Saint Louis University hired Josh Schertz Saturday as the school’s next men’s head basketball coach, succeeding Travis Ford, who was dismissed last month. 

Schertz comes to Midtown following three seasons in the same role at Indiana State, where he guided the Sycamores to a 32-7 record this past season, which ended with a loss in the NIT championship game Thursday night against Seton Hall. 

He was named Missouri Valley Conference’s coach of the year for the 2023-2024 campaign for his team’s first-place finish in the regular season. Indiana State lost the MVC postseason tournament to Drake, which ultimately cost the school a shot at an NCAA tournament birth.

In three seasons in Terre Haute, Schertz went 66-40 after 13 years at the helm of Division II Lincoln Memorial, where he was 337-69 with the Railsplitters.

Schertz was reportedly connected with at least one other coaching search in this cycle at Louisville, where the Cardinals ultimately hired Pat Kelsey from the College of Charleston. 

Instead, he’ll bring an offensive approach that focuses heavily on guard play and 3-point shooting to SLU, which made only one NCAA tournament (2019) in eight seasons under Ford, and NIT appearances after the 2021 and 2022 seasons. 

While Ford had success landing prominent local talents, including Jordan Goodwin (Althoff), Yuri Collins (St. Mary’s) and Terrence Hargrove (East St. Louis), the last few classes showed trouble on the recruiting trail as the school navigated the new-look world of the transfer portal and the impact of Name, Image and Likeness agreements. Still, the school boasts facilities in Chaifetz Arena and the O’Laughlin Family Champions Center which are the class of the Atlantic 10 Conference and on par with much larger programs.

Schertz arrives with at least six roster spots to fill. Guards Sincere Parker, Gibson Jimerson, Cian Medley, along with center Stef Van Bussel have entered the transfer portal since Ford’s dismissal. He could end up bringing multiple players with him from Indiana State, as all five of his starters from this year’s team have eligibility remaining.

His son, Jaden, is a reserve guard at Indiana State.