DUBUQUE, Iowa – Loras College cross country head coach Bob Schultz announced Friday his intention to retire on Aug. 1, 2024, signifying the end of one of the most illustrious careers in Duhawk history.

"First, I want to thank God for getting my family and I back to Dubuque and Loras College, all glory to Him for that," Schultz said. "I want to thank Loras College for the opportunity to coach Duhawk cross country and track over the past 20 years. I want to thank my wife Jennifer and my boys, Joey, and Justin, for all their sacrifice to allow me to pursue my passion of coaching the sports I love. Finally, I want to thank all my runners and assistant coaches for their hard work to be the best they could be and for giving me so many amazing memories."

"I admire Bob for being able to retire from a tremendous career at a time he can then pivot and start focusing on other areas of his life that make him happy," said Director of Athletics Denise Udelhofen. "He will be able to spend time with family including his beautiful granddaughter."

Though he may be retiring, Schultz doesn't plan on permanently stepping away, as he's set to become a volunteer coach for both the track & field and cross country programs, something that Loras' athletic department is happy to have set in place. "I'm thankful he is not totally leaving Loras and will volunteer in areas that will be beneficial to our department," said Udelhofen.

"While I'm stepping away from full-time coaching at Loras College, I do still plan to stay involved with the program as a volunteer assistant coach and through FCA," Schultz said. "I'm excited about being able to say yes to so many things with my family and my church that I've had to say no to in the past because of my job. I'm just very excited about that kind of freedom. My wife and I are really looking forward to traveling more and being amazing grandparents."

A 1991 graduate of Lewis University in Romeoville, Ill., Schultz was an All-Conference runner in cross country and a varsity member of Lewis' first NCAA Championship Qualifying team in 1988. In high school, Schultz ran for the national powerhouse, York, where he was a varsity member of the 1986 IHSA State Championship team.

Schultz, currently in the midst of his 19^th year at the helm, got his first shot at coaching where his career is coming to a close: Loras. In 1991, following his graduation from Lewis, Schultz came to Dubuque to be a graduate assistant coach for the Duhawks and earn his master's degree in physical education. He coached Loras for three years (1991-94) before heading back to his hometown of Elmhurst, Ill., to coach at Elmhurst College.

At Elmhurst, Schultz headed the cross country and track and field programs for eight years (1994-2002). Under his  leadership, the women's cross country team improved from last in the College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin (CCIW) when Schultz first arrived to CCIW Conference champions and finished seventh at the National Championships in his final season. The men's program showed significant improvement as well, moving up from last in the CCIW to second in that same eight-year period.

Schultz departed Elmhurst in 2002 to take the head coaching job at his alma mater, Lewis University, where he held that post for three years (2002-05). While at Lewis, Schultz guided the Flyers to four Great Lakes Valley Conference titles in track & field and two in cross country, before heading back to Loras to begin his current tenure with the Duhawks.

Upon arriving back at Loras, Schultz started as the program's head coach of track & field and cross country, a title that he held from 2005-13, before handing the reigns of the track and field program to its current head coach, Matt Jones.

Over the past 18 years at Loras, Schultz has received a wide array of honors, including:

• Iowa Intercollegiate Athletics Conference (IIAC) Indoor Track & Field Men's Coach of the Year: 2007
• Central Region Indoor Track & Field Men's Coach if the Year: 2007
• IIAC Men's XC Coach of the Year: 2011, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017
• IIAC Women's XC Coach of the Year: 2013, 2015
• Central Region Men's XC Coach of the Year: 2016, 2017
• Midwest Region Indoor Track & Field & Men's Assistant Coach of the Year: 2022, 2023
• Midwest Region Outdoor Track & Field Women's Assistant Coach of the Year: 2023

On top of the accolades, Schultz also coached Loras great Kassie Parker to three individual titles indoors and out, and a total of 15 All-America honors in track and field. He led the men to the IIAC Indoor Championship in 2007 and two top-ten NCAA Indoor & Outdoor finishes. Schultz also led the women to a fifth place finish in 2007 at the NCAA Outdoor Championships. Loras Track & Field had a combined 60 All-Americans in men's and women's indoor and outdoor track and field, including three NCAA Division III National Champions with Schultz as head coach. 

In cross country, he led Loras' women's team to their first conference title in program history in 2015.  He also coached Parker to two cross country National Championships, three outdoor track and field National Championships and two Indoor track & field National Championships. Parker's 2021 national championship was the the first in Loras women's cross country history, which she repeated in 2022. He also coached Parker to three All-time NCAA Division III records in the indoor 5k (15:58.58), the outdoor 5k (15:37.00), and the 10k (32:36.22). 

On the men's side, Schultz coached the Duhawks to five conference titles including four in a row from 2014 to 2017.  Loras' men also won their first-ever NCAA Regional Championships in 2016 and 2017.  Finally, Schultz led the men to their highest finish in program history at the National Championships with a ninth place finish in 2017.

"While it was an absolute thrill to help kids win championships, run PR's, reach goals, and shatter records, even more so, I hope that all of them are better people for having come through this program and that they have some very fond memories of their time as Duhawk student-athletes," said Schultz.

Ethan Adlfinger, who has been an assistant coach to Schultz's cross country and Matt Jones' track and field program since 2019, will be promoted to the head coach of cross country. "Ethan has big shoes to fill but he is energetic, his runners respect him, and few will outwork him, especially in recruiting," Udelhofen said. "He has a passion for cross country and distance running and I look forward to seeing how he continues to move our cross programs forward while contributing to our athletic department as a staff member."

WHAT THEY'RE SAYING ABOUT BOB SCHULTZ

"While he was the most successful cross country coach at Loras in terms of post season accolades, I think what stands out the most is how he was a role model, mentor, and supporter for all his student-athletes.  He made sure his teams had a good student-athlete experience, which is valuable as they transition to life after Loras."
Director of Athletics Denise Udelhofen

"The things that I will forever hold with me as a coach is the consistency of the way Bob went about his job. He was very robotic in a sense. He had a way that he liked to do things and he did them year after year, and it worked for him. So, the lesson that I will hold onto is to do what I think is best for the program to maintain a certain level of success in the classroom, on the track, and in recruiting. I'm very thankful for Bob, and he will be missed. I know he impacted a lot of young people's lives in his career and a lot of them will be saddened to hear someone they looked up to is walking away from the job. 18 years is a long time to spend with someone and it's going to be weird, not having him around. Best of luck to you, Bob!"
Track & Field Head Coach Matt Jones

"As I've gotten to know Bob over the last five and a half years, he has become family to me. He's also taught me most of what I know about running! Bob was a coach who believed in me even when I didn't' believe in myself at times. If I told him a goal I wanted to reach, personally or athletically, he always knew I would achieve it. Bob will always mean something to the Loras Cross Country and Track & Field programs, personally and historically! He enjoyed coaching his athletes, as it never seemed like a chore to him. He came in daily and was always positive for us, which says a lot about his character. I'm happy he will get to spend more time with his family and will get to keep up with the cross country and track & field programs!"
Former Loras XC/T&F Runner Kassie Parker