Morgan (Woo) Wooten

MORGAN WOOTTEN Obituary - Hyattsville, MD | The Washington Post

 

MORGAN B. WOOTTEN "Woo"  

Passed away peacefully at home on Tuesday, January 21, 2020, age 88, surrounded by his loving wife, children and grandchildren, in Hyattsville, MD. Beloved husband of Katherine "Moo" Wootten; loving father of Cathy (Mike) Stamper, Carol (Steve) Paul, Trish Wootten, Brendan (Elizabeth) Wootten and Joe (Terri Lynn) Wootten. Brother of Clare (Bob) Crawford-Mason, Lee Wootten and Angus (Batya) Wootten. Also surviving are his grandchildren, Stephen (Cameryn) Paul, Bucky Paul, Kiersten Paul, Nick Stamper, Brian Stamper Charlie Paul, Greg Stamper, Megan Wootten, Kevin Stamper, Micky Wootten, Ally Wootten, Caitlin Stamper, Alexa Wootten, Reese Wootten and Jackson Wootten as well as numerous family members and friends. The family is consoled knowing that Morgan is now in God's Hall of Fame.

This crowd on earth they soon forget. The heroes of the past, They cheer like mad until you fall, And that's how long you last. But God he never does forget, And in His Hall of Fame, By just believing in his Son, Inscribed you'll find your name.

Friends may call on Saturday, January 25, 2020, from 1 to 3 p.m and 6 to 8 p.m, and on Sunday, January 26, from 4 to 6 p.m. A Funeral Mass will be held on Monday, January 27, 2020 at 10 a.m. All services are being held at DeMatha Catholic High School, Brendan Looney Convocation Center, 4313 Madison Street, Hyattsville, MD 20781. In lieu of flowers please make memorial donations to the Morgan Wootten Scholarship Fund at DeMathia High School.

Morgan Bayard Wootten (April 21, 1931 – January 21, 2020) was an American high school basketball coach for 46 seasons at DeMatha Catholic High School in Hyattsville, Maryland. He led the Stags to five national championships and 33 Washington Catholic Athletic Conference (WCAC) titles. In 2000, he was the third high school coach to be inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame.

Head coaching record
Overall	1274–19

When he retired in 2002, Wootten's career coaching record stood at 1,274-192. In 46 seasons as the head coach of DeMatha basketball, he won five high school national championships, 22 Washington, D.C. titles, and 33 WCAC championships.[2][5][6] Wootten has the second most wins as a head coach in the history of boys high school basketball, behind Robert Hughes.[7]

Wootten never had a losing record, with his worst performance coming in the 1957-58 season, when DeMatha went 17-11, which was also the only one of his teams to not have at least 20 wins. He had two perfect seasons, the first coming in 1977-78 (28-0) and the other in 1990-91 (30-0).

More than a dozen of Wootten's players went on to play in the NBA, including Adrian Dantley and Danny Ferry. Mike Brey, head coach of Notre Dame Fighting Irish men's basketball, also played under Wootten.[3][5]