The winningest coach in both men’s and women’s college basketball history, Stanford’s Tara VanDerveer, is retiring. VanDerveer, who has coached Stanford since 1985, announced her retirement from coaching on Tuesday.
As one of the most accomplished and greatest college basketball coaches in the history of the sport, VanDerveer goes out after leading Stanford to a 30-6 record, winning the Pac-12 regular season title, and making the NCAA Sweet 16. Most notably, VanDerveer passed former Duke and Army men’s basketball coach Mike Krzyzewski for the most all-time wins by a Division I college basketball coach. VanDerveer ends her career with 1,216 wins.
VanDerveer began her storied career with Idaho, where she coached for two seasons from 1978-80 before taking over Ohio State for five years on her way to Stanford. VanDerveer has had a winning record at every spot she’s coached. She’s had the most success at Stanford, producing a 1,064-200 overall record and a 577-97 conference record. She had a .829 winning percentage at Stanford, and a .818 winning percentage overall.
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Her teams did not succeed just in the regular season, but the postseason, as well. VanDerveer’s squads won three National Championships in 1990, 1992 and 2021. She has also led Stanford to 13 NCAA Final Four appearances, and 15 Pac-12 Tournament championships. She’s also coached the USA Basketball women’s national team, which she led to the Olympic gold medal in 1996. For her efforts, VanDerveer has been named the National Coach of the Year five times and has also made the Basketball Hall of Fame and the Women’s Basketball Hall of Fame.
“Basketball is the greatest group project there is and I am so incredibly thankful for every person who has supported me and our teams throughout my coaching career,” VanDerveer said, via Stanford Communications. “I’ve been spoiled to coach the best and brightest at one of the world’s foremost institutions for nearly four decades. Coupled with my time at Ohio State and Idaho, and as head coach of the United States National Team, it has been an unforgettable ride. The joy for me was in the journey of each season, seeing a group of young women work hard for each other and form an unbreakable bond. Winning was a byproduct. I’ve loved the game of basketball since I was a little girl, and it has given me so much throughout my life. I hope I’ve been able to give at least a little bit back.”
Now, Stanford will begin a new era. Kate Paye, who played under VanDerveer and has been part of VanDerveer’s coaching staff for the past 17 seasons, will take over as the new head coach as the team transitions to the ACC. While VanDerveer will no longer lead the team, she will maintain an advisory role with Stanford.
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