Usually, when a college hoops coach compiles a 52-9 record over two years — with a Final Four appearance to boot — a school is throwing an extension at him. But not when that school is UCLA, and the coach is following John Wooden. Gene Bartow took over for the Wizard of Westwood in 1975; Wooden had just finished a remarkable run of eight championships in nine years (overall, Wooden won 10 titles). Despite Bartow’s winning record, he failed to win a championship, and tired of all the pressure. “After two years, he was gaunt and pale and he refused to read the Los Angeles newspapers or listen to the radio because there was so much negativity,” one of his former players, Marques Johnson, told the Los Angeles Times. In 1977, Bartow left Westwood to start the athletic program at the University of Alabama-Birmingham. In 18 seasons as hoops coach, he led UAB to ten NCAA tournament appearances, including a trip to the Elite Eight in 1982.
Big Shoes to Fill: 14 Who Followed in the Footsteps of Legendary Leaders
This week’s news that legendary Manchester United football manager Alex Ferguson would be retiring later this month -- and passing his job to David Moyes -- got us here at TIME thinking about how certain roles can be very tough to fill indeed. Whether you’re an athlete, politician, business leader, or entertainer, stepping into a role once filled by a legend can be a daunting task, regardless of your credentials. In that spirit, we present 14 of the most influential figures in recent memory, and the unlucky souls who had to try to fill their shoes.
Gene Bartow / John Wooden
Full List
Replacing Legends
- How Do You Take Over for a Legend?
- Tim Cook / Steve Jobs
- Joe Girardi / Joe Torre
- Coco Chanel / Karl Lagerfeld
- Bob Paisley / Bill Shankly
- Sammy Hagar / David Lee Roth
- Gene Bartow / John Wooden
- Jay Leno / Johnny Carson
- Tim Floyd / Phil Jackson
- Lyndon B. Johnson / John F. Kennedy, Jr.
- Drew Carey / Bob Barker
- Ben Bernanke / Alan Greenspan
- George Seifert / Bill Walsh
- Jennifer Lopez / Simon Cowell
- Pope Benedict XVI / Pope John Paul II