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Tom Schneider (basketball)

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For the American poker player, see Tom Schneider.
Tom Schneider
Biographical details
Born(1946-07-14)July 14, 1946
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, U.S.
DiedMarch 17, 2015(2015-03-17) (aged 68)
Lakeland, Florida, U.S.
Playing career
1966–1969Bucknell
Coaching career (HC unless noted)
1970–1971Rockville HS
1971–1972American (assistant)
1972–1979George Washington (assistant)
1979–1983Penn (assistant)
1983–1985Lehigh
1985–1989Penn
1989–1993Loyola (MD)
1993–1994SMU (assistant)
2005–2012Polk State College (assistant)
Head coaching record
Overall98–160 (college)
Tournaments0–2 (NCAA Division I)
Accomplishments and honors
Championships
East Coast Conference tournament (1985)
Ivy League regular season (1987)

Thomas O. Schneider (July 14, 1946 – March 17, 2015) was an American basketball coach and player. From 1983 to 1993, he was a men's basketball head coach at NCAA Division I Mid-Atlantic mid-majors Lehigh, Penn and Loyola, with the first two each making a national tournament appearance.

Early life

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Schneider was born in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, on July 14, 1946.[1] He matriculated at Bucknell University where he was a three-year letterman on the Bison men's basketball team from 1966 to 1969.[2] He graduated with a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science in 1969. He later earned a Master of Arts in History from Georgetown University.[1]

Coaching career

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Schneider began his coaching career at Rockville High School for one year in 1970–71. He stayed in the Washington metropolitan area when he returned to college basketball as an assistant coach with American in 1971–72 and George Washington from 1972 to 1979.[3] His one year at American coincided with his graduate studies at Georgetown.[1] He moved to the University of Pennsylvania in a similar capacity on the staffs of Bob Weinhauer for three seasons from 1979 to 1982 and Craig Littlepage for the 1982–83 campaign.[4]

His first head coaching appointment was at Lehigh University where he was named on June 16, 1983, to succeed Brian Hill who had left to join the Penn State coaching staff two months earlier on April 13.[5][6] In his second and last year at Lehigh in 1985, the Engineers qualified for its first-ever NCAA tournament by winning the East Coast Conference tourney despite a 12–18 overall record. Its season ended with a 68–43 East Regional first-round defeat to top-ranked defending national champion Georgetown.[7] Assistant coach Fran McCaffery was promoted on September 14, six days after Schneider's departure from Lehigh.[8]

Schneider returned to Penn on September 8, 1985, succeeding Littlepage who had left for Rutgers University two days earlier.[9][10] In his second year at Penn in 1987, the Quakers captured the Ivy League championship before a 113–82 East Regional first-round loss to North Carolina at the NCAA tournament.[11][12] Prior to assistant coach Fran Dunphy being promoted to replace him, Schneider compiled a 51–54 overall record in his four years with the Red and Blue.[13]

He announced on March 15, 1989, his departure from the Quakers to succeed Mark Amatucci in a similar capacity at Loyola College in Maryland.[13] A 1–10 start to the 1992–93 season resulted in Schneider's resignation prior to the opening of conference play. Athletic director Joe Boylan replaced him on an interim basis to complete a 2–25 campaign. The most notable player during Schneider's 3+1⁄2 years with the Greyhounds was starting point guard Michael Malone.[14]

He was an assistant with John Shumate's staff at Southern Methodist University for one campaign in 1993–94.[15] He was also a volunteer assistant with the Polk State College Eagles men's basketball team from 2005 to 2012.[16]

Later years and death

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Schneider was a history professor at Polk State Lakeland Collegiate High School from its inception in 2005 to his death at age 68 of coronary artery disease on March 17, 2015.[16]

Head coaching record

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Statistics overview
Season Team Overall Conference Standing Postseason
Lehigh Engineers (East Coast Conference) (1983–1985)
1983–84 Lehigh 4–23 3–13 9th (last)
1984–85 Lehigh 12–19 6–8 6th NCAA Division I first round
Lehigh: 16–42 (.276) 9–21 (.300)
Penn Quakers (Ivy League) (1985–1989)
1985–86 Penn 15–11 9–5 2nd
1986–87 Penn 13–14 10–4 1st NCAA Division I first round
1987–88 Penn 10–16 8–6 5th
1988–89 Penn 13–13 9–5 3rd
Penn: 51–54 (.486) 36–20 (.643)
Loyola Greyhounds (Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference) (1989–1993)
1989–90 Loyola 4–24 2–14 6th/MAAC South (last)
1990–91 Loyola 12–16 5–11 7th
1991–92 Loyola 14–14 10–6 4th
1992–93 Loyola 1–10 8th (last)
Loyola: 31–64 (.326) 17–31 (.354)
Total: 98–160 (.380)

      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

References

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  1. ^ a b c Obituary of Thomas O. Schneider – Oak Ridge Funeral Care. Retrieved June 5, 2023.
  2. ^ Bison Basketball History – Bucknell University Athletics (scroll down to page 43). Retrieved June 5, 2023.
  3. ^ "Colleges," The Washington Post, Thursday, March 16, 1989. Retrieved June 5, 2023.
  4. ^ "Tom Schneider, Basketball" (obituary), Almanac (University of Pennsylvania), July 14, 2015. Retrieved June 5, 2023.
  5. ^ Rosen, Ron. "Local Heroes," The Washington Post, Friday, June 17, 1983. Retrieved June 5, 2023.
  6. ^ "Brian Hill, head basketball coach at Lehigh for the...," United Press International (UPI), Thursday, April 14, 1983. Retrieved June 5, 2023.
  7. ^ Johnson, Roy S. "East Regional: Lehigh Out with Pride Intact," The New York Times, Friday, March 15, 1985. Retrieved June 5, 2023.
  8. ^ "Fran McCaffery, an assistant basketball coach at Lehigh the...," United Press International (UPI), Saturday, September 14, 1985. Retrieved June 5, 2023.
  9. ^ Cialini, Joe. "Tom Schneider says he never though about returning to...," United Press International (UPI), Tuesday, September 10, 1985. Retrieved June 5, 2023.
  10. ^ "Craig Littlepage, who spent the last three years as...," United Press International (UPI), Friday, September 6, 1985. Retrieved June 5, 2023.
  11. ^ Troy, Ezra. "Penn men’s basketball Ivy League title look back: 1987," The Daily Pennsylvanian (University of Pennsylvania), Tuesday, November 24, 2020. Retrieved June 5, 2023.
  12. ^ Jacobs, Barry. "East Regional: Hoyas Cruise and Syracuse Struggles," The New York Times, Saturday, March 14, 1987. Retrieved June 5, 2023.
  13. ^ a b "Basketball Coach Is Leaving Penn," The Associated Press (AP), Thursday, March 16, 1989. Retrieved June 5, 2023.
  14. ^ Keeler, Sean. "Why Nuggets coach Michael Malone 'wouldn’t back down from anybody,'" The Denver Post, Sunday, February 17, 2019. Retrieved June 5, 2023.
  15. ^ Southern Methodist University (SMU) Mustangs Men's Basketball 2021–22 Media Guide (scroll down to page 89). Retrieved June 5, 2023.
  16. ^ a b "Polk State Mourning Death of History Professor Tom Schneider," Polk State College, Thursday, March 19, 2015. Retrieved June 5, 2023.
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