Former Virginia basketball coach Terry Holland passes away at 80

Former University of Virginia basketball coach Terry Holland passed away at 80 on Sunday after battling Alzheimer’s disease.

Holland led the Cavaliers for 16 seasons, bringing them to the Final Four twice, and amassing a record of 326-173 as the team’s coach.

“Terry Holland, who coached the University of Virginia basketball program to a pair of Final Fours and nine NCAA tournaments in 16 seasons, died Sunday in Charlottesville,” wrote David Teel of the Richmond Times-Dispatch. “Mr. Holland, 80, was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease in 2019 and had recently entered the memory care center of the seniors community where he resided with his wife, Ann.”

After his coaching career, Holland became an Athletic Director, serving at Davidson (1990-1994), Virginia (1994-2001) and East Carolina (2004-2013) — the latter he served as their Emeritus Director of Athletic from 2013 to the present day.

In Teel’s piece, many of the lives Holland touched spoke about how much of an impact the former Virginia leader had on them.

“He was a visionary, a positive coach,” said Bobby Stokes, who was Holland’s physician and a captain of his 1978-79 UVA team, via the Times-Dispatch. “He made it his mission to make it like a family. He cared about you off the basketball court and helped you grow along the way.”

Terry Holland made a huge impact on Virginia and the college basketball world as a whole, and thoughts and prayers are with his family, friends and former colleagues. The ACC basketball family will mourn the loss as the calendar flips to March.