Coach Tommy Bartlett (left) with Tony Miller in 1972.
Tommy Bartlett, Former UF Men’s Basketball Coach, Passes Away
Thursday, October 20, 2016 | Men's Basketball
Bartlett coached at UF for seven seasons.
The Florida athletics family was saddened to learn of the death of former men's basketball head coach Tommy Bartlett on Wednesday at the age of 88.
Bartlett is survived by his wife, Essie, and three sons. Bartlett resided in Chattanooga, Tenn.
In his seven seasons as the Gators' head coach, Bartlett boasted a 95-85 record, earning a win percentage that is the seventh best in Florida's history (.528). His 62 SEC wins still sit at the third-highest spot in program history.
When Bartlett took over the program in 1966, he made some changes that brought a 16-10 school up to a 21-4 record the very next season, a wins total that stood alone as the most by a UF first-year coach until Mike White matched it last season.
That 1966 team was the first Gators basketball team to ever be ranked in a national poll, earning a No. 10 and a No. 8 ranking in the January AP Poll. Bartlett was also responsible for recruiting the program's first black player, Steve Williams, in 1970.
Bartlett was a star athlete at the University of Tennessee years before he began coaching. He played basketball for four years, lettering three of those years and earning an All-SEC recognition his senior year. Bartlett also played tennis for three years, lettering all three of those years and receiving a second All-SEC recognition his senior year. He was undefeated all three years, and won an SEC Championships title each year for both the singles and doubles competition.
His granddaughter, Claire Bartlett, played tennis for the Gators from 2008-2011.
Bartlett is survived by his wife, Essie, and three sons. Bartlett resided in Chattanooga, Tenn.
In his seven seasons as the Gators' head coach, Bartlett boasted a 95-85 record, earning a win percentage that is the seventh best in Florida's history (.528). His 62 SEC wins still sit at the third-highest spot in program history.
When Bartlett took over the program in 1966, he made some changes that brought a 16-10 school up to a 21-4 record the very next season, a wins total that stood alone as the most by a UF first-year coach until Mike White matched it last season.
That 1966 team was the first Gators basketball team to ever be ranked in a national poll, earning a No. 10 and a No. 8 ranking in the January AP Poll. Bartlett was also responsible for recruiting the program's first black player, Steve Williams, in 1970.
Bartlett was a star athlete at the University of Tennessee years before he began coaching. He played basketball for four years, lettering three of those years and earning an All-SEC recognition his senior year. Bartlett also played tennis for three years, lettering all three of those years and receiving a second All-SEC recognition his senior year. He was undefeated all three years, and won an SEC Championships title each year for both the singles and doubles competition.
His granddaughter, Claire Bartlett, played tennis for the Gators from 2008-2011.
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