Sister Jean Dolores Smith, the longtime chaplain for the Loyola-Chicago men’s basketball team who gained notoriety during the Ramblers’ 2018 NCAA Tournament run, died Thursday evening, according to the university. She was 106 years old.
Sister Jean, born as Dolores Bertha Schmidt on Aug. 21, 1919, in San Francisco, first moved to the Chicago area in 1961. She taught at Mundelein College — a private Catholic women’s institution — for 3 decades before it became affiliated with Loyola-Chicago. In 1994, she became an academic advisor for the men’s basketball team. She eventually transitioned to team chaplain, a role she held until stepping down in Aug. 2025 due to health issues.
“In many roles at Loyola over the course of more than 60 years, Sister Jean was an invaluable source of wisdom and grace for generations of students, faculty, and staff,” Loyola President Mark C. Reed said in a press release announcing the news. “While we feel grief and a sense of loss, there is great joy in her legacy. Her presence was a profound blessing for our entire community and her spirit abides in thousands of lives. In her honor, we can aspire to share with others the love and compassion Sister Jean shared with us.”
Sister Jean was there every step of the way for Loyola-Chicago’s historic NCAA Tournament appearance in 2018. The Ramblers reached the Final Four as a No. 11 seed on the back of some tremendous final-minute victories in the first round, second round, and Sweet 16 before blasting Kansas State 78-62 in the Elite Eight.
People from all walks of life took to social media to mourn Sister Jean after hearing the news. Even former United States President Barack Obama commented on her passing, saying March Madness “won’t be the same.”
