SPRINGFIELD Mass.
Savannah State coach Teddy Wright was so good that legends grew up around him. Like the time he supposedly split his squad in two, sending half to play a game in the Southwest and the other half to play against a school on East Coast.
“He would play two games in the same night, and win both of them,” said Ben Jobe, who like Wright, coached at historically Black colleges and universities. “He was that good.”
Jobe wasn’t bad either. He won 524 games as a college basketball coach, brought two teams to the NAIA national finals and received numerous coach-of-the-year awards. But like Wright and many others who made their mark at traditionally Black schools, he has not been recognized by the Basketball Hall of Fame.
That could soon change.
Mannie Jackson, chairman of the hall’s board of directors, is putting together a committee to review the Hall of Fame credentials of players and coaches from historically Black schools, particularly those who played and coached during the era of segregation.
“The committee will take a look back, take a look at these players, make sure we have not missed anyone in terms of Hall of Fame recognition, and also those who may not be quite Hall-of-Fame caliber, but should be recognized for what they did for the game,” said John Doleva, the hall’s president and chief executive officer.
