Following up on something that I mentioned back on July 27th (JUCO DIRT). Des Moines Area CC head coach Brett Putz has officially been named as a Special Assistant at Indiana State. Here’s the official release:
Indiana State head basketball coach Josh Schertz announced the addition of Brett Putz to his coaching staff Tuesday as a special assistant. Putz comes to Indiana State after two years as head coach at Des Moines Area Community College where he led the Bears to a 49-13 record, a NJCAA DII National Championship in 2020-21, and a third-place finish during the 2021-22 season.
“I couldn’t be happier to add Brett to our staff. When hiring coaches, I have always tried to look for people that are intelligent, hardworking and have the highest levels of integrity,” Schertz said. “Brett checks all those boxes and more as he is already a National Championship winning head coach and a National Coach of the Year honoree. I look forward to working alongside Brett and the rest of our staff this coming season.”
“I am very grateful for the opportunity to work at a program like Indiana State, with such a rich history in its men’s basketball program,” Putz noted. “My wife and I are extremely excited to become a part of the Terre Haute community.”
Putz continued: “I can’t thank Coach Schertz enough for the opportunity to learn from and work with one of the most well-respected basketball coaches in the game. Coach Schertz is someone I would adopt concepts and ideas from while running my program at Des Moines Area Community College, so getting the opportunity to work with him every day is not one I would have passed up. I look forward to contributing whatever is necessary to help this program reach the level of success it deserves.”
In his first season, Putz led the Bears to a record of 21-5 and a conference record of 17-4. That included an ICCAC Championship, Region XI-A Championship, a North Central-A District Championship, and brought home the school’s first National Championship. He continued that success into 2021-22 when he helped the Bears to a 28-8 overall record that culminated with a third-place finish in the NJCAA Tournament.
Along with leading the Bears to those team honors, Putz was named ICCAC Coach of the Year, NJCAA National Coach of the Year, NJCAA National Tournament Coach of the Tournament, and NABC Two-Year College Coach of the Year.
Five of Putz’s players were named to the All-Region XI Team, which included Willie Guy, who was named NJCAA First Team All-American, NABC All-American, ICCAC Player of the Year and ICCAC Student-Athlete of the Year.
Putz came to DMACC from Chicago State University, where he was involved in player development with both guards and post players, game planning, team travel and academics for the past two seasons. As recruiting coordinator for the Cougars, Putz helped recruit domestic and international student-athletes to Chicago State’s campus.
Putz arrived at Chicago State after a short stint as an assistant coach at Highland Community College, located in Freeport, Ill. During his time at Highland, he was involved in recruiting, specifically international student-athletes, and organized player development.
In 2016-17, Putz was recognized on the National Association of Basketball Coaches’ 30 Under 30 List, which recognizes a group of up-and-coming young coaches in men’s college basketball.
Putz spent two years as the Director of Men’s Basketball Operations at Omaha from 2016-18 while overseeing administrative and logistical duties of the program’s day-to-day operations, team travel and summer camps. During his time in Omaha, the Mavericks tied their Division I record for wins in a season (18) and reached the championship game during the 2017 Summit League Tournament.
A native of Forest City, Iowa, Putz served three years as an assistant coach at Wayne State (Neb.) College from 2013-16 where he was the recruiting coordinator and coached the Wildcats’ perimeter players. He also shared responsibility over academic duties and managed scouting reports at WSC.
A native of Forest City, Iowa, Putz served three years as an assistant coach at Wayne State (Neb.) College from 2013-16 where he was the recruiting coordinator and coached the Wildcats’ perimeter players. He also shared responsibility for academic duties and managed scouting reports at WSC.
Previously, Putz was an assistant coach for one season at St. Cloud State (SCSU). He helped guide the Huskies to the 2013 NSIC North Division title with a record of 20-8 (16-6 NSIC). Putz also coached with the Iowa Mavericks and Iowa Barnstormer AAU programs from 2010-12.
As a player, Putz was a four-year starter at St. Cloud State and was part of the Huskies’ NCAA Division II Final Four team in 2010. He finished his career as SCSU’s career leader in games played (124) and was second in 3-pointers made (245), 10th in steals (142) and 18th in scoring (1,315).
Putz graduated with his bachelor’s degree in recreation/sports management from SCSU in 2012 and earned his master’s degree in organizational leadership from Saint Mary’s (Minn.) in 2016.
