New Illinois State head men’s basketball coach Ryan Pedon has announced the addition of Andrew Dakich as the newest assistant coach for the Redbirds.
“I’m really excited about adding Andrew to our staff,” said Pedon. “Andrew played for us in his graduate year at Ohio State, and I was able to see firsthand his leadership, energy, and personality were able to affect our program in a short period of time. I have zero doubt that he will be a successful coach at the college level. His personal skills combined with his strong work ethic and basketball upbringing will propel him to great things in this business.”
Dakich joins the staff after spending the previous two seasons as director of basketball operations at Elon University in Elon, North Carolina. Prior to moving to North Carolina, he spent three seasons at Ohio State University, the first as a graduate senior with the men’s basketball program and the last two as a graduate assistant and then a program assistant.
“I’m beyond excited and grateful to be an assistant coach at Illinois State under Coach Pedon,” said Dakich. “I was fortunate to have played for and worked with Coach Pedon at Ohio State and he is a phenomenal coach. I’m also grateful to my previous mentors – Coach Holtmann, Coach Beilein, and Coach Schrage – for their influence in my career. I am looking forward to working with the Redbird student-athletes as well as the entire athletic department to elevate the men’s basketball program.”
In his season as a student-athlete in Columbus playing for Holtmann and Pedon, Dakich played in all 34 games during the season, averaging 19 minutes while dishing out 72 assists on a 25-9 Ohio State squad (15-3 in the Big Ten) that advanced to the round of 32 in the NCAA Tournament.
Prior to his time in Columbus, the Zionsville, Indiana, native spent four years on the basketball team at the University of Michigan. He was a three-time All-Big Ten Academic Award winner with the Wolverines (2015, 2016, and 2017). In his four seasons with the Wolverines, the team was 93-50 with three trips to the NCAA Tournament including an Elite Eight appearance in 2013-14 and a Sweet 16 appearance in his redshirt season in 2016-17.
He holds his undergraduate degree in history from the University of Michigan, and a master’s degree in sports coaching from Ohio State University.
Andrew Dakich Basketball Timeline
2020-2022 – Elon University, Director of Basketball Operations
2019-2020 – The Ohio State University, Program Assistant
2018-2019 – The Ohio State University, Graduate Assistant
2017-2018 – The Ohio State University, Student-Athlete
2013-2017 – University of Michigan, Student-Athlete
