Former Wildcat quarterback is first UK athlete to win award since 1995.
BIRMINGHAM, Ala. — Kentucky quarterback Tim Couch and Tennessee basketball player Chamique Holdsclaw, both No.1 overall draft picks in their respective professional sports, have been named the 1998-99 Southeastern Conference Male and Female Athletes of the Year by a vote of the league’s athletics directors.
Holdsclaw earns Athlete of the Year honors for the second consecutive year, becoming just the second female and fourth athlete ever to win the award in back-to-back seasons. Florida swimmer Nicole Haislett was the first female to repeat in 1993 and 1994 while LSU’s Shaquille O’Neal was the first to repeat in 1991 and 1992. Prior to Holdsclaw, the feat was last achieved by Florida’s Danny Wuerffel in 1996 and 1997.
Couch is the first Kentucky athlete to win the honor since Jenny Hansen in 1995, the fourth Kentucky male to win the award since it began in 1976. The female version of the award began in 1984.
“Tim and Chamique have brought much success and notoriety to their schools and to the Southeastern Conference,” SEC Commissioner Roy Kramer said. “They have shown the true meaning of what a student-athlete can achieve on the athletic playing field. We congratulate them on their efforts and wish them success in their future endeavors.”
Couch etched his name in the record books as the most prolific passer in school history and as one of the best quarterbacks to ever play in the SEC. He earned consensus SEC Player of Year honors in 1998 after leading the Wildcats to a 7-4 regular season record, the school’s best since 1984, and a berth to the Outback Bowl, the school’s first New Year’s Day bowl appearance in 47 years. In his final collegiate season, Couch completed 400 of 553 passes (72.3 percent) for 4,275 yards and 36 touchdowns. His pass completions total was the best in the nation while his yardage total, touchdowns and completion percentage each ranked second in the country.
Passing for more than 300 yards and at least one touchdown in every game last year, Couch finished his career with seven NCAA records, 14 SEC records and 26 school records. His NCAA records include most completions in a season (400) and career completion percentage (67.1 percent). His SEC record-breaking performances include single-season marks for completion percentage (72.3), passing yards (4,275) and total offense (377.4 yards per game). He set an NCAA record by completing 83 percent (44 of 53) of his passes against Vanderbilt for 492 yards. He also set a school record with 499 yards in an SEC record 47-of-67 performance against Arkansas.
The Hyden, Ky., native was the No. 1 overall pick in the 1999 National Football League Draft by the Cleveland Browns.
Holdsclaw left her legacy at Tennessee as arguably the best to ever play women’s college basketball. She added to her already phenomenal career by becoming the school’s all-time basketball scoring leader with 3,025 points, which is tops in the SEC women’s basketball record books and is third all-time in the NCAA. She also set a school career mark in rebounds with 1,295 to become just the second player in NCAA women’s basketball history to record more than 3,000 points and 1,000 rebounds.
The four-time first-team Kodak All-America and three-time first-team AP All-America was selected to the Kodak All-American 25th Silver Anniversary Team. She received National Player of the Year honors from Naismith, Rawlings/WBCA, U.S. Basketball Writers Association, State Farm/Frontier, Sports Illustrated and Sporing News. Holdsclaw was named SEC Player of the Year by the league’s coaches and the AP and SEC Tournament Most Valuable Player.
Holdsclaw received her most coveted award when she was became the first women’s basketball player to win the AAU James E. Sullivan Memorial Award as the nation’s outstanding amateur athlete.
The senior forward led the Lady Vols in nine statistical categories in 1998-99, registering 21.3 points, 8.1 rebounds, 2.5 assists, 2.2 steals, and 0.9 blocks per game. During her final season, Holdsclaw set Tennessee records for most games played (148) and most games started (147). She also set NCAA Women’s Basketball Tournament records for most career games (22), most career points (479) and most career rebounds (198).
The Astoria, N.Y., native was the No. 1 overall pick in the 1999 Women’s National Basketball Association Draft by the Washington Mystics and has been selected as a starter for the WNBA’s inaugural All-Star game this season.
Couch was selected from a field of nominees which included: Andy Phillips, Alabama (baseball); Brandon Burlsworth, Arkansas (football); Casey Dunn, Auburn (baseball); Jeff Morrison, Florida (tennis); Champ Bailey, Georgia (football); Michal Chmela, LSU (tennis); Keith Carter, Ole Miss (basketball); James Johnson, Mississippi State (football); Terrence Trammell, South Carolina (track and field); Tee Martin, Tennessee (football) and Hunter Bledsoe, Vanderbilt (baseball).
Holdsclaw was selected from a field of nominees which included: Dominique Canty, Alabama (basketball); Amy Yoder, Arkansas (cross country/track and field); Katie Taylor, Auburn (swimming); Danielle Fotopoulos, Florida (soccer); Debbie Ferguson, Georgia (track and field); Rachel Komisarz, Kentucky (swimming); Claudine Williams, LSU (track and field); Agnes Muzamel, Ole Miss (tennis); Jennifer Fambrough, Mississippi State (basketball); Kim Pietro, South Carolina (softball); and Asta Helgadottir, Vanderbilt (soccer).
Past recipients of the SEC Athlete of the Year Award included:
1998 -Peyton Manning, Tennessee (football) and Chamique Holdsclaw, Tennessee (basketball); 1997 – Danny Wuerffel, Florida (football) and Trinity Johnson, South Carolina (softball); 1996 – Danny Wuerffel, Florida (football) and Saudia Roundtree, Georgia (basketball); 1995 – Todd Helton, Tennessee (baseball) and Jenny Hansen, Kentucky (gymnastics); 1994 – Corliss Williamson, Arkansas (basketball) and Nicole Haislett, Florida (swimming); 1993 – Jamal Mashburn, Kentucky (basketball) and Nicole Haislett, Florida (swimming); 1992 – Shaquille O’Neal, LSU (basketball) and Vicki Goetze, Georgia (golf); 1991 – Shaquille O’Neal, LSU (basketball) and Daedra Charles, Tennessee (basketball); 1990 – Alec Kessler, Georgia (basketball) and Dee Foster, Alabama (gymnastics); 1989 – Derrick Thomas, Alabama (football) and Bridgette Gordon, Tennessee (basketball); 1988 – Will Perdue, Vanderbilt (basketball) and Dara Torres, Florida (swimming); 1987 – Cornelius Bennett, Alabama (football) and Lillie Leatherwood-King, Alabama (track and field); 1986 – Bo Jackson, Auburn (football) and Jennifer Gillom, Ole Miss (basketball); 1985 – Will Clark, Mississippi State (baseball) and Penney Hauschild, Alabama (gymnastics); 1984 – Terry Hoage, Georgia (football) and Tracy Caulkins, Florida (swimming); 1983 – Herschel Walker, Georgia (football/track and field); 1982 – Buck Belue, Georgia (football/baseball); 1981 – Rowdy Gaines, Auburn (swimming); 1980 – Kyle Macy, Kentucky (basketball); 1979 – Reggie King, Alabama (basketball); 1978 – Jack Givens, Kentucky (basketball); 1977 – Larry Seivers, Tennessee (football); and 1976 – Harvey Glance, Auburn (track and field).
