Darrell Hedric (born June 9, 1933) is an American

basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular court, compete with the primary objective of shooting a basketball (approximately in diameter) through the defender's h ...

head coach A head coach, senior coach or manager is a professional at training and developing athletes. They typically hold a more public profile and are paid more than other Coach (sport), coaches. In some sports, the head coach is instead called the "manage ...

and scout, most noted as the coach of the

Miami University Miami University (informally Miami of Ohio or simply Miami) is a public research university in Oxford, Ohio. The university was founded in 1809, making it the second-oldest university in Ohio (behind Ohio University, founded in 1804) and the 1 ...

(Ohio) basketball team from 1970 to 1984.

Early history

Hedric was born and raised in

Franklin, Ohio Franklin is a city in Warren County, Ohio, United States. The population was 11,771 at the 2010 census. The Great Miami River flows through Franklin. Ohio State Routes 73, 123 and 741 pass through Franklin, while Interstate 75 passes on the ...

. He was a standout on the Franklin Wildcats basketball team. During his senior year, he was recruited to play college basketball at Miami University the following year. Hedric went on to gain his

varsity letter A varsity letter (or monogram) is an award earned in the United States for excellence in school activities. A varsity letter signifies that its recipient was a qualified varsity team member, awarded after a certain standard was met. Description ...

in all four years at Miami. After graduation, Hedric played professional basketball for the Akron Goodyear Wingfoots of the

National Industrial Basketball League The National Industrial Basketball League was founded in 1947 to enable U.S. mill workers a chance to compete in basketball. The league was founded by the industrial teams (teams sponsored by the large companies and made up of their employees) be ...

. He was drafted into the

United States Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the maritime service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. It is the largest and most powerful navy in the world, with the estimated tonnage ...

and served on a destroyer in

Antarctica Antarctica () is Earth's southernmost and least-populated continent. Situated almost entirely south of the Antarctic Circle and surrounded by the Southern Ocean, it contains the geographic South Pole. Antarctica is the fifth-largest co ...

. After serving his country, Hedric once again turned to basketball, taking the head coaching job at Taft High School in

Hamilton, Ohio Hamilton is a city in and the county seat of Butler County, Ohio, United States. Located north of Cincinnati, Hamilton is the second largest city in the Greater Cincinnati area and the 10th largest city in Ohio. The population was 63,399 at ...

Miami University coaching history

Subsequently, Hedric returned to Miami University to serve as an assistant coach. In 1970 Hedric took the reins of the school's basketball program as the head coach, a position he held until 1984. By the end of his coaching career, he amassed several notable achievements including defeating defending national champion Marquette in the NCAA tournament, and regular season wins over coaching legends

Bobby Knight Robert Montgomery Knight (born October 25, 1940) is an American former basketball coach. Nicknamed "the General", Knight won 902 NCAA Division I men's college basketball games, a record at the time of his retirement, and currently fourth all-ti ...

and

Dean Smith Dean Edwards Smith (February 28, 1931 – February 7, 2015) was an American men's college basketball head coach. Called a "coaching legend" by the Basketball Hall of Fame, he coached for 36 years at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hi ...

. Hedric remains the only coach to have defeated both Knight and Smith on their home courts. Hedric compiled a record of 216–157 at Miami, and along the way recruited several excellent players, most notably

Ron Harper Ronald Harper (born January 20, 1964) is an American former professional basketball player. He played for four teams in the National Basketball Association (NBA) between 1986 and 2001 and is a five-time NBA champion. Early life Harper was born ...

, who went on to win multiple

NBA The National Basketball Association (NBA) is a professional basketball league in North America. The league is composed of 30 teams (29 in the United States and 1 in Canada) and is one of the major professional sports leagues in the United ...

championships. He was inducted into the Miami Athletic Hall of Fame in 1978, and in 1986 Miami retired his jersey #86. He is an inductee of the Franklin and Butler County Halls of Fame. He was inducted into the Ohio Basketball Hall of Fame in 2012.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Hedric, Darrell 1933 births Living people American men's basketball coaches American men's basketball players Basketball coaches from Ohio Basketball players from Ohio College men's basketball head coaches in the United States Miami RedHawks men's basketball coaches Miami RedHawks men's basketball players People from Franklin, Ohio Sportspeople from Hamilton, Ohio