UL Mark the Shark #2

My mission is to get pictured with the infamous Jerry Tarkanian.

Jerry Tarkanian (born August 8, 1930), also known as "Tark the Shark", is a former college basketball coach known for colorful behavior, including habitually chewing on a towel during games, and for his public criticisms of and clashes with the NCAA. He was head coach at three different Division I schools, each of which was subsequently penalized by the NCAA.


With a 990-228 career coaching record (81.3%) across all college divisions, Tarkanian currently has more collegiate wins than almost any coach in history (Gene Bess has over 1000 wins at the community college level). He is also one of few college coaches to lead three different schools to 20-win seasons. He accomplished this task at each school in his first year. However, he has not been elected to the Basketball Hall of Fame due primarily to the NCAA penalties.

He moved to Division I basketball as coach at Long Beach State from 1968-1973, and became famous at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas, coaching the Runnin' Rebels from 1973-1992 where his teams were known for remarkable defense, including the amoeba defense and an up-tempo style. He took his UNLV teams to four Division I Final Fours. In the first, in 1977, the Rebels lost to North Carolina in the semifinals. Ten years later, UNLV lost to Bob Knight's eventual national champion Indiana Hoosiers. Finally, in the 1990 NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Tournament Tarkanian led UNLV to the championship, prevailing 103-73 against Duke while setting a record for margin of victory in a championship game. The following year Coach Tarkanian's undefeated team met Duke in the semifinals and lost 79-77. (Thanks to Wikipedia for the information!)

I grew up watching college basketball during the UNLV years of Jerry Tarkanian. I have great memories of watching him coach the Runnin' Rebels. I'd really appreciate getting a lift to Las Vegas where maybe, just maybe, I'll get my wish to get pictured with "Tark the Shark"!!