After a week-long process, Notre Dame has achieved its ultimate goal of becoming the next coach of its men’s basketball team: Micah Shrewsberry.
The Penn State coach decided Wednesday morning to accept the Irishman’s seven-year offer, sources told CBS Sports, leaving a tempting contract upgrade from the Nittany Lions on the table in the process. Shrewsberry went 37-31 in two seasons at PSU and just advanced the program into the second round of the tournament, earning the school its first March Madness win since 2001.
Notre Dame will be Shrewsberry’s second stint as head coach.
One of the many reasons Notre Dame AD Jack Swarbrick held the 46-year-old Shrewsberry in high regard: the man has deep Indiana roots. Shrewsberry grew up in Indianapolis, played college ball in the state at Hanover College, and coached as an assistant at Indiana colleges (Wabash, Depauw, IU South Bend) in the years after graduation. Shrewsberry worked his way up in Division I by working at Butler on Brad Stevens’ staff and then joining Purdue under Matt Painter before spending six seasons as Stevens’ assistant with the Boston Celtics from 2013-19.
He returned to college basketball in 2019 and resumed his post on Painter’s staff, resulting in him getting the job at Penn State in 2021.
In addition to his growing reputation as a coach, Shrewsberry’s connection to NBA players is also a major selling point for a Notre Dame program that seeks to continue attracting future pros. Shrewsberry has close ties with the likes of Jayson Tatum, Jaylen Brown, Al Horford, Marcus Smart, Gordon Hayward and Rajon Rondo.
The official announcement of Notre Dame on Shrewsberry will land on Friday, a source said.