Legendary Temple men’s basketball coach John Chaney has died, a week after his 89th birthday, the school confirmed on Friday (January 29).
“John Chaney was a great coach, but he was so much more," Temple's statement reads. "For generations of Temple University students, he was a wise counselor, a dedicated teacher, an icon of success, and a passionate leader who always led by example and with conviction. I am also honored to say he was a dear friend."
The statement continued, "For generations of his players, there is only one man whom they all lovingly called Coach even to this day. That was John Chaney. Our most sincere condolences go out to his wonderful family members. We will keep them all in our prayers.”
Chaney was a legend in the world of college basketball and all of sports. He joined Temple in 1982, changing the program and leading them 17 NCAA tournaments and five NCAA regional finals. Before Chaney arrived, the Temple Owls had never made it to the national tournament in back-to-back seasons. Under Chaney, they rattled off five straight from 1984-88 and then made it 12 straight from 1990 to 2001.
In the years he won coach of the year honors, the Owls had 30-win seasons. The 1987-88 team finished the year ranked No. 1 overall. Many of his student-athletes were the first in their families to graduate college thanks to efforts by Chaney.
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