Bob Bessoir
| Biographical details | |
|---|---|
| Born | December 29, 1932 Jersey City, New Jersey |
| Died | December 30, 2020(aged 88) Glenburn Township, Pennsylvania |
| Playing career | |
| 1951–1955 | Scranton |
| Position(s) | Forward |
| Coaching career (HCunless noted) | |
| 1958–1972 | Scranton(assistant) |
| 1972–2001 | Scranton |
| Head coaching record | |
| Overall | 552–263 (.677) |
| Accomplishments and honors | |
| Championships | |
| 2NCAA Division III Tournament(1976,1983) 14Middle Atlantic North/MAC Freedomregular season (1975, 1976, 1978, 1980–1985, 1987, 1988, 1991, 1993, 2000) | |
| Awards | |
| NABC National Coach of the Year(1983) 4× Middle Atlantic North/MAC Freedom Coach of the Year (1983, 1985, 1993, 2000) | |
Robert M. Bessoir(December 29, 1932 – December 30, 2020) was an Americancollege basketballcoach. He spent his career at his alma mater, theUniversity of Scranton,where he won 552 games and won twoNCAA Division IIInational championships.[1][2]
Biography[edit]
Bessoir was born inJersey City, New Jersey,and played prep basketball atWilliam L. Dickinson High School.[3]He earned a scholarship toScrantonto play for coachPeter A. Carlesimo.A 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m)forward,he played for the Royals from 1951 to 1955, scoring 1,066 points in his career (then in the top-ten in Scranton history) and set a school record with 43 rebounds in one senior-year game.[3]Following his graduation, Bessoir joined theUnited States Army,serving in theKorean War.
He returned to his alma mater in 1958 as an assistant basketball coach and in a variety of other athletic roles, serving as head golf coach, head baseball coach for the 1968 season and as sports information director. He received a master's degree fromEast Stroudsburg University of Pennsylvaniain 1968 and served as boys coach for South Catholic High for a time. In 1972, Bessoir was named head coach, replacing Nat Volpe who resigned mid-season.[4]
“Coach Bess” would lead the Royals for 29 seasons and a new level of basketball success for the program. When theNCAAsplit their “college division” intoDivision II(which would offer athletic scholarships) andDivision III(which would not), Scranton became one of the top teams in Division III. Bessoir's 1974–75 team qualified for the firstDivision III men's basketball tournament,then the following year won the National championship, defeatingWittenberg60–57 in overtime in the final.[5]Bessoir's Royals would win another national title in the 1982–83 season with his son Bill as the team's star. Bessoir was namedNABC National Coach of the Yearfor Division III that year.
At the beginning of the 2000–01 season, Bessoir announced that he would retire at the conclusion of the campaign.[6]Bessoir finished his 29-year career with a record of 552–263. His final game as coach was played on February 24, 2001, with a close 86–81 loss toWilkes University.[2]Bessoir was succeeded by Royals coachCarl Danzigupon his retirement.[2]
Bessoir became the first inductee into the newly created Middle Atlantic Conference Hall of Fame in 2012.[2]He was also inducted into six other basketball halls of fame, including the Chic Feldman Foundation Hall of Fame, the Luzerne County Chapter of the Pennsylvania Sports Hall of Fame, the Northeastern Pennsylvania Sports Hall of Fame, the Pennsylvania State Hall of Fame, the University of Scranton Wall of Fame, and William L. Dickinson High School hall of fame.[2]In 2016, the University of Scranton awarded him the Peter A. Carlesimo Award for contributions to athletics and Catholic education.[2]
Bessoir died on December 30, 2020, at age 88.[2][7][8]
References[edit]
- ^"Robert M. Bessoir obituary".tributearchive.com.RetrievedJanuary 3,2021.
- ^abcdefgWalsh, Scott (2020-12-30)."Legendary basketball coach Bob Bessoir dies at 88".The Scranton Times-Tribune.Archivedfrom the original on 2021-01-11.Retrieved2021-01-11.
- ^ab"Press Release: Bessoir appointed head basketball coach",University of Scranton,dated May 21, 1972. Accessed January 4, 2021. A native of Jersey City, and a graduate of Dickinson High, Bessoir is one of the U. of S. all-time basketball big men. In three seasons of varsity play he scored 1066 points. He is one of nine players in U. S. history to score over a thousand points. In his senior year the 6'7' "Bessoir set a record at Scranton by collecting 43 rebounds in a single game."
- ^"Bob Bessoir named U of S basketball coach".Scrantonian Tribune.May 21, 1972. p. 58.RetrievedJanuary 3,2021– viaNewspapers.com.
- ^Pileggi, Sarah (November 28, 1977)."A biggie among the smalls".Sports Illustrated.RetrievedJanuary 3,2021.
- ^"Bess makes it official".The Scranton Times-Tribune.September 30, 2000. p. 21.RetrievedJanuary 3,2021– viaNewspapers.com.
- ^O'Reilly, Hanna."Legendary University of Scranton basketball coach passes away at 88".fox56.com.RetrievedJanuary 3,2021.
- ^"Legendary Scranton coach dies at 88".Times Leader.2020-12-30.Archivedfrom the original on 2021-01-06.Retrieved2021-01-11.
External links[edit]
- 1932 births
- 2020 deaths
- American men's basketball coaches
- American men's basketball players
- Basketball coaches from New Jersey
- Basketball players from Jersey City, New Jersey
- College men's basketball head coaches in the United States
- East Stroudsburg University of Pennsylvania alumni
- High school basketball coaches in Pennsylvania
- Scranton Royals men's basketball coaches
- Scranton Royals men's basketball players
- United States Army personnel of the Korean War
- William L. Dickinson High School alumni