SEC coaching legend CM Newton has passed away at the age of 88.
Newton, who played basketball for Adolph Rupp at Kentucky, started his coaching career at Transylvania and integrated athletics at the school before going on to coach at Alabama for 12 years.
He racked up nine straight winning seasons in Tuscaloosa and had the Crimson Tide ranked as high as No. 3 in the country during the 1976-77 season.
A Basketball Icon.
An Alabama Legend.Rest In Peace, Coach Newton. pic.twitter.com/xAogN0Brhc
— Alabama Men’s Basketball (@AlabamaMBB) June 5, 2018
The previous season, he led the Crimson Tide all the way to Mideast regional semifinal. He earned two NCAA Tournament appearances as head coach, which were the first two in school history.
While at Alabama, he played a huge part in recruiting Wendell Hudson, who became the school’s first black scholarship athlete in any sport when he joined the program in 1968.
Newton served as assistant commissioner of the SEC for one year prior to coaching at Vanderbilt from 1981 to 1989, where he compiled four postseason appearances in eight seasons, including two NCAA berths and a Sweet 16 appearance in 1988.
We lost a great Commodore today. Coach C.M. Newton passed away at age 88 and our thoughts are with the Newton family. Rest In Peace Coach.https://t.co/SpzmOPRUH1 pic.twitter.com/P1tuC95XGT
— Vanderbilt Men's Basketball (@VandyMBB) June 5, 2018
He retired from coaching after that and went on to become the new athletic director at Kentucky from 1989 to 2000, which resulted in major growth for the school’s athletic programs. Newton was responsible for the hiring of Rick Pitino, with Kentucky winning 219 games and one national championship during the latter’s time in Lexington.
Newton would also go on to hire the program’s first black basketball coaches, with Bernadette Maddox taking over the women’s program in 1995, and Tubby Smith being named coach of the men’s program in 1997.
He was a player. He was a coach. He was an AD. He was a Hall of Famer. He was a Wildcat.
We are deeply saddened to share news of the passing of C.M. Newton, a UK legend. https://t.co/ReNFx5b4O5 pic.twitter.com/FFD7EZeUzz
— Kentucky Athletics (@UKAthletics) June 5, 2018
In addition to his work at the three SEC schools, Newton served on the NCAA Rules Committee and was chairman of the tournament committee for seven years.
He was also the president of USA Basketball for four years from 1992 to 1996, where he played a huge role in the selection of the “Dream Team” that rolled through the ’92 Summer Olympics in Barcelona.
Newton was elected to the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in 2000.
An hour or so ago, C.M. Newton passed away. Please keep him and his family in your prayers. During one of the most trying times of our athletic department, he came to the rescue and put us on the path we are today. May you rest in peace, my friend. pic.twitter.com/InGk58yQzB
— John Calipari (@UKCoachCalipari) June 5, 2018
We lost a wonderful person today in C.M. Newton. I want to first send out our dearest condolences to his wife, Nancy, his three children and all of their relatives. Coach Newton has been a mentor for me for a number of years and has guided my career from the first time I met him.
— Tubby Smith (@CoachTubbySmith) June 5, 2018
Will Perdue on C.M. Newton: "Coach Newton was the true definition of a leader. He was my coach at Vanderbilt, but he also was so much more. He was my father away from home, a role model for me to look up to, a motivator and a truly patient individual. …
— Jerry Tipton (@JerryTipton) June 5, 2018
Statements from #Alabama AD @Greg_Byrne & @AlabamaMBB head coach @CoachAvery6 on the passing of legendary coaching icon CM Newton: pic.twitter.com/gB6L9mNd4W
— Alex Byington (@_AlexByington) June 5, 2018