Charles Grice Driesell, the legendary Terrapins head coach who oversaw the University of Maryland basketball's rise to national prominence, died over the weekend at the age of 92. To many around the country, he was known as the greatest program builder in college basketball. But around here, he was just called Lefty.
Driesell arrived hoping to make Maryland into "the UCLA of the East." He fell short of that goal but put the university on the map, winning two ACC regular season titles, an ACC Tournament and the 1972 NIT, and made college basketball a thing that mattered in this area. And when he retired from coaching, he was fourth on the all-time win list.
Kevin Sheehan paid tribute to Lefty on Tuesday, with so many smiles and laughs about the legendary head coach and recruiter, and that can be heard on the audio player above.
"He left an incredible mark on the game of college basketball," Sheehan said. A mark that includes beginning the now nationwide tradition of Midnight Madness. "He was also incredible and impactful in this area."
Later, Tom McMillen, who played for Lefty from 1971-74 and later had an NBA career before serving in the House of Representatives, joined the Kevin Sheehan Show and that can be heard on the audio player below: