Fred Chmiel praises Dawn Staley as he begins new head coaching job

Fred Chmiel got to spend a lot of time with Dawn Staley in the past two decades. He reflected on that during his introductory press conference Monday as the new coach at Bowling Green State University.

Chmiel, most recently a South Carolina women’s basketball assistant, was formally introduced Monday as BGSU’s 10th women’s basketball coach in school history. It’s his third head coaching job but first on the women’s side.

Chmiel was head coach at Feather River College from 1995-99 and then for six seasons at Lassen College (California).

During Monday’s press conference, Chmiel was asked about Staley and the influence she had on him.

Chmiel coached Staley when he was an assistant and she was a player for the WNBA’s Charlotte Sting. She asked him to join her staff when she coached at Temple, and he first worked with her from 2006-07.

The two reunited in 2015 at South Carolina, where he has been since then.

At USC, Chmiel was part of 11 conference regular-season titles, seven conference tournament titles, 16 NCAA Tournament appearances, including 10 Sweet 16s, and two NCAA titles.

“A relentless determination to be the best. That is who she is,” Chmiel said of Staley. “I think I have got that inside of me and it’s why we were so compatible as coaches and why I worked for her for so long.

“We strived to be perfect, probably not perfect at all, not even close to perfect. But if you strive to do that every single day, every time you step between the lines that is the most important piece.”

Bowling Green State athletic director Derek van der Merwe said he spoke with Staley about Chmiel during the eight-day coaching search and that he is ready for the opportunity.

“When I spoke to Dawn about Fred, she said he has an amazing work ethic, determination, loyalty and relationship with players that is unmatched,” van der Merwe said Monday. “His ability to recruit is phenomenal and he engages people. He had relentless commitment to South Carolina and the program.

“... She said, ‘Derek it is time. He is ready and is proven. He is ready to take over Bowling Green State University.’ ”

Bowling Green State is coming off a 31-7 season and made it to the final four of the Women’s National Invitational Tournament. The Falcons tied a school and conference record for wins in a season.

The school, located in Ohio, competes in the Mid-American Conference in athletics.