St. Bonaventure is finalizing a deal to make Daemen University coach Mike MacDonald the school's next head coach, sources told ESPN on Monday.
MacDonald has won more than 500 games as a college coach, including going 61-3 the past two seasons. He is the only coach in college basketball history to win more than 100 games in Division I, Division II and Division III.
He's had prior stops at Canisius and Division III Medaille.
MacDonald will replace Mark Schmidt, who retired after 19 seasons while leading the Bonnies to 341 wins and three NCAA tournaments. The Bonnies are coming off a 17-17 season, which included a 4-14 record in the Atlantic 10.
St. Bonaventure officials looked at the success of D-II coaches having made the jump to Div. I --- such as Saint Louis' Josh Schertz (Indiana State) and Iowa's Ben McCollum (Drake) -- as the Bonnies faces resource challenges compared to their Atlantic 10 peers.
MacDonald, a St. Bonaventure graduate who also coached at Olean High School as an undergraduate, led Daemen to six NCAA tournaments while winning nearly 75% of his games, despite having just five scholarships. He went 18-3 against Div. II NCAA tournament teams this season as Daemen finished 33-2, losing in the Elite Eight of the Division II tournament.
St. Bonaventure is going to pay MacDonald more than half the amount it was paying Schmidt, as the hire is another sign of a new era in college sports. The Bonnies are reallocating those resources to player salaries and revenue share; they are already in the bottom among the lowest NIL and revenue share in the Atlantic 10.
This is part of a trend where a premium is being put on payment to the roster, a transition from a time in college athletics where coaches commanded a huge portion of the program's budget, as players weren't allowed to get paid.
