Minor league teams honoring Jerry Tarkanian with special uniforms
A pair of minor league baseball teams will tip their cap to legendary college basketball coach Jerry Tarkanian this afternoon in Las Vegas.
The Las Vegas 51s and Fresno Grizzlies — Triple-A affiliates of the New York Mets and Houston Astros respectively — will both wear special “Tark the Shark” custom jerseys, which will honor Tarkanian’s legacy in both cities.
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This is actually the second part of a tribute that was the brainchild of the Fresno franchise. It might be lost on some people that Tarkanian actually played and coached at Fresno State and remained a beloved figure until his death on Feb. 11 of this year. In fact, his final coaching stint (1995-2002) was in Fresno, so it’s only fitting that the Grizzlies put this plan into motion.
It’s also fitting that they’re going with the Fresno State Bulldog-inspired look.
On the other side, the 51s will ditch their usual blue and white jerseys with red numbering for a jersey inspired by Tarkanian’s Runnin’ Rebels at UNLV. Of course, Tarkanian enjoyed his greatest success with that program, leading them to Final Four appearances (1977, 1987, 1990, 1991) and one championship (1990) in 20 seasons. All of which elevated his profile to icon status in a major city otherwise void of sporting success.
The “Las Vegas Tark” jerseys will immediately be made available for an online auction on the 51s website on Sunday evening, just as the Grizzlies jerseys were last weekend.
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It’s also worth mentioning that this tribute isn’t the first for Tarkanian from the baseball world. Washington Nationals outfielder Bryce Harper paid his respects to the 2013 Hall of Fame inductee by visiting a fan-created memorial sporting a jacket that celebrates UNLV’s 1989-1990 championship team.
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Mark Townsend is a writer for Big League Stew on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at [email protected] or follow him on Twitter! Follow @Townie813
