Gary Colson (April 30, 1934 – November 3, 2023) was an American basketball coach and executive. The

Logansport, Indiana Logansport is a city in and the county seat of Cass County, Indiana, United States. The population was 18,366 at the 2020 United States Census, 2020 census. Logansport is located in northern Indiana at the junction of the Wabash River, Wabash an ...

, native guided several college men's basketball teams, including

Valdosta State University Valdosta State University (VSU or Valdosta State) is a public university in Valdosta, Georgia, United States. Founded in 1906, it launched in 1913 as an all-girls college. VSU is one of the four comprehensive universities in the University System ...

Pepperdine University Pepperdine University () is a private university, private Christianity, Christian research university affiliated with the Churches of Christ, with its main campus in Los Angeles County, California, United States. Pepperdine's main campus consists ...

University of New Mexico The University of New Mexico (UNM; ) is a public research university in Albuquerque, New Mexico, United States. Founded in 1889 by the New Mexico Territorial Legislature, it is the state's second oldest university, a flagship university in th ...

and

California State University, Fresno California State University, Fresno (Fresno State) is a public university in Fresno, California, United States. It is part of the California State University system. The university had a fall 2020 enrollment of 25,341 students. It offers 60 ba ...

. He compiled a 563–385 (.594) record over 34 seasons of coaching between 1959 and 1995. In 2002, he joined the

Memphis Grizzlies The Memphis Grizzlies (referred to locally as the Grizz) are an American professional basketball team based in Memphis, Tennessee. The Grizzlies compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Southwest Division of the ...

' front office as Assistant to the President of Basketball Operations. In his later years, Coach Colson was a basketball instructor at the

University of California, Santa Barbara The University of California, Santa Barbara (UC Santa Barbara or UCSB) is a Public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Santa Barbara County, California, United States. Tracing its roots back to 1891 as an ...

. Coach Colson earned his bachelor's degree in health and physical education from David Lipscomb College (now

Lipscomb University Lipscomb University is a Private university, private Christian university in Nashville, Tennessee, United States. It is affiliated with the Churches of Christ. The campus is located in the Green Hills, Nashville, Tennessee, Green Hills neighborho ...

) in 1956. He was inducted into the Lipscomb Athletics Hall of Fame in 1998 in the "Athlete" category. Colson died from lymphoma in

Santa Barbara, California Santa Barbara (, meaning ) is a coastal city in Santa Barbara County, California, of which it is also the county seat. Situated on a south-facing section of coastline, the longest such section on the West Coast of the United States excepting A ...

, on November 3, 2023, at the age of 89.Gary Colson, who lobbied to add the 3-point shot during a basketball coaching career, dies at 89
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References

1934 births 2023 deaths American men's basketball players Basketball coaches from Indiana College men's basketball head coaches in the United States Fresno State Bulldogs men's basketball coaches Lipscomb Bisons baseball players Lipscomb Bisons men's basketball players Memphis Grizzlies executives New Mexico Lobos men's basketball coaches People from Logansport, Indiana Pepperdine Waves men's basketball coaches Valdosta State Blazers men's basketball coaches Deaths from lymphoma in California 20th-century American sportsmen {{1930s-US-basketball-bio-stub