Bob Knight to Speak at NSU’s Graduate Commencement Ceremony, June 16

FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. – Nova Southeastern University (NSU) will welcome legendary retired basketball coach Bob Knight to be the keynote speaker for the university’s graduate school commencement ceremony. The commencement will be held at the BB&T Center in Sunrise, FL on Sunday, June 16, 2013 at 11:00 a.m. Knight’s address to graduates will be titled “Preparing to Win.”

For the first year, NSU’s commencement ceremonies are being streamed via a live webcast. Space is limited for the webcast, please RSVP at: www.nova.edu/commencement

The ceremony will include more than 950 graduates and their supporters from NSU’s Farquhar College of Arts and Sciences, Graduate School of Computer and Information Sciences, Graduate School of Humanities and Social Sciences, H. Wayne Huizenga School of Business & Entrepreneurship, Institute for the Study of Human Service, Health & Justice, and Oceanographic Center.

About Bob Knight
In college basketball, the name Bob Knight is synonymous with greatness and winning. The numbers and achievements that illustrate what he has done for the game of basketball are there for all to see. Among his numerous achievements:

• 41+ Seasons as a head coach at the Division one level

• Career Record: 902 – 371.

• Established the standard for career NCAA wins (880 victories) on January 1, 2007.

• 98% Graduation Rate.

Bob Knight is among the youngest head coaches to have won 200, 300, 400, 500, 600, 700 and 800 career games. He was the first men’s college basketball coach to have reached 900 wins and until recently was the only member of this exclusive club. When he was 62-years old, he became the youngest of the four coaches to ever reach the milestone of 800 victories. Coach Knight completed his coaching career at Texas Tech on February 2, 2008 with a 67-60 win over Oklahoma State University and announced his retirement soon after.

During his six seasons at Army, his 29 years at Indiana University and his six and a half seasons at the helm of the Texas Tech Red Raider program, he has experienced nothing short of excellence. Most telling, there is the bond that exists between Coach Knight and those who have played for him.

Bob Knight is his own man, one who represents high principles, expectations and demands for his players, his coaching staff and, most of all, himself. But he is foremost an educator. His ability to teach young men the game of basketball and the game of life is one of his most noted characteristics. Coach Knight has proven over and over again that he is the finest basketball coach in America. No other coach can cite NCAA and NIT championships and Olympic and Pan American gold medals among his achievements. There are only two coaches in the history of collegiate basketball who have won more than the three national championships Knight has won during his career. His coaching achievements were honored in May of 1991 when he was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame. In 2011 Knight was voted into the National Collegiate Basketball Hall of Fame

In addition to his accomplishments on the court, Bob Knight is the author of two books. In 2003 he released his autobiography Knight: My Story, and in 2013 he released his second book, The Power of Negative Thinking: An Unconventional Approach To Achieving Positive Results, in which he takes his coaching technique of understanding the downside and preparing for it, and applies that to business strategy.

Committed to mentoring, Coach Knight’s coaching techniques and teaching skills place him in great demand as a speaker around the country. High school coaches flock to his clinics and his summer camp for youngsters is always filled to capacity. He has long been active in the National Association of Basketball Coaches, serving in various capacities. He served a term as a trustee of the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame and was named an honorary member of Beta Gamma Sigma, the national business honor society. He has also lent his name to help support numerous charitable and youth organizations.

Bob Knight’s legacy stretches far beyond the realm of his numerous achievements and highly recognized status on the hard court. In August 2003, he was honored as the first inductee in The Vince Lombardi Titletown Legends. The honor and responsibility pays tribute to those individuals who possess the characteristics instilled by Vince Lombardi in all his players: Dedication, Teamwork, Respect, Love, Family and Discipline.

A native of Orrville, Ohio, Knight is a graduate of Ohio State where he was a member of the Buckeye basketball team. After graduating with a degree in History and Government, Knight was an assistant coach at Cuyahoga Falls (Ohio) High School one year before entering the U.S. Army where he was assigned to assist Coach Tates Locke at West Point. When Locke became head coach at Miami (Ohio) University in 1965, Knight, then only 24, was named to succeed him and became the youngest Varsity Coach in major collegiate history.

He is currently an analyst for ESPN College GameDay.

For more information about NSU’s commencement ceremony, visit: www.nova.edu/commencement

About Nova Southeastern University
Situated on 300 beautiful acres in Ft. Lauderdale, Florida, Nova Southeastern University (NSU) is a dynamic fully accredited research institution dedicated to providing high-quality educational programs at all levels.  NSU is a not-for-profit independent institution with more than 28,000 students. NSU awards associate’s, bachelor’s, master’s, specialist, doctoral and first-professional degrees in a wide range of fields. NSU is classified as a research university with “high research activity” by the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching, and it’s one of only 37 universities nationwide to also be awarded Carnegie’s Community Engagement Classification. For more information on NSU, visit: www.nova.edu

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Contact:
Brandon Hensler, APR
NSU Office of Public Affairs
954-262-5385/5170 Office
954-393-5926 Cell
Brandon.Hensler@nova.edu