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Notre Dame men’s basketball coach Mike Brey will step away from his position effective at the end of the season, the school announced on Thursday afternoon.
“Mike and I have talked often in recent years about a future transition in the program’s leadership and during our most recent conversation we reached the mutual conclusion that the end of this season represented the right time,” director of athletics Jack Swarbrick said in a statement. “That Mike is the winningest coach in the 119 year history of Notre Dame men’s basketball speaks to his skill as a teacher of the game. His even greater legacy, however, lies in his achievements as an educator and mentor of the young men who played for him. In that sense, he represents this university as well as any coach I have worked with in my time at Notre Dame. And for that reason, I look forward to working with Mike to define his future role within Notre Dame athletics.”
“It has been a great run for me and our program over the past two decades, but it is time for a new voice to lead this group into the future,” Brey said. “I want to thank our student-athletes, assistant coaches and support staff who have played such a key role in the culture we have created. From Ft. Malloy hiring me, to Fr. Jenkins’s guidance and Jack’s friendship, I leave this place with immense gratitude to the university and I’m proud of everything we’ve accomplished together. I look forward to working with Jack in any role that can help the Notre Dame family.”
Brey took Notre Dame to back-to-back Elite Eight appearances in 2015 and ’16. But after the Irish lost multiple key contributors off of those two rosters, Brey struggled to replace the production.
Notre Dame went on to miss the NCAA tournament for four straight years, before making the field of 68 once again last season.
This year, the Irish have struggled out to a 1–7 record in ACC play despite returning several starters and adding a consensus top recruit in guard J.J. Starling from the tournament team a year ago.
Despite the talented roster that returned under Brey in South Bend, the Irish have an uphill battle to climb the rest of the year if they want to make the NCAA tournament. In all likelihood, the Irish will miss the Big Dance for the fifth time in the last six seasons.
Although it’s been a trying six years since reaching back-to-back Elite Eights, Brey’s run in South Bend will be seen as nothing short of a success. His teams have made the NCAA tournament 13 times, he’s coached six All-Americans and had seven players drafted into the NBA over his time in South Bend.
At the time of this writing, Brey is 481–269 as Notre Dame’s coach, good for a .641 winning percentage.
