Loras College Athletics

Dylan Ross returned to his alma mater and the men's volleyball program that he helped start back in 2014. He began as the head coach for the Duhawks prior to the 2021 season.

In 2023, Ross again had his Loras program near the top of the CCIW standings while the Duhawks were twice ranked inside the Top-15 of the American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA) rankings. Loras finished the year 18-6 with five of the six losses coming to ranked opponents. Loras knocked on the door of two big upsets during the year as it fell in five sets to No. 10 and eventual national runner-up North Central College in the regular season, and fell in five sets to No. 9 Carthage College, the two-time defending national champion, in the first round of the CCIW Tournament. Five Duhawks earned CCIW All-Conference honors, led by the Defensive Student-Athlete of the Year in Patrick Mahoney. Mahoney,  hitter Corey Mayotte, and setter Joe Horn were each AVCA All-Region and AVCA All-America selections at season's end. 

During the 2022 season, Ross turned the Duhawks into a regional powerhouse and a championship-level program, tying the single-season wins record with 21 on the season. In his second year at the helm, Ross led the Duhawks to enormous victories over nationally-recognized programs in 2021 National Runner-Ups in Benedictine University, Fontbonne University and North Central College. The Duhawks were consistently in the AVCA national rankings throughout the season, making their first-ever appearance on the poll at No. 15 on Feb. 22 while maintaining a national ranking in the FrogJumpVolleyball.com rankings, reaching as high as No. 12. Ross helped the Duhawks grab four all-conference honors after a breakout season while leading freshman Corey Mayotte to the FrogJumpVolleyball.com All-Freshman team and CCIW Newcomer of the Year. 

In his first season with the Duhawks, Ross helped the team navigate the COVID-19 pandemic and post a record of 9-5. The team concluded the season with a thrilling 3-0 sweep against then-ranked No. 10 North Central College. Loras secured their highest regular season finish in program history as the No. 2 seed heading into the conference tournament but saw the season end due to health and safety concerns. The Duhawks secured a CCIW leading 4 All-Conference selections, as well as program first All-Region and All-American honorees.

He holds an impressive resume as a student-athlete at Loras, playing on the inaugural team in 2015 and ending his career with single season and career kills records. He was a 2018 Second Team All-Midwest Collegiate Volleyball League (MCVL) performer after leading the conference in kills and helping the Duhawks to the MCVL championship match. He tallied 236 kills in 2018, ranking second all-time, and his 767 career kills is the program record. Ross still stands as the program’s leading point scorer with 921 points and ranks second with 54 career service aces.

Prior to Bradley, Ross spent the 2018 season as a graduate assistant coach at Arkansas State University, helping the Red Wolves to a 19-14 record. He then went on to the University of Houston and helped the team to 10-6 conference record after a 4-14 record the previous season. The team finished one game shy of a tie for the conference title and the Cougars’ coaching staff earned conference honors for the season.

Ross graduated from Loras in 2018 with a degree in sport management and a minor in business and mathematics. He holds a master's degree in sports administration from Arkansas State University which he completed in 2019.