Senate Resolution 29

(As Adopted by Senate)

A RESOLUTION COMMENDING AND CONGRATULATING CO-LIN LEGENDARY BASKETBALL COACH GWYN YOUNG ON CAREER WIN NO. 1,000.

WHEREAS, on January 19, 2023, in Wesson, Mississippi, the Copiah-Lincoln Women's Basketball Team gave everyone in attendance what they were looking for with a win over East Mississippi Community College. However, more significantly, the 74-62 victory was career win No. 1,000 for legendary Copiah-Lincoln Community College Head Coach Gwyn Young; and

WHEREAS, the landmark victory came inside Mullen Gymnasium on the court that bears his name as it was christened "Gwyn Young Court" in 2011; and

WHEREAS, knowing that the milestone victory was a possibility, the Copiah-Lincoln side of the bleachers was filled with former players and their families, who had come to support Coach Young. Many of those former players are now coaches themselves. Alumni TeAirra Wilbert-Menzie (Hazlehurst High) and Travelyn Smith (Jefferson County) are both head coaches who brought their teams to Mullen Gymnasium to see the historic win; and

WHEREAS, when Coach Young was hired by former Co-Lin President Billy B. Thames in 1975, his job responsibilities were clearly laid out. Teaching math was his first responsibility as he did so as a high school teacher on the campus at what was then Co-Lin High School. He was also to be an assistant to the junior college's men's basketball team and Head Coach William Lewis. Thirdly, he was to coach the fledgling women's basketball team; and

WHEREAS, the 1970s were the beginning of the emergence of women's basketball in the United States. In 1971, the rules were changed to make it a normal full-court 5-on-5 game. In 1972, Title IX was signed into law, requiring schools to support women's athletics with the same resources that were given to the men's programs; and

WHEREAS, the AIAW administered the early postseason tournaments and during that time, The Mississippi University for Women and Delta State University were two of the best teams in the nation; and

WHEREAS, Coach Young's first female team finished 19-7. Young recalled win No. 1 that came 50 years ago. "I believe we beat East Central, and they'd been really good and were one of the teams that really got women's basketball going within our association," said Coach Young. "I just remember that Coach Woods (ECCC Hall of Famer Lucille Woods) was really hot when we beat them"; and

WHEREAS, the numbers for Coach Young are overwhelming when you lay them out. The 1980-1981 squad finished 7-16 and Young's team wouldn't post another sub. 500 record for the next 39 years, seeing that streak broken by a COVID-19-riddled campaign in 2020-2021 (5-9). He has won eight State Championships and has taken his team to the NJCAA National Tournament six times. His 1989 team finished fourth in the nation while the 2010 team finished seventh in the nation and the 2011 squad finished sixth at the National Tournament in Salina, Kansas. He has sent players on to continue their careers and education at schools located all over the country. He is the winningest active coach in NJCAA basketball and that is for both the men's and women's side of the game; and

WHEREAS, when Coach Young reaches win No. 1,008, he will be the winningest NJCAA Women's Basketball Coach of all-time, passing David Kragel who coached at Walters State in Morristown, Tennessee, for 43 years. Co-Lin and Walters State actually met in the 2010 NJCAA National Tournament. The Co-Lin "Wolves" took that meeting 64-56. The story the raw numbers paint can never tell of all the lives changed and impacted by Coach Young during his 47 years at Co-Lin; and

WHEREAS, when asked over the years about his success, Coach Young always points the praise back to his players. If he were to write a book about the things he has seen and heard during the five decades of going to some of the smallest and largest gyms across Mississippi and Louisiana in the pursuit of recruits, you would have a hard time believing some of his best tales; and

WHEREAS, Coach Young once signed a player from the nation of Hungary that came to the United States with no ability to speak English. The ladies involved with tutoring services at Co-Lin during that time taught her English by ordering a Hungarian-English dictionary; and

WHEREAS, many of his best players have come from local programs like Bogue Chitto, Brookhaven High, Franklin County, Loyd Star and others dotted around Southwest Mississippi. Before celebrating at a reception after the win over EMCC, he made sure to speak to local recruits who were in the gym. He has signed and coached the daughters of former players and inked plenty of recruits who suited up for one of his former players on the high school level. He has never done it alone though, as his wife, Velesta, has been right beside him, as well as his daughter, Jessica, and son, Lane. Lane Young has been an assistant for his dad at Copiah-Lincoln Community College since 2017; and

WHEREAS, Velesta Young still invites each new team into the family home for Sunday night post-practice brownies and rotel dip as the group bonds over the course of the season. One of Coach Young's greatest strengths is how he figures out what each team does well and emphasizes that during his practices and game planning. Over the years, he has had teams that pressed in the full court and groups who shot more three-pointers than his current team does. He has had teams that played inside/out and threw the ball into the post on every trip and other groups have been more guard-focused; and

WHEREAS, his teams will always run plays in the offensive end of the halfcourt, and they will often run out-of-bound plays better than 90% of the teams they face. Practice is highly structured and a mix of drills and running through plays against live defense. Every game is followed with a film session during which Coach Young highlights the plays and efforts that he liked and didn't like. Each new opponent brings a detailed scouting report that has plays that Co-Lin will likely see in the future with clips culled from Young's study of film; and

WHEREAS, Coach Young hates to lose, but he really hates it when his team doesn't play hard enough to win. There have been times when teams that didn't play with enough effort found themselves back on the court of Mullen Gymnasium, practicing after a loss; and

WHEREAS, Coach Young is a humble servant and leader who doesn't chase the spotlight or accolades despite being a member of the NCJAA Women's Basketball Hall of Fame and a living legend within his chosen field. He is a refreshing breath of some things truly staying the same in a world that feels like it's often changing for the worse; and

WHEREAS, he was given another commemorative ball that marked the milestone win by Dr. Jane Hulon-Sims, the fourth different president he has worked under at CLCC. That ball will go up on the top shelf of his office along with the ones marking wins No. 900 and No. 800; and

WHEREAS, it is with great pride that we recognize this landmark event in the career of a great Mississippi coach who has brought honor to his college, his community and to the State of Mississippi:

NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE SENATE OF THE STATE OF MISSISSIPPI, That we do hereby commend and congratulate Co-Lin legendary Basketball Coach Gwyn Young on career win No. 1,000, and we extend to Coach Young and his family our best wishes for future success.

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, That this resolution be presented to Coach Gwyn Young, forwarded to Co-Lin President Dr. Jane Hulon-Sims and the Board of Trustees of Co-Lin Community College and the Mississippi Community College Board, and made available to the Capitol Press Corps.