Tennessee Women’s Basketball Head Coach Emeritus Pat Summitt will be honored as the 12th Titan in a special ceremony prior to kickoff of the Tennessee Titans home opener against the New England Patriots on Sept. 9. In addition, Titans owner K.S.”Bud” Adams, Jr. will donate $25,000 to the Pat Summitt Foundation in an effort to raise awareness and help find a cure to Alzheimer’s disease.
“I am very thankful for the generous support of Mr. Bud Adams and the Tennessee Titans’ franchise,” said Summitt.
“My son, Tyler, and I have enjoyed attending Tennessee Titans games and cheering for our home state football team. I am humbled and excited that the Tennessee Titans have joined our team in fighting Alzheimer’s disease through the The Pat Summitt Foundation.”
Summitt served as the head coach of the University of Tennessee women’s basketball team for 38 seasons and is the all-time winningest coach in NCAA history for men’s and women’s teams. During her tenure, the Lady Vols won eight NCAA titles as well as a combined 32 Southeastern Conference tournament and regular season championships.
On Aug. 22, 2011, Summitt raised the bar on courage as she bravely revealed the toughest opponent she will ever have to battle, early onset dementia, Alzheimer’s type. Summitt intends is taking on this opponent with her signature game plan. Shortly after diagnosis, she announced the formation of the Pat Summitt Foundation Fund with the proceeds going toward cutting-edge research. The “We Back Pat” campaign was quickly started and went viral in the social media world following Summitt’s medical announcement. A t-shirt was born with the slogan, and proceeds started pouring into Summitt-picked organizations, Alzheimer’s Tennessee and the University of Tennessee Medical Center.
The Titans also are announcing their fifth annual CODE BLUE for the week of Sept. 3 and are asking fans to show their Titans’ spirit by wearing Titans Light Blue to work, school and the game against the Patriots.
In the spirit of Code Blue week, fans can attend the first-ever Titans Code Blue Pep Rally on Friday, Sept. 7th at the Music City Walk of Fame Park in downtown Nashville from 4:00-7:30 pm. The free event sponsored by LP and Pinnacle will include live music and entertainment, games, food and appearances by Titans cheerleaders, T-Rac and some special guests.