Gwitt: 'Special Program, Special Place'

OXFORD, Ohio— Dan Gwitt was ready to take the next step.

After a journey in volleyball that's included playing at Penn State, serving as the youngest Division I head coach in the country at Centenary, excelling as a recruiter and assistant at Indiana and then most recently returning to his alma mater for the past two seasons, Gwitt felt it was time to move on from Happy Valley and be a college head coach again if the right job opened up.

Miami University was the perfect opportunity.

"This is a special program. It's a special place. Volleyball here matters," Gwitt said during this afternoon's introductory press conference in the Gloor Auditorium of the Randy Gunlock Family Athletic Performance Center.

And as Gwitt starts a new chapter in his professional life, he also officially helps turn the page for a Miami Volleyball program that has thrived under recently-retired coach Carolyn Condit's leadership for the past four decades.

Following in the footsteps of a longtime legend can be a daunting and difficult task, but Gwitt has firsthand experience on a staff doing just that, and is excited about the challenge of building on the past success of the Red and White for an exciting future in Oxford.

"We're not going to rock the boat too much around here. Our mission will remain the same: To treat the athletes great, to teach them and get them prepared for the real world, to win championships and to do it the right way," said Gwitt.

"Coach Condit, you're a legend, and we want you around whenever you want to be here," he added. "I'm definitely going to lean on you for a lot, whether you like it or not! I want to make sure we do this right and maintain these traditions and honor the past, and then how can we improve the present?"

Gwitt served the past two years under head coach Katie Schumacher-Cawley, who replaced Russ Rose at Penn State after Rose had led the Nittany Lions' program for 43 years and won 1,330 games, the most in NCAA Division I women's volleyball history.

"I was lucky enough to get to work for her and really see how she did it and how she treated the players," said Gwitt. "I think that was the number one thing I got from her. Xs and Os? The recruiting part? I think I was there…but how she interacted with her staff and how she treated her players was my final step toward: 'It's time to be a head coach.'"

Outside hitter Brooke Jackson said she appreciated what she and her Miami teammates have heard from Gwitt about how he plans to build on the foundation Condit has laid; that message has been reiterated consistently, both in today's press conference as well as last night in the group's first practice together.

"We all came to Miami for a specific reason – the tradition and values and everything about this place," said Jackson. "He made it super clear from the first conversation we had: 'I'm not going to change the traditions. You all came here for a reason. That won't change. The alumni that are so involved will not change.'

"The core of why we're here and the things we like about this program, how my teammates are so close: He said, 'I'm not here to mess that up. I'm here to make it better and make your experience here the best it can be.'"

Miami Director of Athletics David Sayler said he was looking for a coach that could maximize recruiting, really teach the game, and most importantly, lead with integrity. "I think that's something that goes without saying, in terms of what Miami and its mission and its principles of Love and Honor stand for," Sayler said.

As Gwitt answered questions this afternoon from local media and alumni, he repeatedly emphasized what he wants the RedHawks' program to continue to be about: Being full of good people.

"I know we'll be able to recruit the right humans, and I think that's number one," Gwitt explained. "We know we can win here. It's happened in the past…with a program that had a coach for 40 years, there's something about it. There's something about this school, something about this town, and something about the way people feel about it: Why they want to stay around [and why] they want to come back.

"My main responsibility is to the young women on my team. Who you're becoming –you're going to hear me say that a lot— that's what this is about. The championships will feel great; you'll always remember that. But who you are as a human being is my number one job.

"When you leave here as proud alumni and you're in the boardroom, or playing pro, or whatever you choose to do in your life— that's what our job is: To prepare you for that."

Gwitt plans to prioritize the recruiting hotbeds around Oxford as he begins the process of identifying future RedHawks to complement the team's returning players and incoming freshmen. Whether from Cincinnati, Columbus, Indianapolis, Chicago, Kentucky, Michigan, or beyond, he's confident he can attract top-rate talent after being part of signing top-10 recruiting classes in back-to-back seasons at Penn State and helping ink the top class in program history at IU before that.

"I think it's [about] relationships, and taking a job where you know you can do it," Gwitt said. "I know the clubs around here…within a four- or five-hour radius, the best clubs in America are right here.

"If [coaches and club directors] are going to send you their kid, it's because they know who you are, they trust you, you've been in their gym and they think you're good. They know that if they send a kid to you, they're going to have a great experience and they're going to be treated well.

"I think I've had a track record of doing that really well, especially in the Ohio area. I've recruited and trained a lot of kids from Ohio, and I can tell you that I have a great relationship with them; I think that helps you get the next kid.

"A lot of people have already reached out to me. I knew that it was going to happen when I came here and I felt confident in it, and that's why I knew this job would be a winner.

"To me, the program obviously had wild success. Everyone that talks about this school talks about how great it is and what a great education it is. It's a gem."

Although the RedHawks are coming off a five-win season in 2023, Gwitt expressed optimism about the program's future prospects, both short-term and long-term.

"I can't promise you we're going to go 30-0 next year. I can tell you that we're going to try," he said. "And I can tell you that we're going to do the right things.

"The sky's the limit here. This team can win the MAC every single year. I wouldn't have come here if I didn't believe that. Kids want to go to school here. It's in one of the best places in the country to recruit volleyball. People care.

"We have a history of winning here. We can win here – Every. Single. Year. We just have to do it the right way.

"And we will."

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