One minute he is the media's perfect sound bite -- always glad to have the opportunity to play exciting games, coach great student-athletes and make the most of every moment on the hardwood. The next minute he is the typical collegiate basketball coach -- commanding attention to detail from his players, pushing them to their limits and expecting nothing but their best effort every moment on and off the court. But after 14 seasons at the helm of the University of Pennsylvania men's program, Coach Fran Dunphy can only really be called one thing -- a true winner.

Dunphy has defined Penn basketball in the last decade, establishing it as a landmark on the national basketball map. Last season, he moved into second all-time in the Ivy League in career victories with 253. He coached Penn to its fourth Ivy League title in the last five years, and recorded his fifth undefeated Ivy campaign. The team was honored with all five starters being named to the All-Ivy League team, including Ugonna Onyekwe winning his second-consecutive Ivy Player of the Year award. Convincing wins over USC, Villanova and Temple, along with their 14-0 run through the Ancient Eight gave the Quakers their second-consecutive 11 seed in their seventh NCAA Division I Men's Basketball Tournament appearance.

During his tenure with the Quakers, Dunphy has coached five Ivy League Players of the Year and three Ivy League Rookies of the Year and heads into the 2003-04 season with a career record of 253-135 (.652).

Dunphy led the 2001-02 Quakers to an Ivy League title and its first Philadelphia Big 5 outright and undefeated title since 1974. He coached the 2002 Ivy League Player of the Year in Ugonna Onyekwe and had three players named to the All-Ivy League first-team for the second time in his tenure (1993-94).

But there is also life beyond basketball. Dunphy was extolled the honor of being named to the Philadelphia CYO Hall of Fame and the National Coaches vs. Cancer Coach of the Year for his service and tireless dedication to those in need.

After a sub-par season in 2000-01 (12-17), Dunphy did not back down on playing some of the most competitive teams in the nation. Penn met seven 2001 NCAA Tournament participants and went 14-3 in non-conference action. After a 2-3 start in the Ivy League, Dunphy coached the Quakers to a 10-game winning streak and a three-way tie for the Ivy League crown with Princeton and Yale with an 11-3 record, before dismantling Yale, 77-58, in the Ancient Eight playoff game on March 9. Dunphy became Penn's all-time leader in career victories (228) on March 1, 2002 with a 51-47 victory at Columbia.

The veteran of the current Ivy League coaching contingency, Dunphy has now won eight Ivy titles in his 14 seasons at Penn, including four consecutive from 1993-96. On Feb. 2, 2001, Dunphy recorded his 200th collegiate coaching victory, with a 61-51 win over Yale at The Palestra.

In 1988, Dunphy took over the Penn program after serving one year with the Red and Blue as an assistant coach under Tom Schneider. After posting records of 12-14 and 9-17 in his first two seasons as head coach, Dunphy's hard work and determination paid off, as his team turned the corner in 1991-92, compiling a 16-10 mark. Despite losing six of their first eight games that season, the Red and Blue regrouped under Dunphy's direction to win 14 of its final 18 contests.

Following a 22-5 year in 1992-93, which saw the Quakers advance to the NCAA Tournament (where they lost to third-seeded UMass, 54-50), Dunphy took his team one step further in 1993-94 by posting a 25-3 record and advancing to the second round of the NCAAs. The Quakers defeated Nebraska, 90-80, to secure their first NCAA tournament win since 1980, before falling to Florida, 70-58. In addition, Dunphy led Penn to a No. 25 ranking in the USA Today/CNN Coaches' Poll and the Red and Blue's first appearance in the Associated PressTop 25 since 1979.

Dunphy and the Quakers continued their winning ways in 1994-95, recording an unprecedented third-straight undefeated Ivy League season. Penn's third consecutive trip to the NCAA Tournament saw Jerome Allen score 30 points against Alabama in the first round, despite the team falling, 91-85, in overtime.

Having lost back-to-back Ivy League Players of the Year in Allen and Matt Maloney, the 1995-96 season was full of question marks. Yet Dunphy put the naysayers to rest, leading the Quakers to their fourth consecutive Ivy League title before losing the League's automatic bid to the NCAA tournament by falling to Princeton, 63-56, in overtime in a one-game playoff. The Quakers had a tough season in 1997, finishing 8-6 for a fourth-place finish in the Ancient Eight, but rebounded the following year with a 17-12 record and a second-place finish.

Then came Michael Jordan. Quaker fans know him best as "MJ," but Ivy League opponents knew him best as "dangerous." Jordan lead Dunphy's teams of 1999 and 2000 to a combined overall record of 42-14 and two-straight NCAA Tournament appearances to close out the 90s. Penn met Florida again in the first round of the 1999 NCAA Tournament, and led the Gators at the half, 43-32, before falling, 75-61. The 2000 season saw Dunphy guide Penn to its fouth undefeated Ivy League season and another appearance in the Big Dance, this time in the East Regional. The Quakers fell, 68-58, to fifth-seeded Illinois to end one of the best overall decades in Penn basketball history with a record of 182-91.

The Quakers began the 2000-01 season on a 25-game Ivy League winning streak, the longest-such streak in the nation at the time, before falling to Harvard in Cambridge, Mass., on Feb. 9, 2001. The only Ivy League coach to record three-straight undefeated seasons in conference play, Dunphy and his teams also won a record 48 consecutive league games before losing at Dartmouth, 54-53, on Feb. 9, 1996.

Prior to joining Penn's coaching staff, Dunphy was an assistant under Speedy Morris at his alma mater, La Salle University, for three seasons. His coaching career began at the United States Military Academy (1971-72), where he served as assistant under Head Coach Dan Dougherty. In 1975, he became head coach of his high school alma mater, Malvern Prep, and remained there until becoming Lefty Ervin's assistant at La Salle (1979-80). The following year, Dunphy joined Gary William's staff at American University. He returned to La Salle in 1985 and assisted Morris until becoming Schneider's top aide at Penn in 1988. Dunphy is a full-time educator on and off the court. He has served as a lecturer in the Wharton Executive Education program and in the management department of the nation's top-ranked business school, the Wharton School of Business, on Penn's campus. Dunphy is one of the leaders in the local Coaches vs. Cancer campaign and was named to the National Council of Coaches vs. Cancer. He is also a new member of the Big Brothers/Big Sisters of Greater Philadelphia Board of Directors.

A 1970 La Salle graduate with a degree in marketing, Dunphy was an outstanding player under Explorers' Head Coach Tom Gola. As a junior, he helped the Explorers to a 23-1 record and as a co-captain in his senior year, averaged 18.6 ppg and led the team in assists, while also being named the MVP of the annual Quaker City Basketball Tournament. In 1979, he earned a Master's degree in counseling and human relations from Villanova. In addition, he completed course work toward his doctorate in counseling and student development at American.

Dunphy and his wife, Ree, reside in Villanova, Pa., with their son, J.P.