By Moreno                                             H.C.R. No. 32
       74R2826 WMS-D
                                 CONCURRENT RESOLUTION
    1-1        WHEREAS, Nolan Richardson has achieved outstanding success in
    1-2  the sport of basketball for more than three decades, establishing
    1-3  unsurpassed standards of excellence both as an athlete and as a
    1-4  coach; and
    1-5        WHEREAS, A native of El Paso, this exceptional individual
    1-6  attended Bowie High School, where he earned all-district honors in
    1-7  football, baseball, and basketball; in addition to his dazzling
    1-8  athletic accomplishments, he also was selected class favorite in
    1-9  his senior year; and
   1-10        WHEREAS, He briefly attended Eastern Arizona Junior College
   1-11  before transferring to The University of Texas at El Paso, where he
   1-12  became a stellar member of the Miners basketball squad under the
   1-13  tutelage of legendary coach Don Haskins; and
   1-14        WHEREAS, After graduation, he chose professional football
   1-15  over baseball and basketball, having received offers from
   1-16  franchises in all three sports, but his promising career was
   1-17  hampered by injuries; however, when the Dallas Chaparrals were
   1-18  formed as a member of the American Basketball Association he made
   1-19  the squad, performing admirably before injuries again forced him to
   1-20  the sidelines; and
   1-21        WHEREAS, Mr. Richardson returned to Bowie High School in El
   1-22  Paso as head basketball coach, the first African-American to hold
   1-23  such a position in the State of Texas, and during his decade there
   1-24  helped build the team into a hardwood powerhouse; and
    2-1        WHEREAS, In 1978 he moved to Western Texas Junior College,
    2-2  where as head coach he compiled an impressive record of 98 wins
    2-3  against only 14 defeats, including a perfect 37-0 mark during the
    2-4  team's 1980 national championship season; and
    2-5        WHEREAS, He continued his phenomenal success at the
    2-6  University of Tulsa, taking the Golden Hurricane basketball
    2-7  program, which had not posted a winning season in five years, to
    2-8  the National Invitational Tournament championship in his first year
    2-9  at the helm; and
   2-10        WHEREAS, Continuing his climb to the top of the coaching
   2-11  profession he moved to the University of Arkansas, taking over one
   2-12  of the most respected programs in the nation, and although he was
   2-13  not immediately embraced by all the Razorback faithful, he was
   2-14  determined to overcome whatever barriers lay in the path of his
   2-15  ultimate success; and
   2-16        WHEREAS, During Mr. Richardson's second season at Arkansas
   2-17  his daughter, Yvonne, lost her two-year battle with leukemia, but
   2-18  in spite of this overwhelming personal tragedy he continued in his
   2-19  efforts to build the Arkansas basketball program into one that his
   2-20  daughter would have taken pride in; to honor his daughter's memory,
   2-21  Mr. Richardson has sponsored an annual basketball tournament in her
   2-22  name in El Paso to benefit charitable causes there; and
   2-23        WHEREAS, One of basketball's finest floor strategists, this
   2-24  exemplary leader implemented a style of smothering defense that
   2-25  promised opponents "forty minutes of hell" and took the Razorback
   2-26  squad to the 1990 Final Four; four years later Mr. Richardson's
   2-27  Arkansas team held aloft the National Collegiate Athletic
    3-1  Association's national basketball championship trophy as a fitting
    3-2  tribute to the efforts of coach and players alike; and
    3-3        WHEREAS, A consistent supporter of The University of Texas at
    3-4  El Paso, Mr. Richardson was deservedly named 1994 UTEP
    3-5  Distinguished Alumnus for his many contributions to that fine
    3-6  institution; and
    3-7        WHEREAS, Nolan Richardson has served as an inspirational
    3-8  figure to all who have known him, overcoming obstacles both on and
    3-9  off the court to become one of the premier college basketball
   3-10  coaches in the nation, and his noteworthy achievements in this
   3-11  regard are indeed worthy of special legislative recognition; now,
   3-12  therefore, be it
   3-13        RESOLVED, That the 74th Legislature of the State of Texas
   3-14  hereby congratulate Nolan Richardson on his many accomplishments in
   3-15  the sport of basketball and extend to him best wishes for continued
   3-16  success in all future endeavors; and, be it further
   3-17        RESOLVED, That an official copy of this resolution be
   3-18  prepared for Nolan Richardson as an expression of high regard by
   3-19  the Legislature of the State of Texas.