Vic Schaefer

Vic Schaefer
Schaefer in 2020
Current position
TitleHead coach
TeamTexas
ConferenceSEC
Record113–32 (.779)
Biographical details
Born (1961-03-02) March 2, 1961 (age 63)
Austin, Texas, U.S.
Alma materTexas A&M
Coaching career (HC unless noted)
1987–1989Sam Houston State (assist.)
1990–1997Sam Houston State
1997–2000Arkansas (assist.)
2000–2003Arkansas (assoc. HC)
2003–2012Texas A&M (assoc.)
2012–2020Mississippi State
2020–presentTexas
Head coaching record
Overall414–204 (.670)
Accomplishments and honors
Championships
2× NCAA Regional—Final Four (2017, 2018)
2x Big 12 Tournament (2022, 2024)
SEC Tournament (2019)
Big 12 Regular Season (2023)
SEC 2X Regular Season (2018, 2019)
NCAA Division I Tournament (2011, as assoc. HC)
WNIT (1999, as assistant)
Awards

Victor Ernest Schaefer (born March 2, 1961)[1] is an American college basketball coach who is the head women's basketball coach of the University of Texas at Austin (Texas) Longhorns. He previously served as the head coach for Mississippi State, from 2012 to 2020, and for Sam Houston State, from 1990 to 1997.

Mississippi State

Schaefer was named the Bulldogs’ head coach on March 13, 2012, replacing Sharon Fanning-Otis who retired at the end of the 2012 season. In his tenure at MSU Schaefer has led the Bulldogs to five NCAA tournaments, Four Sweet Sixteen appearances, 3 Elite 8 appearances, 2 Final Fours, and 2 National Runner-up finishes. He also guided MSU to 2 SEC Championship and 1 SEC Tournament Championship, the only conference titles for MSU in any women's team sport. The 2016–17 team made college basketball history by defeating No. 1 Connecticut 66–64 in overtime in the Final Four of the NCAA Tournament. That victory snapped the Huskies’ record 111-game win streak and sent the Bulldogs to the national championship game in their first Final Four appearance. The UConn win garnered MSU the 2017 ESPY for Best Upset and Morgan William a Best Play nomination for her winning bucket.[2]

With a 74–68 win at Marquette on November 25, 2019, Schaefer earned his 200th victory as the head coach at Mississippi State. It was just his 256th game at State, making him the second-fastest coach ever to achieve the milestone with an SEC program ahead of hall-of-fame coaches Joe Ciampi (258 games), Pat Summitt (259), Van Chancellor (263), Jim Foster (280) and Sue Gunter (280). Only Georgia's Andy Landers (251) reached the mark at a faster pace.[3]

Texas

Shortly after the COVID-19 pandemic prematurely ended the 2019–20 season, Schaefer left Mississippi State to fill the head coaching vacancy at Texas.[4] The timing of the move was unfortunate, as it came shortly after he and his wife had completed a new house on an 80-acre (32 ha) farm near the Bulldogs' home of Starkville. Nonetheless, in June 2020, Schaefer told M.A. Voepel of ESPN,[5]

Texas is where I'm from. I will be 65 miles from where I spent weekends at my grandmother's house, and where my mother and father are buried, in La Grange, Texas. I'll be 2 hours and 40 minutes from my older sister, who was also my kindergarten teacher.

Voepel added more detail to Schaefer's ties to the state, noting:[5]

Schaefer was born in Austin at a hospital across the street from where the Longhorns' Frank Erwin Center would later be built. He grew up in Houston, graduated from Texas A&M, and spent most of his coaching career in the Lone Star State.

Head coaching record

Statistics overview
Season Team Overall Conference Standing Postseason
Sam Houston State Bearkats (Southland Conference) (1990–1997)
1990–91 Sam Houston State 11–16 5–9 6th
1991–92 Sam Houston State 9–18 5–13 7th
1992–93 Sam Houston State 6–20 3–15 9th
1993–94 Sam Houston State 10–17 4–14 8th
1994–95 Sam Houston State 13–14 10–8 4th
1995–96 Sam Houston State 18–10 14–5 3rd
1996–97 Sam Houston State 13–15 8–8 4th
Sam Houston State: 80–110 (.421) 49–72 (.405)
Mississippi State (Lady) Bulldogs (Southeastern Conference) (2012–2020)
2012–13 Mississippi State 13–17 5–11 T–11th
2013–14 Mississippi State 22–14 5–11 13th WNIT Quarterfinals
2014–15 Mississippi State 27–7 11–5 3rd NCAA Second Round
2015–16 Mississippi State 28–8 11–5 T–2nd NCAA Sweet Sixteen
2016–17 Mississippi State 34–5 13-3 2nd NCAA Runner-Up
2017–18 Mississippi State 37–2 16–0 1st NCAA Runner-Up
2018–19 Mississippi State 33–3 15–1 1st NCAA Elite Eight
2019–20 Mississippi State 27–6 13–3 2nd NCAA Tournament Canceled†
Mississippi State: 221–62 (.781) 89–39 (.695)
Texas Longhorns (Big 12 Conference) (2020–2024)
2020–21 Texas 21–10 11–7 5th NCAA Elite Eight
2021–22 Texas 29–7 13–5 3rd NCAA Elite Eight
2022–23 Texas 26–10 14–4 T–1st NCAA Second Round
2023–24 Texas 33–5 14–4 2nd NCAA Elite Eight
Texas Longhorns (Southeastern Conference) (2024–present)
2024–25 Texas 4–0 0–0
Texas: 113–32 (.779) 52–20 (.722)
Total: 414–204 (.670)

      National champion         Postseason invitational champion  
      Conference regular season champion         Conference regular season and conference tournament champion
      Division regular season champion       Division regular season and conference tournament champion
      Conference tournament champion

†NCAA canceled all postseason activities for all college sports due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

References

  1. ^ "Women's Basketball Coaches Career". NCAA. Retrieved September 30, 2015.
  2. ^ https://hailstate.com/sports/womens-basketball/roster/coaches/vic-schaefer/778 VIC SCHAEFER Bio at HailState.com
  3. ^ https://247sports.com/college/mississippi-state/Article/Mississippi-State-slips-past-Marquette-for-Schaefers-200th-win-139238987 Finebaum: Pressure squarely on Joe Moorhead ahead of Egg Bowl ‘It’s Go Time’ for Thompson and Dog Defense Tuesday's Dawg Biscuits VIP Mississippi State slips past Marquette for Schaefer's 200th win
  4. ^ Voepel, Mechelle (April 5, 2020). "Texas hires Mississippi State's Vic Schaefer as new head coach". ESPN.com. Retrieved April 5, 2020.
  5. ^ a b Voepel, Mechelle (June 23, 2020). "Vic Schaefer's Texas-sized task: Returning Longhorns to nation's elite". ESPN.com. Retrieved June 25, 2020.