George Melvin "Jud" Heathcote (May 27, 1927 – August 28, 2017) was an American
basketball
Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular Basketball court, court, compete with the primary objective of #Shooting, shooting a basketball (ball), basketball (appro ...
player and coach.
He was a
college basketball
College basketball is basketball that is played by teams of Student athlete, student-athletes at universities and colleges. In the Higher education in the United States, United States, colleges and universities are governed by collegiate athle ...
head coach for 24 seasons: five at the
University of Montana
The University of Montana (UM) is a public research university in Missoula, Montana, United States. UM is a flagship institution of the Montana University System and its second largest campus. Fall 2024 saw total enrollment hit 10,811, marki ...
and nineteen at
Michigan State University
Michigan State University (Michigan State or MSU) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in East Lansing, Michigan, United States. It was founded in 1855 as the Agricultural College of the State o ...
Heathcote coached
Magic Johnson
Earvin "Magic" Johnson Jr. (born August 14, 1959) is an American businessman and former professional basketball player. Often regarded as the greatest point guard of all time, Johnson List of NBA players who have spent their entire career w ...
during his two years at Michigan State, concluding with the
1979
Events
January
* January 1
** United Nations Secretary-General Kurt Waldheim heralds the start of the ''International Year of the Child''. Many musicians donate to the ''Music for UNICEF Concert'' fund, among them ABBA, who write the song ...
national championship season.
He also coached the University of Montana to a national handball championship in 1974.
Early years
Born in
Harvey, North Dakota, to Marion Grant Heathcote and Fawn (Walsh), Heathcote's father was a coach, but died in a 1930
diphtheria
Diphtheria is an infection caused by the bacteria, bacterium ''Corynebacterium diphtheriae''. Most infections are asymptomatic or have a mild Course (medicine), clinical course, but in some outbreaks, the mortality rate approaches 10%. Signs a ...
epidemic. His mother was a teacher and moved to live with her parents in
Manchester, Washington, west of
Seattle
Seattle ( ) is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Washington and in the Pacific Northwest region of North America. With a population of 780,995 in 2024, it is the 18th-most populous city in the United States. The city is the cou ...
.
[
Heathcote developed into a fine three-sport athlete at South Kitsap High School in Port Orchard,] and after a year in the Navy
A navy, naval force, military maritime fleet, war navy, or maritime force is the military branch, branch of a nation's armed forces principally designated for naval warfare, naval and amphibious warfare; namely, lake-borne, riverine, littoral z ...
V-5 program as ended, he enrolled at Washington State College
Washington State University (WSU, or colloquially Wazzu) is a public land-grant research university in Pullman, Washington, United States. Founded in 1890, WSU is also one of the oldest land-grant universities in the American West. With an un ...
in Pullman and played basketball for the Cougars under head coach
Coaching career
At age 44, Montana
Montana ( ) is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Mountain states, Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. It is bordered by Idaho to the west, North Dakota to the east, South Dakota to the southeast, Wyoming to the south, an ...
was the first for Heathcote as head coach of a college varsity program. Out of college, he coached for fourteen seasons at West Valley High School in Spokane, Washington
Spokane ( ) is the most populous city in eastern Washington and the county seat of Spokane County, Washington, United States. It lies along the Spokane River, adjacent to the Selkirk Mountains, and west of the Rocky Mountain foothills, south o ...
, then at alma mater Washington State for seven years under Marv Harshman; five as freshman coach and two as frosh-varsity coach.
Montana had little historic success in the sport,[ but in his fourth season at ]Missoula
Missoula ( ) is a city in and the county seat of Missoula County, Montana, Missoula County, Montana, United States. It is located along the Clark Fork River near its confluence with the Bitterroot River, Bitterroot and Blackfoot River (Montana), ...
in Heathcote led the Grizzlies to their first Big Sky Conference
The Big Sky Conference is a List of NCAA conferences, collegiate athletic conference, affiliated with the National Collegiate Athletic Association, NCAA's NCAA Division I, Division I with college football, football competing in the Football Cha ...
championship. They advanced to the NCAA Regionals, but lost by three in Portland
Portland most commonly refers to:
*Portland, Oregon, the most populous city in the U.S. state of Oregon
*Portland, Maine, the most populous city in the U.S. state of Maine
*Isle of Portland, a tied island in the English Channel
Portland may also r ...
in the Sweet Sixteen to eventual champion
Heathcote was hired by Joseph Kearney at Michigan State
Michigan State University (Michigan State or MSU) is a public land-grant research university in East Lansing, Michigan, United States. It was founded in 1855 as the Agricultural College of the State of Michigan, the first of its kind in the ...
in April 1976 and began the most successful phase of his coaching career. In his third season in East Lansing
East Lansing is a city in the U.S. state of Michigan. Most of the city lies within Ingham County, Michigan, Ingham County, although a small portion extends north into Clinton County, Michigan, Clinton County. At the 2020 United States census, 2020 ...
, he guided the Spartans to the NCAA championship. Led on the court by sophomore Magic Johnson
Earvin "Magic" Johnson Jr. (born August 14, 1959) is an American businessman and former professional basketball player. Often regarded as the greatest point guard of all time, Johnson List of NBA players who have spent their entire career w ...
, MSU defeated the Larry Bird
Larry Joe Bird (born December 7, 1956) is an American former professional basketball player, coach, and executive in the National Basketball Association (NBA). Nicknamed "the Hick from French Lick" and "Larry Legend" Bird is widely regarded a ...
-led Indiana State Sycamores in the title game in
In his nineteen years at Michigan State, the Spartans made nine NCAA tournament appearances and three National Invitation Tournament
The National Invitation Tournament (NIT) is an annual men's college basketball tournament operated by the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA). Since 2023, all rounds of the tournament are played at various sites across the country whi ...
(NIT) appearances. As a coach, Heathcote was particularly noted for his excellent defensive strategies on the court and was second to none in blocking the opposing team from penetrating to the hoop. Heathcote retired after the 1994–95 season, having won 418 games and lost 275, for a .603 winning percentage. He was succeeded by Tom Izzo
Thomas Michael Izzo (, ; born January 30, 1955) is an American college basketball coach who has been the head coach at Michigan State University since 1995. On April 4, 2016, Izzo was elected to the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame.
Izzo has le ...
, a thirteen-year assistant coach and associate head coach for Heathcote's final five seasons.
Retirement
After retiring from coaching, Heathcote returned to Spokane, where he lived until his death. He played handball
Handball (also known as team handball, European handball, Olympic handball or indoor handball) is a team sport in which two teams of seven players each (six outcourt players and a goalkeeper) pass a ball using their hands with the aim of thr ...
until well into his seventies, and continued to play recreational golf
Golf is a club-and-ball sport in which players use various Golf club, clubs to hit a Golf ball, ball into a series of holes on a golf course, course in as few strokes as possible.
Golf, unlike most ball games, cannot and does not use a standa ...
. While Heathcote continued to follow Michigan State during the college season, his primary basketball interest in his final years was the local Gonzaga University
Gonzaga University (GU) ( ) is a Private university, private Society of Jesus, Jesuit university in Spokane, Washington, United States. It is Higher education accreditation in the United States, accredited by the Northwest Commission on Colleges ...
; he attended all Bulldogs home games, and had a monthly lunch with head coach Mark Few
Mark Norman Few (born December 27, 1962) is an American college basketball coach who has been the head coach at Gonzaga University since 1999.
He has served on Gonzaga's coaching staff since 1989, and has led the Bulldogs from mid-major obscur ...
.
On August 28, 2017, Heathcote died at the age of 90. "Michigan State has lost one of its icons today," current MSU basketball coach Tom Izzo
Thomas Michael Izzo (, ; born January 30, 1955) is an American college basketball coach who has been the head coach at Michigan State University since 1995. On April 4, 2016, Izzo was elected to the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame.
Izzo has le ...
said in a statement. "And yet, nothing can erase his impact on the program, the players he coached and the coaches he mentored. Spartan basketball is what it is today because of Jud Heathcote."
Head coaching record
College
*Due to forfeits related to NCAA sanctions to Minnesota for improper selling of tickets, MSU's official record for the 1976–77 season is 12–15, 9–9 though they finished the season 10–17, 7–11.
^Due to NCAA sanctions against Wisconsin for providing improper benefits for players, MSU's official record for the 1981–82 season is 12–16, 7–11 though they finished the season 11–17, 6–12. The official record for the 1983–84 seasonal is 16–12, 9–9 though they finished the season 15–13, 8–10
See also
* Heathcote (surname) Heathcote is a surname rooted in English topography which literally means "Heath Cottage". The location in Derbyshire was first recorded in the Domesday Book of 1086 as "Hedcote", and as "Hethcote" in 1244. The location in Warwickshire appears is ...
* List of NCAA Division I Men's Final Four appearances by coach
This is a list of the NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament regional championships by coach. The current names of the NCAA tournament regions are the East, Midwest, South, and West. The winners of the four regions are awarded an NCAA Regiona ...
References
* Autobiography:
{{DEFAULTSORT:Heathcote, Jud
1927 births
2017 deaths
American men's basketball players
Basketball coaches from North Dakota
Basketball players from North Dakota
College men's basketball head coaches in the United States
High school basketball coaches in Washington (state)
Michigan State Spartans men's basketball coaches
Montana Grizzlies basketball coaches
National Collegiate Basketball Hall of Fame inductees
Sportspeople from Kitsap County, Washington
People from Wells County, North Dakota
Washington State Cougars men's basketball coaches
Washington State Cougars men's basketball players
United States Navy personnel of World War II
United States Navy officers
Sigma Alpha Epsilon members
20th-century American sportsmen