Larry Chapman

Larry Chapman, Sr.
Biographical details
Alma materAuburn (1964)[1]
Playing career
1961-1964[2]Auburn
Position(s)Guard
Coaching career (HC unless noted)
1974-1977Georgia Southern (NCAA)[1]
1976-2014Auburn University at Montgomery (NAIA)
Administrative career (AD unless noted)
1977-1999[3]Auburn University at Montgomery
Head coaching record
Overall705-477[4]
Accomplishments and honors
Awards
NAIA's Coach of the Year (1987-88)[5]

Larry Chapman, Sr. is an American athletic coach who served as the men's college basketball head coach for Auburn University at Montgomery (AUM) from 1976 to 2014.[6] Prior to coaching at AUM, he served 3 seasons as a head coach at Georgia Southern University, for a total of 40 seasons in his college head coaching career.[7]

Career

Georgia Southern

Chapman was head basketball coach at Georgia Southern for three seasons, from 1975-1977, where he had a 35-45 record.[8]

Auburn University at Montgomery

Chapman came to AUM prior to the 1977-78 season. In the previous two seasons, the men's basketball team had won only 26 games. In his second season, he led the team to a 20-win season.[5]

Chapman's records at AUM included eight straight seasons with an average of 25 or more wins. His teams won three straight NAIA District 27 Championships with the team.[9] He amassed a record of 679-450 at AUM,[4] ranking him fifth in career victories among NAIA coaches and among the top 40 for all collegiate coaches. Chapman had fifteen (15) 20-win seasons.[7] He has also coached two teams to the tournament quarterfinals and three into the second round. In total, Chapman-coached teams qualified for 11 NAIA National Tournaments.[7]

The 1987-88 team posted a record of 32-3 and reached the national championship game.[5] Following that season, Chapman was named the NAIA's Coach of the Year.

Chapman was inducted into the inaugural AUM Athletic Hall of Fame class in 2005.[10] He retired from AUM in 2014.[7]

After retirement

In 2015, one year after retiring from AUM, Chapman became head basketball coach for Macon East Academy (MEA), a college preparatory school in Cecil, Alabama.[4][3] In his second season, the MEA team won the state championship, with a record of 33-0.[3] He retired in 2018.

In 2012, Chapman, along with his son Larry Chapman, Jr, founded the Coach Chapman Foundation, which funds AUM student athlete scholarships.[11][12]

References

  1. ^ a b "Larry Chapman (coach)". NCAA Div. I Coaches. SportsReference. Retrieved December 13, 2022.
  2. ^ "Larry Chapman (player)". NCAA Div. I Players. SportsReference. Retrieved December 13, 2022.
  3. ^ a b c "About Coach Chapman". Coach Chapman Foundation. Retrieved December 14, 2022.
  4. ^ a b c Bernal, Ethan (June 18, 2015). "AUM legend Chapman coaching Macon-East". Montgomery Advertiser. Retrieved December 14, 2022.
  5. ^ a b c "AUM's Coach Larry Chapman to retire at season's end". WSFA12 News. November 9, 2013. Retrieved August 28, 2019.
  6. ^ Gayle, Tim. (2018 April 25). “Chapman retires after leading Macon East to championships”. River Region Sports. Retrieved August 28, 2019.
  7. ^ a b c d "AUM to Honor Legendary Head Coach Larry Chapman Saturday". Men's Basketball News. AUM Athletics. February 28, 2014. Retrieved December 14, 2022.
  8. ^ "Georgia Southern Coaches". Sports Reference. Retrieved December 14, 2022.
  9. ^ "Larry Chapman - Head Coach - 37th Season". Auburn University. Archived from the original on November 24, 2015. Retrieved May 19, 2013.
  10. ^ "Larry Chapman". Hall of Fame. AUM Athletics. Retrieved December 14, 2022.
  11. ^ "Honoree - Larry Chapman". American Cancer Society. October 2021. Retrieved December 14, 2022.
  12. ^ "Coach Chapman Foundation Board of Directors". Coach Chapman Foundation. Retrieved December 14, 2022.