Haut-Armstrong First Round Results

Kent State assistant coach wins shootout after hitting 44 straight free throws

KENT, Ohio – Kent State Assistant Coach Eric Haut has advanced to the second round the CollegeInsider.com 'Shots from the Heart,' free throw competition.  Haut moves on after hitting 44 straight free throws in an overtime shootout against Bill Armstrong of Ole Miss.  

Both competitors connected on 24 of 25 free throws in the first round with each missing their eighth attempt.  After the tie breakers for most consecutive shots converted without a miss at any time during the 25 free throw attempts and all the bonus shots (5, 10 and 15) left the match-up in a stand still a third tie break was then put in place.  

The third and deciding tie breaker is a shoot off where each competitor shot until they missed.  Needing to get his free throws completed to wrap up the first round match-up, Haut took his shots on the road during the Golden Flashes shootaround prior to their game at James Madison on Dec. 6. The unfamiliar rims proved to be kind to Haut, who calmly hit 44 straight, including the last 20 amongst heavy pressure and antics from the Kent State players.

Next up for Haut is a second round match-up with Santa Clara's Dustin Kerns. Kerns is a 2002 graduate of Clemson University. Each coach will shoot their respective free throws at some point during the month of December.

Now in its second year, the competition is designed to help raise awareness for heart disease as college basketball coaches from across the country are competing against one another in a free throw shooting tournament, to benefit the American Heart Association. The event also pays tribute to legendary coach Skip Prosser who passed away on July 26, 2007 of a heart attack.

There are two 64-coach fields (one for head coaches and one for assistant coaches). Participating coaches will compete in a free throw shooting contest, which will be bracketed in NCAA tournament format. Coaches are not actually competing against each other on the same court. Each coach shoots 25 free throws at his convenience. A member of the athletic department will tally the results and the coach with the most makes would advance.  

Those interested in making a donation by sponsoring made shots can send emails to: shots@collegeinsider.com. For those interested in making donations, checks can be made payable to the American Heart Association and mailed to:

CollegeInsider.com
410 Prospect Street
Norwood, MA 02062
Attn: Skip Prosser Foundation

Fans can also Text to Donate by sending a message to:  Text SKIP to 48510 to make a $10 donation to the Skip Prosser Foundation.

Skip Prosser spent 21 years as collegiate head coach at Loyola (MD), Xavier and Wake Forest. He made 18 postseason appearances and is the only coach in NCAA history to take three separate schools to the NCAA Tournament in his first year coaching the teams. In 2008 CollegeInsider.com created the Skip Prosser Man of the Year Award, which is given annually to the coach who not only achieves success on the basketball court but who also displays moral integrity off the court as well.

Fans can follow the season-long event at www.collegeinsider.com/shots