Tates Locke obit

Former JU basketball coach Tates Locke, who took Dolphins to NCAA tourney, passes away at 87

 

He was not on the list.

Tates Locke, the tempestuous basketball coach whose 35-year college career included scandal at Clemson and taking Jacksonville University to the NCAA Tournament in 1979, passed away in hospice care in Mayport on Wednesday at age 87.

Locke, also deeply connected with the late Bob Knight as they coached together in opposite roles at Army and Indiana, had a reputation as a brilliant tactical coach.

He served as a head coach at five different college stops — Army, Miami, Oh, Clemson, JU and Indiana State — compiling an overall record of 255-254 over 19 seasons.

Mike Steele, who served for two seasons as a graduate assistant at JU under Locke and one year as a full-time assistant, says he will remember him first and foremost as a respected basketball mentor. In addition to their time at JU, the pair taught at a basketball camp in Waterloo, Iowa from 2018-20. 

“The guy was not only a great basketball coach, but he taught me a great deal about life,” said Steele, a Ponte Vedra Beach resident.

“I left a much better man after three years with Coach Locke [at JU]. He just loved teaching basketball.”

ESPN basketball analyst Jay Bilas paid tribute to Locke on X, formerly Twitter, saying: "RIP to one of my favorite people in the game, the legendary Tates Locke. I had the honor of working with Coach Locke at the Nike Skills Academies, and I will never forget his impact, honesty and wisdom.

"A great coach, dedicated teacher and mentor, and friend. The game lost an icon."

Clemson years don't tell whole story

However, Locke’s complicated basketball journey also include him temporarily sabotaging his career when the NCAA found him guilty of violations at Clemson that included illegal payments to players, most famously 7-foot-1 center Wayne “Tree” Rollins, and academic fraud. He was forced to resign from Clemson after his best season (17-11) in 1974-75.

Locke wrote all about his travails at Clemson in the 1982 book, “Caught in the Net.”

It was published after his three-year JU stint ended following the 1980-81 season as the school fired him due to unsavory behavior that included an affair with an undergraduate student.

"I really thought I was going to die after Clemson," Locke told Sports Illustrated in 1983. "Why I didn't commit suicide or have a nervous breakdown, I'll never really know."

In that SI story about his Clemson years, Locke described himself as a “raving madman” and said his book was intended for young coaches “to let them know about the personal hell they’re in for if they do what I did.”

Steele insists the Clemson part of Locke’s life or the end at JU was not a true reflection of his overall body of work.

“He admitted he didn’t always live true to his values,” said Steele. “There was a lot of cheating going on in the ACC back then. It was a different day.

“I wouldn’t judge a man by three or four years of wanting to win too much in the ACC. His life was much more than that. He quietly helped a lot of high school basketball coaches around Jacksonville by teaching kids the game."

Long connection with Knight

A native of Cincinnati, Locke began his coaching career in 1959-60 as an assistant at his alma mater, Ohio Weslyan. He became an assistant at Army from 1960-63 before taking over as head coach for two seasons, where he hired Knight as one of his assistants and also coached future Duke legend Mike Krzyzewski.

Locke guided Army to two third-place finishes in the NIT, then went on to become head coach at Miami (Ohio) (1966-70) and Clemson (1970-75). He served as an assistant coach and head coach for the NBA Buffalo Braves, compiling a 16-30 record for parts of one season.

Despite his NCAA violations at Clemson, JU hired Locke in 1978 to replace Don Beasley. He led the Dolphins to a 19-11 record in his first year and an NCAA Tournament berth, where JU lost 70-53 to Virginia Tech in a sub-regional game in Lawrence, Kansas. Locke is one of only four coaches to take JU to the NCAA tourney.

After being named Sun Belt Coach of the Year in 1980 and guiding the Dolphins to an NIT berth, where they lost to Murray State at home, Locke saw his record fall to 8-19 in 1980-81 and JU fired him, paying off the last four years of his contract. He finished his JU tenure with a 47-39 record.

Locke resurrected his coaching career by taking jobs as an assistant under Jerry Tarkanian at UNLV (1981-83) and Knight at Indiana (1987-89). His last head coaching stop was at Indiana State (1989-94), but Locke struggled to revive the Sycamores, ending with a 50-88 mark over five seasons.

After his college career ended, Locke served as a scout and in player development for the Portland Trailblazers for over a decade.

He is survived by his wife, Mindy, and three children, Mike, John and Kathy. A celebration of Locke’s life is planned, but no date has been set.

He was described by Rick Telander in the March 8, 1982, issue of Sports Illustrated as being "as high-strung, aggressive and gung-ho over college coaching as anyone has ever been." He died in Jacksonville, Florida, on May 15, 2024, at the age of 87.

Playing career

1957–1959      Ohio Wesleyan

Coaching career (HC unless noted)

1959–1960      Ohio Wesleyan (assistant)

1960–1963      Army (assistant)

1963–1965      Army

1965–1966      Miami (OH) (freshmen)

1966–1970      Miami (OH)

1970–1975      Clemson

1975–1976      Buffalo Braves (assistant)

1976–1977      Buffalo Braves

1978–1981      Jacksonville

1981–1983      UNLV (assistant)

1987–1989      Indiana (assistant)

1989–1994      Indiana State

Head coaching record

Overall            255–254 (college)

16–30 (NBA)

Tournaments    1–3 (NCAA University Division / Division I)

6–4 (NIT)

Accomplishments and honors

Championships

MAC regular season (1969)

Sun Belt tournament (1979)

Awards

Sun Belt Coach of the Year (1980)

MVC Coach of the Year (1991)