S.R. No. 1094
SENATE RESOLUTION NO. 1094
WHEREAS, The Senate of the State of Texas takes pride in
recognizing The University of Texas at Austin's Coach Jody Conradt,
for coaching her 1,000th basketball game on January 17, 2001; and
WHEREAS, The first woman in history to coach 1,000 games in
the National Collegiate Athletic Association, Division One, this
outstanding coach is one of a select group of 17 Division One
coaches who have coached that many games; and
WHEREAS, A living legend, Jody Conradt says that
circumstances have changed in women's basketball since she began
her career; and
WHEREAS, Jody Conradt began her profession 32 seasons ago,
in 1969, when she went to work for Sam Houston State University as
a coach and physical education teacher; at that point, there was
little activity for women's collegiate sports at the Division One
level; and
WHEREAS, Although she coached her first game at age 28,
Coach Conradt says that today, a university would be reluctant
to hire someone that young who had no experience coaching at the
Division One level; and
WHEREAS, In 1973 Jody began a women's basketball program
at The University of Texas at Arlington and coached softball and
volleyball as well; and
WHEREAS, Arriving at The University of Texas at Austin in
1976, Jody Conradt took charge of basketball and volleyball; she
immediately began to change schedules to include more talented
teams as opponents and to include more Top 10 teams; and
WHEREAS, Guiding her team into the Top 20 rankings during
her first year, Jody Conradt began to establish a formidable team
which has not left the Top 20 often; and
WHEREAS, In her fourth year, she guided her team to a 33-4
season and won National Coach of the Year; in her fifth year, the
Lady Longhorns won the AIAW State Title; and
WHEREAS, Reaching new heights after joining the National
Collegiate Athletic Association in 1982, Coach Conradt's team
became number one in the nation for four years in a row; and
WHEREAS, During the 1985 through 1986 season she gathered
together one of the finest teams ever in basketball and led them
through the first unbeaten season in the history of the women's
NCAA; and
WHEREAS, From the beginning, Jody Conradt made special
efforts to attract fans, and the fans drew others to the games;
over the past 24 years, millions of loyal fans have continued to
follow the Lady Longhorns closely; and
WHEREAS, The recipient of countless honors, Coach Conradt
was inducted into the Texas Women's Hall of Fame in 1986 and the
International Women's Sports Hall of Fame in 1995; she was selected
as National Coach of the Year and the Southwest Conference Coach of
the Year innumerable times; and
WHEREAS, A woman of uncommon perseverance, honesty, and
dedication, Coach Jody Conradt has touched the lives of thousands
of young women and made invaluable contributions to the world of
women's sports; having coached her 1,000th basketball game is a
distinguished mark of success; such an outstanding coach is truly
worthy of legislative recognition; now, therefore, be it
RESOLVED, That the Senate of the State of Texas,
77th Legislature, hereby commend Coach Jody Conradt for coaching
her 1,000th basketball game on January 17, 2001, and congratulate
her on her impressive career; and, be it further
RESOLVED, That a copy of this Resolution be prepared for her
as an expression of highest regard from the Texas Senate.
Barrientos
______________________________________
President of the Senate
I hereby certify that the above
Resolution was adopted by the Senate
on May 18, 2001.
______________________________________
Secretary of the Senate
______________________________________
Member, Texas Senate