Eddie Sutton waited so long to be inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame. He couldn't hang on long enough to make it to the ceremony.
Sutton, the man who guided three trips to the Final Four and was the first coach to take four different programs to the NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament, died Saturday. He was 84.
Sutton's family released a statement saying he died of natural causes at home in the Tulsa, Oklahoma, area, surrounded by his three sons and their families. His wife, Patsy, died in 2013.
"Dad and Mom treated their players like family and always shared the belief that his teachings went beyond the basketball court," the family wrote. "He cherished the time he spent at every school and appreciated the support of their loyal fans. He believed they deserved so much credit in the success of his programs."
Elected to the Hall of Fame on April 3, Sutton fell short as a finalist six times before finally being selected. He had said he believed that a scandal that ended his stint at Kentucky was likely the culprit for his lengthy wait. The NCAA announced 18 allegations against the program in 1988, and he resigned in 1989.
He certainly had a worthy résumé. He was 806-328 in 37 seasons as a Division I head coach - not counting vacated victories or forfeited games - and took Arkansas, Creighton, Kentucky and Oklahoma State to a combined 25 NCAA tournaments, leading Final Four squads at Arkansas in 1978 and Oklahoma State in 1995 and 2004. He was named coach of the year by The Associated Press in 1978 while with the Razorbacks, and again in 1986 at Kentucky.
Former Kentucky star Rex Chapman, who went on to play in the NBA for more than a decade, appreciated his time with the Wildcats under Sutton.
"Eddie Sutton was a fascinating and complicated person," Chapman wrote on Twitter. "He also was an unbelievable teacher of the game of basketball. I was fortunate and lucky to have learned from him. Grateful."
AP file photo by Sue Ogrocki / Eddie Sutton, the first coach to lead four programs to the NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament, was elected to the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in April. He died Saturday at the age of 84.Sutton's retirement at Oklahoma State in 2006 came roughly three months after he took medical leave after a car wreck that resulted in him being charged with aggravated DUI, speeding and driving on the wrong side of the road. He pleaded no contest, received a one-year deferred sentence and was ordered to pay a fine.
Through it all, he remained wildly popular at Oklahoma State, often attending games while confined to a wheelchair. He would receive loud cheers as the camera panned to him and Aloe Blacc's "The Man" played over the sound system.
"Oklahoma State University is deeply saddened by the passing of Coach Eddie Sutton," Oklahoma State president Burns Hargis said in a release. "A Hall of Fame coach with more than 800 wins, he revived our historic basketball program and will always be revered and loved by the Cowboy family. Our thoughts and prayers are with the entire Sutton family."
Even rivals had the highest respect for Sutton.
"Seems like just a few days ago we were celebrating the news that Coach Eddie Sutton had been elected to the Basketball Hall of Fame," Oklahoma athletic director Joe Castiglione wrote on Twitter. "Now this very sad news of his passing. So grateful I had a chance to get to know him & his family. Thinking about Steve, Sean & Scott. RIP Coach."
AP photo by Jeff Lewis / San Francisco men's basketball interim head coach Eddie Sutton shakes the hand of Terry Anzaldo as player Myron Strong, left, smiles and pats him on the back after defeating Pepperdine 88-85 to give Sutton the 800th win of his career on Feb. 2, 2008, in Malibu, Calif.Sutton was born in Bucklin, Kansas, in 1936. He played at Oklahoma State under Hall of Fame coach Henry Iba, then stayed there to begin his coaching career as an assistant under Iba in 1958.
After working in the high school ranks at Tulsa Central and the junior college ranks at Southern Idaho, Sutton got his first Division I head coaching job at Creighton in 1969. He led the Bluejays to an 82-50 mark in five seasons.
He took over at Arkansas in 1975, and the Razorbacks went 17-9 and 19-9 before beginning a nine-year stretch of 20-win seasons. He finished his run in Fayetteville with nine straight trips to the NCAA tournament, and his 1978 Final Four squad featured versatile stars Sidney Moncrief, Marvin Delph and Ron Brewer.
Sutton left his mark at Arkansas - the practice gym there is named for him. Former U.S. President Bill Clinton, who was the governor of Arkansas for part of Sutton's run there, once sent a video message for a ceremony honoring Sutton at the school in 2016.
"Your time as coach was a defining era in Razorback basketball," Clinton said. "You put our program on the map. You helped mold a generation of student-athletes into winners on the court and after they left. You made us think we could win again."
Sutton moved on and replaced Joe B. Hall at Kentucky in 1985. While there, he compiled a 90-40 record, including two Southeastern Conference titles, but he slumped at the end and his program endured NCAA scrutiny.
He led Oklahoma State from 1991 to 2006. The Cowboys reached the Sweet 16 his first two seasons as head coach, and Bryant Reeves and Randy Rutherford led the Cowboys to the Final Four in 1995. The Cowboys made it back to the Final Four in 2004, with Tony Allen and Joey Graham leading the way.
Sutton's final coaching stint came in 2007-08 as interim coach at San Francisco, where he earned his 800th win.