|
 After
19 seasons at the helm of the men's basketball
program at Alabama A&M University, Vann Pettaway
continues to build a coaching slate that is envied
by many of his peers. The 2004-05 season brought new
successes to this storied program as the Bulldogs
won their first SWAC title, both regular-season and
tournament, and earned a berth into the NCAA
Division I National Tournament.
With an impressive 384-181 career record, Pettaway
has guided the Alabama A&M Bulldogs to eight NCAA
Division II playoff appearances, seven Southern
Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (SIAC) titles,
and six SIAC Tournament crowns. Under Pettaway the
Bulldogs have averaged more than 20 wins a season,
and have had eight seasons where they have recorded
20 or more victories. While a member of the NCAA
Division II, his teams advanced to the NCAA
Tournament's Elite Eight four times, including an
unprecedented three straight appearances (1994,
1995, & 1996).
After posting a 23-7 record in his first season as
head coach, Pettaway led the Bulldogs to a 29-3
record during the 1987-88 season - the best in AAMU
history. In that same year, the Bulldogs advanced to
the NCAA Division II playoffs for the fourth
straight year. With a 26-6 record the following
season, Pettaway went on to finish the year third in
the South Atlantic Regional Tournament.
During Pettaway's first 11 years as head coach,
Alabama A&M competed at the NCAA Division II level
in the Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference.
In that time, he experienced 10 winning seasons and
advanced to the regional tournament seven times
(1988, 1989, 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, & 1997).
Not content to simply rest on the laurels of his
previous success, in 1998-99 Pettaway accepted the
challenge head on when the Bulldogs began the
transition from NCAA Division II to Division I as a
part of the Southwestern Athletic Conference.
Suffering his first losing season as a head coach
when his team posted a 10-17 record their first year
of SWAC play, Pettaway went on to lead his charges
to records of 18-10, 17-11 and 19-10 each of the
next three years.
Injuries during the 2002-03 season set the program
back and gave Pettaway his second losing season with
an 8-19 finish, but with a strong returning cast of
characters, a move up the SWAC standings is on the
horizon this season.
After missing the SWAC tournament the first three
seasons in the league while serving a mandatory
probationary period for moving to the Division I
level, the Bulldogs were finally eligible to make a
run at the SWAC tournament title and a birth in the
NCAA tournament in 2001-02. After posting a shaky
4-6 record in the first 10 games of the season,
Pettaway's Bulldogs responded, winning 14 of their
final 17 regular season games, securing a #2 seed in
the 2002 SWAC tournament. Pettaway led the Bulldogs
to a top three finish in the SWAC in three straight
seasons prior to last year.
In 2005, Pettaway coached the Bulldogs to Alabama
A&M history as they captured their first conference
basketball title on the Division I level. He also
captured the SWAC tournament title and made an
appearance in the 2005 NCAA Division I Tournament.
Over the past 19 years, Pettaway has dominated his
opponents at Alabama A&M's T. M. Elmore Gymnasium,
amassing an overall record of 229-37 in its cozy
confines. During that span, he has posted a record
of 98-55 against members of the SWAC.
In addition to his coaching responsibilities,
Pettaway also served as athletics director for
Alabama A&M from 1989-1992. During his tenure as
director, the Alabama A&M athletic department
experienced some of its most successful years,
winning a number of conference championships and
also securing national titles in women's track and
field.
While he is extremely proud of the athletic
accomplishments, his teams have realized that Coach
Pettaway is a firm believer that student-athletes
are students first. Over the last decade, members of
his teams have enjoyed a near-perfect graduation
rate. With the national matriculation rates for
college and university athletes only in the 40
percent range, the true significance of this
accomplishment becomes even more apparent.
A native of Selma, Ala., Pettaway graduated from
Dallas County High School. He continued his
education at Selma University, where he had two
outstanding seasons under legendary basketball coach
John "Skin" Lewis, and he lettered in baseball.
Pettaway completed his bachelor's degree in health
and physical education at Alabama A&M in 1980, and
went on to earn his master's degree in secondary
administration in 1991, also from Alabama A&M.
Coach Pettaway has been recognized for his
outstanding accomplishments frequently throughout
his career. He was named Southern Intercollegiate
Athletic Conference Coach of the Year five times:
1988, 1989, 1993, 1995, & 1996. He was also
recognized as an Outstanding Young Man of America in
1981, 1984 and 1987. He is an active member of the
National Association of Basketball Coaches (NABC),
serving as an NABC Congressman. Pettaway is also
extremely involved in his community, serving as a
member of the Huntsville chapter of the 100 Black
Men of America.
Pettaway and his wife Glenn are the proud parents of
two daughters, Porsha and Paige. |
