On March 30 2024, Josh Loeffler was named the 22nd head coach of the Loyola men’s basketball program.
For the 2023-2024 season, he was assistant coach at the University of Cincinnati. He helped lead the team to a 22-15 overall record and a third-round appearance in the NIT. Before his year at Cincinnati, Loeffler was the head coach at Johns Hopkins University for six years. He led the Blue Jays to a 114-27 record from 2017 to 2019.
According to University of Cincinnati Athletics, he helped the Blue Jays to their first Sweet 16 appearance since 2015 and second-straight Centennial Conference regular-season title. When he worked at the Stevens Institute of Technology from 2006 to 2007, he had a record of 46-13.
Loeffler has an overall head coaching record of 160-40. He has led five teams to the D3 NCAA tournament, including two trips to the Sweet 16 and two to the second round.
The Greyhounds’ first game of the 2024-2025 season is tonight, Nov. 4. Loeffler said that starting the season, one of the things that they want to accomplish is to compete at a very high level daily. He wants the team to be fast-paced and have a sense of urgency.
“We want to really cultivate the mindset that we are going to be a defensive team and take pride in stopping the opponent,” Loeffler said.
From 2013 to 2017, Loeffler was an assistant to the Greyhounds. During those years, he helped the team in their seven-win streak in the 2016-2017 season to end 16-17 overall. They made it to the second round of the College Basketball Invitational.
He is excited heading into their first game of the season. Loeffler says that his team is just like any other team that wants to improve every day. He wants to play with a level of competitiveness and a passion that is fun for people to watch.
“I want to be a team that plays with great energy and plays hard,” Loeffler said.
Loeffler wants to play a winning brand of basketball so that people at Loyola can recognize how hard the team works. He wants the team to inspire the Loyola community and show how much they care about the work they are doing.
Loeffler spent nine years working at Division 1 level, according to Cincinnati Athletics. For the 2012-2013 season at Rutgers, he was the Director of Operations. From 2008 to 2012, he was an assistant at Lafayette. He uses the experience from these prior teams to help him coach our Hounds.
“I just want to help the group get better everyday and put them in a position to be successful, helping every individual in our program develop into the best player and person they can be,” Loeffler said.
The coach finds it interesting having a new group and utilizing new ideas in the program that even returners might not be used to. He wants the team to continue to improve well into the season.
“When other teams may plateau, we want to continue getting better. Because things are all so new right now, we should be able to continue on a path of development and improvement that is more sustainable,” Loeffler said.
He loves the student section and has always felt that the team has a great home court advantage. During his four years here as an assistant coach, he has always loved that part of Loyola.
“I want to see the student section packed this year and really supporting the team the best we can,” Loeffler said.
