby Gregory — who hadn’t transferred to K-State yet when Patterson faced her former team, proving she has paid attention to the Wildcats outside of preparation for that one game.
Last year, K-State had its best season since the Patterson era, and crowds reminiscent of those from 20 years ago filed into Bramlage Coliseum to see the Wildcats take the floor.
“It was wonderful to see the elevation of the program back to that level, knowing how uniquely challenging that is,” Patterson said. “It doesn’t just happen. And so it was awesome to see those young people … have success because you’re seeing how they’re doing what they do. There’s a lot of ways to win, but when you’re watching from afar, and you see that quality of character pressing through the victories and the competitiveness at the highest level of the game, it’s really extraordinary and exciting to see. I’m happy for Kansas State.”
Patterson is 10 years removed from the only college head coaching job she’s ever had. At the time of her exit from K-State, many — including some commentators in The Mercury — thought it was the wrong move for the program, and it took a while for the Wildcats to return to some of the apexes to which she propelled them.
While her hall of fame induction, perhaps, substantiated the significance of her work at K-State, a part of her pines for the days of yore when she had the top billing.
And yet, she’s managed to find a landing spot in the game she loves and a sense of peace about where it has taken her.
“I absolutely miss (head coaching) very much,” Patterson said. “But you know, I’m grateful for the opportunities that I have right now. And sometimes, there are bigger parts of life than just the thing you would like to do professionally, so I think the balance that I’ve been able to have in my life by virtue of working with Coach Ethridge has been an important thing for my life and the people in my life.”
Deb Patterson cements K-State legacy with hall of fame induction 10 years after firing
A decade ago, Kansas State ousted Deb Patterson as its women’s basketball head coach. On Friday, the school inducted her into its athletics hall of fame.
That’s not the typical course of events for a fired coach, but it reflects the complexity of Patterson’s 18 years in Manhattan, which saw their share of prosperity, disappointment and controversy.
And perhaps her admittance to the 2024 class is a vindication of sorts, a recognition — at least from the K-State Hall of Fame committee — that her tenure was, ultimately, a triumph. After all, she’s still the winningest head coach in Wildcat women’s basketball history.
But to hear Patterson tell it, her abrupt firing and newly institutionalized distinguished status don’t belong in the same conversation.
“I look at this completely as a celebration of the young people who I had an opportunity to coach: who they were and what they brought to Kansas State, to one another, to the lives of all of the fans and people in this area during those 18 years,” she told The Mercury. “Nothing about this recognition is about anything more to me than celebrating them and the great assistant coaches I had an opportunity to work with side-by-side.”
There certainly was much to celebrate. From 1996 to 2014, Patterson posted a 350-226 record and led K-State to two Big 12 regular-season championships, nine NCAA tournament appearances and a WNIT title. She was the Big 12 Coach of the Year twice, and 11 players she brought in made it to the WNBA.
During a stretch from 2001 to 2005, the Wildcats went a combined 104-27 and were ranked in the AP Top 25 for 65 straight weeks, surging as high in the polls as No. 2. The crowds came in droves to see K-State play, with more than 10,000 fans filling Bramlage Coliseum 18 times in those seasons.
Things didn’t always go swimmingly, though. Patterson’s teams had five losing seasons and failed to reach the NCAA tournament nine times. In 2006, the Kansas City Star published an expose in which some players and staff reported alleged mistreatment and that Patterson overstepped the limits on her ability as a state employee to press her religious faith on those under her tutelage.
The Wildcats went 19-18 and 5-13 in the Big 12 in 2012-13, and the following year, they repeated that 5-13 mark in conference play but paired it with an 11-19 overall record. Then-athletics director John Currie had had enough, and he relieved Patterson of her duties.
If Patterson has any lingering hard feelings, they don’t seem to affect her positive sentiments about her inclusion among the K-State greats or the community at large.
“I would never, ever put (the hall of fame induction) in context with having been released from Kansas State,” Patterson said, “because to me, that was an individual decision by an individual.”
These days, Patterson is the director of player personnel and program analytics at Washington State, where she works under head coach Kamie Ethridge, Patterson’s longtime assistant at K-State. Also on staff there is Laurie Koehn, who played for Patterson from 2001 to 2005.
Patterson made the trip to Manhattan for the hall of fame induction ceremony Friday evening, which coincided with her 67th birthday. It was only her second time back in town since her firing, and she was all smiles — if a bit hampered by allergies — during an interview with The Mercury Friday morning. She even briefly stepped away from the interview to embrace former men’s basketball star and fellow 2024 class member Jacob Pullen, telling him, “You are my all-time favorite men’s basketball player during my time at K-State.”
Pullen returned the love, saying, “You’re really my favorite coach ever.”
The moment captured the soft spot Patterson still has for K-State and the impact she had there, despite the unceremonious conclusion to her employment.
“I absolutely love Manhattan, loved every bit of Kansas State,” Patterson said. “There’s not one thing I could say I don’t miss about Kansas State or Manhattan. I absolutely love this place, the people, the place, the environment. There’s nothing I could say I miss the most because I miss it all.”
After K-State, Patterson became an assistant at Northern Colorado, where Ethridge became the head coach. A year later, Koehn joined the staff, and they led the Bears to their first-ever NCAA tournament appearance in 2018. Ethridge and Koehn jumped to Washington State following that season, and Patterson joined them there in 2019.
“Kamie is one of the best coaches in the country,” Patterson said. “She has proven and established that everywhere she goes. Programs elevate, and they win. That’s been extremely meaningful and wonderful to watch and to be a part of. And to have Laurie Koehn there as her associate head coach — Laurie was a tremendous player, but she’s also a tremendous teacher of the fundamentals of the game.”
In 2020-21, the trio took the Cougars to their first NCAA tournament since 1990-91. They returned to the dance the next two seasons, which included a first-round matchup against K-State in 2022.
The Wildcats — led by Patterson’s successor, Jeff Mittie — won that game 50-40.
Patterson said she doesn’t know Mittie well, but she’s kept up with the program from afar, becoming a “huge fan” of 6-foot-6 All-America center Ayoka Lee, “next-level point guard” Serena Sundell and recently graduated Gabby Gregory — who hadn’t transferred to K-State yet when Patterson faced her former team, proving she has paid attention to the Wildcats outside of preparation for that one game.
Last year, K-State had its best season since the Patterson era, and crowds reminiscent of those from 20 years ago filed into Bramlage Coliseum to see the Wildcats take the floor.
“It was wonderful to see the elevation of the program back to that level, knowing how uniquely challenging that is,” Patterson said. “It doesn’t just happen. And so it was awesome to see those young people … have success because you’re seeing how they’re doing what they do. There’s a lot of ways to win, but when you’re watching from afar, and you see that quality of character pressing through the victories and the competitiveness at the highest level of the game, it’s really extraordinary and exciting to see. I’m happy for Kansas State.”
Patterson is 10 years removed from the only college head coaching job she’s ever had. At the time of her exit from K-State, many — including some commentators in The Mercury — thought it was the wrong move for the program, and it took a while for the Wildcats to return to some of the apexes to which she propelled them.
While her hall of fame induction, perhaps, substantiated the significance of her work at K-State, a part of her pines for the days of yore when she had the top billing.
And yet, she’s managed to find a landing spot in the game she loves and a sense of peace about where it has taken her.
“I absolutely miss (head coaching) very much,” Patterson said. “But you know, I’m grateful for the opportunities that I have right now. And sometimes, there are bigger parts of life than just the thing you would like to do professionally, so I think the balance that I’ve been able to have in my life by virtue of working with Coach Ethridge has been an important thing for my life and the people in my life.”
"'Oh, what dust we raise,' said the fly upon the chariot wheel." Aesop
