Hertz ‘humbled and excited’ to lead Wittenberg men’s basketball

“I’m thrilled, excited and humbled to be the new head coach here at Wittenberg University,” said Hertz, whose hiring was announced Friday. “This is a special place with a rich tradition of basketball.”

Minutes earlier, Athletic Director Brian Agler had talked about Wittenberg being the winningest program in Division III. The program is 1,857-770 (.706) in 113 seasons.

Wittenberg has 33 more victories than the second-place team, its North Coast Athletic Conference rival Wooster. Wittenberg is the only D-III school with a winning percentage over .700. It still olds the D-III record for most consecutive winning seasons (1969-2008).

Hertz takes over a program that improved from 13-12 to 18-9 in the last season of the tenure of Matt Croci, who stepped down after eight seasons on Aug. 8 to take the athletic director job at Wilmington College. The Tigers return four starters, including senior guard Trey Killens, who led the team with 18.9 points per game last season.

The players who were in class during the press conference Tuesday morning watched from the side as Hertz talked. He told them his offense will be on attack at all times in transition and in the half court.

“We’re going to have the defense on their heels,” Hertz said. “We’re going to be unselfish. The best teams I’ve been around are very unselfish, high-assist teams. We’re going to play together, make our teammates better, and then we’re going to be efficient.”

Hertz was part of two national championship teams on Billy Donovan’s staff with the Florida Gators in 2006 and 2007. He was on Grant’s staff when the Flyers rose to No. 3 in the national rankings and won 29 games in 2020. He helped the Flyers to their first NCAA tournament victory in nine years last March in a 17-point comeback against Nevada.

Grant and his wife Chris attended the press conference in Springfield as did UD associate head coach Ricardo Greer and assistant coach Jermaine Henderson. Dayton Athletic Director Neil Sullivan was also there.

Hertz thanked them all, plus Donovan and John Groce, who he coached with at Illinois, at the press conference. On Saturday, in a post to X (Twitter), he also thanked Flyer Nation.

“As I reflect on the last seven years here at Dayton,” Hertz wrote, “what immediately comes to mind is ... grateful. I’m grateful for so many things — a university all about community, a passionate town that loves its hoops, an athletic department committed to excellence, incredible friends we’ve developed lifelong bonds with and the Flyer Faithful, home to the greatest fans in the country.”

The idea of coaching at Wittenberg first came to Hertz in the spring when he visited campus and Pam Evans Smith Arena with his daughter Lexi for a basketball event.

“I just thought, ‘Wow, what a great place,’” Hertz said, “but that was the only really thought at the moment.”

When the job opened, Hertz talked to UD women’s coach Tamika Williams-Jeter, who spent one season at Wittenberg before moving to Dayton.

“She said that it would be a great place to look at,” Hertz said. “She said, ‘It’s awesome.’ She loved it. She swore by it. I really trust Tamika.”

When Croci left for Wilmington, Hertz talked to Agler about the position. That led to Agler visiting Hertz in Dayton, and then Hertz came to Springfield for an interview.

“Darren was very impressive on his interview,” Agler said. “The coaches who I called were raving about his experience and his potential and his desire to be a head coach.”

Agler made sure Hertz knew about the differences between Division I and Division III. Dayton takes charter flights to almost every road game. Wittenberg rarely has a need to fly to games, though it will play in Las Vegas, Nev., this season. Dayton recruits across the country. Agler said Wittenberg’s recruiting footprint lies in Ohio, Indiana and Kentucky.

Hertz said he always had a desire to be a head coach. The fact that he could take this job without moving his family from Springboro was “icing on the cake,” he said. His wife Julie and children Brandon, 14, and Lexi, 12, were at the press conference with him.

“When you get into the business at a young age, (being a head coach) was always a goal, but it was never an end-all goal for me,” Hertz said. “I was more focused on being at a place that I loved, around people I like to be around. And I really hit that out of the park. I was very, very fortunate for the last 25-plus years. I felt that way in Florida. I had a great time at Illinois for two years and then Dayton.

“There was never a rush to become a head coach. It had to be the right situation. And everything I had heard about this place, the tradition, the winning, the ability to win and win big here and then to have an alignment with the AD and the president, it just felt like this was a great opportunity for me and my family.”