STATE COLLEGE, Pa. (WHTM) — Penn State has officially hired Mike Rhoades as men’s basketball head coach. The Pennsylvania native most recently spent six seasons as head coach of VCU in Richmond, Va. and 11 overall in the program.
Rhoades, a Mahanoy City, Pennsylvania native, has produced a 373-189 record, a winning percentage of .664, seven NCAA Tournament appearances and nine national postseason appearances across 19 seasons as a head coach.
“We are excited to welcome Mike Rhoades as our head men’s basketball coach,” said Kraft. “He is a veteran head coach who is a proven winner at multiple levels. Mike has been a tremendous recruiter and talent developer throughout his career. As a Pennsylvania native with a strong family history with our University, Mike understands what it means to be a Penn Stater and how impactful it is to be part of Nittany Nation. Mike has a vision of how to build Penn State Basketball into a championship program. We are thrilled to welcome Mike, Jodie, Logan, Chase and Porter to Happy Valley!”
Rhoades, 50, grew up in Mahanoy City, Pennsylvania and is the son of the late-state senator Jim Rhoades. The Pa.-native spent the past six seasons with VCU, making the NCAA tournament three times. This season, VCU (27-8) won the Atlantic 10 regular season and conference tournament titles. Earning at No. 12 seed in the NCAA Tournament, VCU made a first round exit after a loss to Saint Mary’s.
“It’s with great honor and excitement to be Penn State’s Peter and Ann Tombros Endowed Men’s Basketball Head Coach. I would like to thank Dr. Bendapudi, Pat Kraft and Michael Wade Smith for their faith in me and the opportunity to lead this great program,” said Rhoades. “We will be bold, different and aggressive moving our program forward. We will play with great energy and excitement while always being relentless in our pursuit of making this basketball family into something special. I can’t wait to get to work.”
Penn State has been looking for a new head coach for the men’s basketball program after Micah Shrewsberry took the position at Notre Dame.
Rhoades played collegiately under coaches Pat Flannery where he guided the Flying Dutchmen to the 1994 NCAA Division III National Championship with a 66-59 overtime win over NYU. He was named the tournament’s Co-Outstanding Player.
Rhoades is a member of the Mahanoy Area High School Hall of Fame, Lebanon Valley College Hall of Fame (team and individual), Middle Atlantic Conference (MAC) Hall of Fame, Central Chapter Pennsylvania Sports Hall of Fame, Eastern Chapter Pennsylvania Sports Hall of Fame and Jerry Wolman, Northern Anthracite Chapter of the Pennsylvania Sports Hall of Fame.
