Following a win over Dayton on Jan. 28, St. Bonaventure men’s basketball head coach Mark Schmidt earned his 400th career win.
After playing at Boston College from 1981-85, Schmidt was an assistant coach from 1989-2001 for numerous universities including St. Michaels, Penn State, Loyola (Md.) and Xavier.
Schmidt was named head coach at Robert Morris University in 2001 and took over a program that was 7-22 the year before. Under Schmidt’s reign, Robert Morris recorded its first winning season in over five seasons (2005-06). Schmidt coached the Colonials until 2007 where he racked up 82 wins in six seasons.
The Massachusetts native was named head coach of the Bonnies in 2007 and hasn’t looked back since. In Schmidt’s time as head coach at Bonaventure, the program has made three NCAA tournaments, two NIT tournaments, won two Atlantic 10 championships and has won 319 games. The 319 games won is first among Bonnies coaches in program history by 117 wins and his total wins (401) is good for 158th best of all-time.
Individually, Schmidt has won Sporting News Atlantic 10 Coach of the Year, Basketball Coaches Association of New York Division I Coach of the Year (2012), NABC District Coach of the Year (2012, 2021), Atlantic 10 Coach of the Year (2016, 2021) and helped lead a school-record 26 wins (2018).
Even with the individual accolades and success, Schmidt quickly pointed out that the players deserve praise for his accomplishments.
“It’s all about the players,” said Schmidt. “I can put guys in situations, but they got to do the job. You’ve never seen a good team with bad players. You need players, and I just try to put them in the right spots to be successful.”
Schmidt also made sure to emphasize how appreciative he has been of the athletic department and the Bonaventure community.
“It’s a credit to the administration from when I first got here all the way through [Bob Beretta],” said Schmidt. “I’ve been lucky. A lot of times you go to a school, and you are there for three or four years and they get tired of you, or you get tired of them. The relationships have been really good here, so I am just lucky.”
During Adrian Wojnarowski’s introductory press conference, Schmidt received praise from one of the most valued NBA insiders of all time.
“I am here to help the best coach in college basketball,” said Wojnarowski. “I am here to uphold Coach Schmidt’s championship standards, championship culture and championship values. What separates Bonaventure is [Schmidt] always maximizing the group he has and the players’ skills.”
Schmidt’s 400th win was officially celebrated following a 74-72 win over Fordham Saturday, which saw him receive a commemorated game ball.
As each win is earned, the legacy of Mark Schmidt grows. When the day comes that Schmidt calls it a career, there will be numerous program records and accomplishments under his reign. For now, the legacy of Mark Schmidt continues.
