The face behind one of the biggest Cinderella teams in NCAA men’s basketball tournament history is no longer with us.
Sister Jean Dolores Schmidt, longtime team chaplain for Loyola-Chicago, died on Oct. 9, the university announced. She was 106 years old.
The Catholic nun was thrust into the national spotlight as the Ramblers staged an improbable run to the Final Four in 2018, becoming at the time just the fourth No. 11 seed to make it to college basketball’s grandest stage. Sister Jean had an infectious love for basketball, and prayed for the team before every game — which became a made-for-TV moment before every upset victory. She also sent personalized emails to players, complimenting them after a good game, and encouraging them after a bad game.
“She’s meant a lot to this program, to the city of Chicago,” former player Donte Ingram said at the Final Four in 2018. “Her aura is so bright. … She’s like no other.”
After Loyola-Chicago’s buzzer-beating win over Miami in the first round, Sister Jean became an overnight celebrity — with photos and videos of her hugging players after the win going viral.
“Everything just seemed to mushroom,” she said of her sudden popularity at a packed Final Four news conference in San Antonio. “I can’t believe it. I wake up and say, ‘Is this real or is it a dream?’ And I say, ‘No, it’s really for real.’ …This is the most fun I’ve had in my life.”
Her fame continued to skyrocket as the Ramblers reached their first Sweet 16 in 33 years and eventually got to their first Final Four since 1963 — when the program won the national championship in a game that broke racial barriers. She had her own bobblehead and Nike shoes, while her face was on T-shirts and socks as Loyola’s storybook run resonated outside of the sports world. In April, after Loyola’s run, she threw out the first pitch at the Chicago Cubs’ season opener and posed for photos alongside then-Ramblers coach Porter Moser, players and then-Cubs manager Joe Maddon.
Although Sister Jean became a household name, she was a fixture on Loyola’s campus on the North Side of Chicago long before all the hoopla. Dolores Schmidt, a religious sister of the Sisters of Charity of the Blessed Virgin Mary, came to Loyola in 1991 and became the team chaplain shortly thereafter. She maintained an office in the student center on campus and lived in a freshman dorm — where she offered advice to those who visited her.
“In many roles at Loyola over the course of more than 60 years, Sister Jean was an invaluable source of wisdom and grace for generations of students, faculty, and staff,” Loyola President Mark C. Reed said in a statement. “While we feel grief and a sense of loss, there is great joy in her legacy. Her presence was a profound blessing for our entire community and her spirit abides in thousands of lives.
‘In her honor, we can aspire to share with others the love and compassion Sister Jean shared with us.”
This story has been updated with new information and a new gallery.