Huggins is one of 48 top college basketball coaches in the nation participating in the Infiniti Coaches’ Charity Challenge. The program, sponsored by luxury automobile manufacturer Infiniti in partnership with the National Association of Basketball Coaches (NABC), the NCAA and ESPN, benefits the coaches’ favorite charity. Infiniti will donate $5,000 to each participating coach and will award $100,000 to the coach who receives the most fan votes over an eight-week period that ends on March 8.
“Mountaineer fans are the greatest,” Huggins said. “But I want them to realize that this event isn’t a popularity contest. When they vote for me, they’ll be voting to find new and better treatments for cancer and bringing hope to those afflicted with the disease.”
Fans can register and vote online at www.espn.com/infiniti for their favorite coach. During the first six weeks of the competition, four brackets of 12 coaches will be paired against each other, with the winners from each group moving onto the next round in week seven and the final round in week eight. Fans can vote for up to four coaches per day. The winning coach will be announced March 9.
“The Infiniti Coaches’ Charity Challenge is a way to add a greater level of support to our ongoing partnerships with the NABC and NCAA and their fine efforts in raising funds and support for their designated charities,” Infiniti Americas Vice President Ben Poore said. “It allows us to bring awareness to the outstanding community efforts of these respected coaches and hopefully inspire fans to learn and give more to each charity on their own.”