Gary Blair

Gary Blair is the son of Lee, a plaster foreman, and Jean, a housewife. He was raised in the Forest Hills neighborhood of Dallas. He grew up playing baseball, and as a 128-pound center fielder at Bryan Adams High School, he received all-city honors in 1963. Following his high school graduation in 1963, he enrolled at Texas Tech University, where he failed out of architecture, and moved to California to become a restaurant manager. He got a U.S. Army draft notice in 1969, and decided to enlist in the U.S. Marine Corps, completing a two-year tour of duty. He was stationed in Okinawa during his duty. After his tour, he lived in the Los Angeles area, running a restaurant in Costa Mesa and Culver City. At age 27, he used his G.I. Bill to earn a bachelor's degree in health and physical education with a minor in journalism from Texas Tech. He earned his master's degree in education from the school in 1974. When head women's basketball coach Marsha Sharp retired from Texas Tech in 2006, Blair got calls from his friends to take over the position. Blair stated, "It wasn't the right fit or the right time. Timing is everything in coaching." ==Early coaching career==

After his graduation from Texas Tech, Blair hoped to find a high school baseball coaching job in Lubbock, but he was offered the physical education coach gig at South Oak Cliff High School in Dallas, a predominantly Black school. South Oak Cliff had just started its women's basketball program, and Blair became the team's first coach in 1973. He was initially the boy's P.E. teacher, while waiting for an offer to coach the baseball team, but when asked to coach the girls' team, he accepted. In his seven seasons at South Oak Cliff, he set a state record with five consecutive state tournament appearances and a 239–18 record. His teams won three state Class 4A championships, in 1977, 1978, and 1980, and finished as the runner-up in 1979 by only two points. For his efforts, Blair was inducted into the Texas High School Basketball Hall of Fame. After winning the first state championship, he was offered the head baseball job he had been waiting for, but he turned it down to remain coaching the women's teams. During his five seasons there, Louisiana Tech reached the Final Four in the NCAA Tournament four times, winning two national championships. ==Head coaching career==

Stephen F. Austin (1985–1993) Blair's first head coaching experience at the collegiate level came at Stephen F. Austin University in Nacogdoches, Texas. In his eight years with the school, he compiled a 210–43 record, including 25 wins in just his second season as a head coach. His teams won seven straight conference championships, and appeared in the NCAA Tournament six times. During his last six seasons, his teams were consistently ranked in the final AP Top 25 polls. The team's success was noticed by their fans, who increased home attendance enough to allow the school to rank in the top 12 of NCAA Division 1 attendance leaders. Blair was inducted into the Ladyjack Hall of Fame during halftime of the Ladyjacks game against the Aggies on December 2, 2008. Arkansas (1993–2003) As the head coach of the women's basketball team at Arkansas, Blair compiled a 198–120 record. During his first season, the Lady Razorbacks won 15 of their 29 games, their first winning season in several years. The following year his team, which consisted of 9 freshmen and sophomores, won 23 games and reached the second round of the NCAA tournament. taking over the Big 12 Conference's worst team, which had not had a winning season in seven years. In his first season with Texas A&M, Blair worked very hard to attract fans to the women's basketball games, and by the end of the season attendance had increased 71 percent over the previous year, the best increase in the Big 12 Conference. The following year the Aggies improved, earning a postseason invitation for the first time since 1996. Following their successful season, Blair was named the Women's Basketball News Service National Coach of the Year. Overall, in his first three years as the head coach of the Aggies, A&M home attendance increased 156%, with a school-record 11,088 fans watching the team play Baylor University. On February 20, 2008, Blair posted his 500th career win as a head coach at Reed Arena against the Iowa State Cyclones. In the 2007–08 season, Blair led his squad to a school-first NCAA Elite Eight appearance and a 29–8 overall record. The team also won the 2008 Big 12 conference tournament title. In the NCAA tournament, the team lost to eventual national champion Tennessee. After the season, the Texas A&M Board of Regents approved a one-year contract extension through 2012, and a $150,000 salary raise to $800,000 annually. On March 29, 2011, Gary Blair led the program to its first ever Final Four appearance by defeating top-seeded Baylor 58–46. On April 3, 2011, the Aggies defeated top-seeded Stanford 63–62 to advance to the national title game. Two days later, the Aggies defeated Notre Dame 76–70 in the championship game to win the tournament for the first time in school history. Blair, 65, also became the oldest women's coach to win a national championship. Gary Blair was also selected as a 2012 namesake for Texas A&M's extended orientation camp, "Fish Camp". On October 28, 2021, Blair announced he would retire from coaching at the conclusion of the 2021-22 season. ==USA Basketball==

Gary Blair was named the assistant coach of the 1996 R. William Jones Cup Team. The competition was held in Taipei, Taiwan. The USA team was dominant, winning their games by an average off 33 points per game. The USA team won their opening seven games, behind the scoring leadership of Sheri Sam, who averaged 13 points per game. In the eighth game, they played undefeated Slovakia, in a game that would determine the gold medal. The USA fell behind; Slovakia had a 22–15 lead. The USA came back, but was still behind at halftime. The game was tied at 45 all, when the USA hit several free throws to take a lead they would not give up. The USA team won the game and the championship 72–62. In the final game, the USA beat South Korea to finish the competition with a perfect 9–0 record. ==Coaching honors==

Blair has received the following honors over his coaching career: • 2013 Women's Basketball Hall of Fame • 2009 Southland Conference Hall of Honor inductee • 2008 Stephen F. Austin State University Ladyjack Hall of Fame inductee • 2007 Big 12 Conference Coach of the Year • 2007 Naismith College Coach of the Year finalist • 2007 Texas Association of Basketball Coaches Coach of the Year • 2006 Women's Basketball News Service National Coach of the Year • 2003 Naismith Coach of the Year Finalist • 2002 Texas High School Basketball Hall of Famer • 1996 U.S. Jones Cup Team Assistant Coach • 1995 Basketball Times National Coach of the Year • 1995 Women's Basketball News Service National Coach of the Year • Five-time Southland Conference Coach of the Year (1988, 1990, 1991, 1992, 1993) • Five-time District VI Converse Coach of the Year ==Hall of Fame==

Blair was inducted in the Women's Basketball Hall of Fame in June 2013. Joe McKeown, the head women's basketball coach at Northwestern delivered the introduction speech by videotape. His credentials include 28 years of head coaching experience at Stephen F. Austin, Arkansas and Texas A&M with a 71% lifetime winning percentage, along with the 2011 Division I National Championship. He was also inducted into the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame in 2023. ==Coaching style==

He stresses offensive rebounding and defense to his teams, and his 2007 Texas A&M team ranked among the nation's best in scoring defense, blocked shots, and steals. Much of his recruiting is done in-state, and Blair says that he recruits students for their offensive showing and then teaches them to play defense later. ==Family and personal==

Blair is married to Kyla Blair and has four children and nine grandchildren. Blair is also actively involved with the community. He has been a member of Rotary International for more than 20 years. He has also held his "Celebrity Golf Classic" to benefit Special Olympics for over 15 years; recently, the program has raised over $100,000 annually. ==Coaching record==