Coach Kay Yow – RIP
Hall of Famer and longtime North Carolina State women’s basketball coach Kay Yow has died after a decades-long fight against breast cancer. She was 66.
The university announced that Yow died on Saturday morning. She had been in the hospital since last week. Yow was first diagnosed with the disease in 1987.
As reported by the News & Observer
WRAL.com | ESPN.com | GoPack.com
A sad day for the Wolfpack nation, as a true hero and inspiration to thousands lost her long and courageous battle with breast cancer. Kay Yow was 66.
Hoops for Hope | V Foundation for Cancer Research
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48 Responses to “Coach Kay Yow – RIP”
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This is a sad day for Coach Yow’s family, her friends, her team, NC State and its fans, and sports in general.
She was the epitome of class and grace and will be missed by us all.
God rest ye, Coach.
It gives me a lot of pride to know she was associated with NC State.
Thankfully, according to gpack, Coach Yow received love and support from those close to her in her final hours.
“Yow, 66, had been supported by her family and her staff in the last several days and was even able to visit with her entire team at WakeMed Cary Hospital earlier this week.
Sad to see her go. She was a class person who loved what she did.
To work as long as she did proved she did it because she loved it.
Whoever is chosen to replace her will have a tough act to follow.
“Well done my good and faithful servant…”
Thank You Coach Yow!
Very, very sad.
A very special person who touched many lives in a positive way.
God bless, RIP
One of the best people to ever walk the bricks at State.
The long, hard fight has ended. Take your front row seat, and enjoy the game from the sidelines, Coach Yow. You will always be with us in Spirit. Your life has inspired countless others, and we are all blessed to be a tiny part of it. Thank you. And God Bless You.
I think Coach Yow was an inspiration to all. Although our women’s hoops team was never “great”, they always showed the same grit and determination that Coach Yow showed in her fight against cancer. I feel honored to be a part of Wolfpack nation with both Coach Yow and Coach Valvano.
Thank you for everything you’ve done Coach Yow, you have given your heart, soul, and life to NC State, and we love you.
One of the giants in women’s basketball. I don’t think there’s really any way to put her contributions to North Carolina, NC State, or her sport in context or to give it any perspective.
Rest in peace, coach.
Very sad day. My best to Coach Yow’s family, friends, and players, in this time of grief.
Permit a short memory of Coach Yow. At the infamous TA football game in Chapel Hill, I was sitting diagonally in front of Coach Yow. As the game went on, and our team’s lack of discipline and focus became evident, I (only half in jest) turned back to her and begged her to go down to the field and coach up the players. She and the folks around us got a good laugh about that one. She was gracious and humble and a whole-hearted State fan. Bless you, Coach Yow.
Her life and her fight with cancer has been such an inspirational story. Thank you Coach, for your strong faith along the way. You are the best representation our school could have ever asked for. You are NC STATE. We will all miss you. God Bless
You were a true 15 Rounder and intoduced the best of State to the world.
We will always be greatful.
This is a sad day for NC State and women’s basketball. What a wonderful lady. She lived her christian faith on a daily basis and everyone could see that she was true to her faith. NC State will miss this wonderful person. Rest in peace because we all know where you are today!
I’m glad they named the court at Reynolds after her. She’ll live on, whenever basketball is played there. She meant a lot to the sport of woman’s basketball and woman’s athletics.
A fantastic Christian lady who truly practiced what she preached and gave us all an example of how to live life. Kay, we’ll miss you as Coach Yow of NC State. And, for those of us fortunate enough to know you in the Mcleansville/Gibsonville area we’ll miss you as the inspiring country girl who could. We love you and will miss you Coach.
What a warrior she was, may she rest in peace.
She will be always missed. She is truly an inspiration to everyone.
Fro our men’s team, the best way to pay respect to Coach Yow is to fight through today’s game!
Coach Yow was a truly remarkable human being. And the best of NC State University. As good of a basketball coach as she was her true legacy will be all of the young women she helped mold into wonderful human beings. And, hopefully, her foundation (as well as Jimmy V’s) will help find a cure for this horrible disease which has taken far, far too many lives.
Kay was a wonderfull coach, an inspirational teacher, a beautiful person and… well, the superlatives left in the english language can’t begin to adequately describe… You will be missed Kay.
I had the honor of meeting her about 10 years ago. It was one of the more memorable conversations of my life.
RIP Kay. NC State- no, the nation- loves you.
This is a huge loss for state. An icon is gone… Just shocked and sad.
To paraphrase John Donne, the bell tolls for NC State. With Yow’s passing, NC State is the less. What a classy woman, an inspiration, a fighter, a friend, a coach, and a saint.
I wrote about her for SFN last year under the heading “Kay Yow, Inspiration” and will take the liberty of quoting myself here:
Goodnight, Coach Yow. May flights of angels sing thee to thy rest.
Rest in peace, Coach Yow. Tell Coach V and Coach Sloan hello.
My prayers and sympathies are with her family and friends.
This reminds me of the day I was driving home from State many years ago. I turned it to WKNC, which was playing “Say Hello to Heaven” and I knew right away V had passed. Similarly this morning, as soon as the news ticker displayed “NC State women’s…” I knew Kay Yow had found eternal rest.
On both sad days, our hearts are heavy and eyes moist for the loss suffered by friends and family, the NC State community, and the nation in general. For we find solace in knowing that both Wolfpack giants rejoice in heaven, and feel no more pain from their wretched disease.
Their brave fights are a living legacy, reminding us of the countless souls taken from this world far too soon by the relentless killer we call cancer.
Sad day for not only nc state but the acc and the ncaa. i remember i met her at the post office in cary a few years ago and just wanted to tell her i was a fan and good luck next year and she stoped to talk to me for probably 10 min asking bout me and just really seemed like she cared. prayers for the yow family.