Trending in the right direction: Drew Valentine sets the sky as the limit
Chicago — Loyola University Chicago Ramblers’ first-year head coach Drew Valentine started out his first season with high expectations, inheriting an already successful program. Valentine and the Ramblers season has mostly shined in a much anticipated first-year for the 30-year-old coach. His early success could be the result of the fact that he was Porter Moser’s assistant for four seasons. Eventually becoming Moser’s successor, Valentine is taking advantage of the foundation that was already built before Moser took the head coaching job at Oklahoma.
Although Valentine’s success is not a surprise, there are a few key reasons why his offense is clicking on all cylinders. The most noticeable adjustment in the Ramblers offense is his emphasis on the perimeter, both from a production standpoint to shot selection. Making smarter decisions with the basketball and less dribbling, his philosophy has installed a more fluid offensive approach.
Furthermore, the Ramblers are shooting three-point shots at a much higher rate than last season, allowing their offense to put up some high scoring wins early in the season. Besides a couple single digit losses, the Ramblers are gearing up for a huge season, leaving the Missouri Valley Conference behind at the end of the 2021-22 season. The Atlantic 10 Conference will be the next chapter in a story not finished yet. Bigger games with higher expectation are on the horizon for Loyola University Chicago.
Coach Valentine expects the best out of every single player and coach. He talks about getting better every day and how important it is to him and his players to hold each other accountable. But no one holds themselves more accountable than the first-year head coach. Becoming complacent or making excuses isn’t his style, in fact there is no critic harsher on him than himself.
“I can be better at scouting, coaching my staff, communicating with players, offensive sets, going 2-for-1, calling a timeout, communicating with recruits,” he said. “So many areas, but that’s what I’m feeling really optimistic about, because we’re having success already. But not great success because we lost two games in the Bahamas.”
The Ramblers did bounce back from those losses with an 18- point win against Arizona State, just an example of the grit and fight in this team. Adversity is nothing new to Coach Valentine, winning or having the ability to not only scheme creativity in his offense, but he is an underrated defensive mind. Let’s not forget Valentine drew up the defensive sets used in their 2018 run, as well as last year’s tournament berth.
With plenty of the 2021-22 season remaining anything is possible, but expect the Ramblers to become more efficient and consistent, and with back-to-back losses behind them, Coach Valentine strives to be more than just a coach’s replacement. As good as his predecessor was, he aims to be better, setting a bar for himself only he can reach.
After a big win against DePaul, Loyola University Chicago has now won its last eight out of 10 games and has a 1-0 start in the Missouri Valley Conference, proving to be the powerhouse school coming out of Chicago. A first-year coach with first-year success is the just the beginning for the Ramblers, just a sample size of the attainments that can be achieved.
Joining the Atlantic 10 and remaining dominant will be a challenge with plenty of adversity, possibly opening up some huge opportunities. Coach Valentine is trending in the right direction and the Ramblers are developing a culture with a market that only heightens their notoriety and recruiting prowess.
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