After a 41-year coaching career, including 13 spent as the head coach for the Texas A&M-Corpus Christi women’s basketball program, Royce Chadwick announced Wednesday he will be retiring.
Chadwick came to the Island as the fourth head women’s basketball coach in A&M-Corpus Christi history on April 11, 2012. The Floydada, Texas, native crafted a strong career record of 561-301 (.650) prior to accepting his current position with the Island University, making stops at Marshall, Stephen F. Austin, Sam Houston State, Oklahoma Panhandle State and Howard Junior College.
“Coach Chadwick has been the heart of our women’s basketball program for the past 13 years,” said Vice President for Student Engagement and Success & Intercollegiate Athletics Adrian Rodriguez. “His leadership, dedication, and relentless commitment to our student-athletes have set a standard of excellence that will resonate for years to come. Under his guidance, the program not only reached historic heights but also created a lasting culture of perseverance, integrity, and teamwork. From securing our first-ever conference titles to leading us to multiple postseason appearances, and a first-ever trip to March Madness, Coach Chadwick’s influence was nothing short of transformative. But what truly set him apart is the way he fostered both athletic and personal growth in his players. While we will miss his presence at Island U, the foundation he has built will continue to inspire future generations of players and coaches. We wish him well in his retirement, and we look forward to seeing Islanders Athletics and our women’s basketball team continue to prosper due to Coach Chadwick’s long-lasting impact.”
“Coach Chadwick’s legacy extends far beyond victories and championships,” said Dr. Kelly Miller, CEO and President of Texas A&M University-Corpus Christi. “Over the past 13 years, he has led our women’s basketball program to historic achievements, including breaking long-standing records, earning national recognition, and elevating the program to unprecedented levels of success. His ability to balance the pursuit of excellence with a deep, genuine care for his players is a testament to his character and leadership. Coach Chadwick has not only built a championship-caliber program but also a community of alumnae who carry forward values of hard work, resilience, and dedication as his unwavering commitment to developing student-athletes has made a lasting impact on our university. We are grateful for the tremendous contributions he has made to our community, and we wish him all the best as he begins this new chapter. His influence will always be felt within our university, as he truly set a standard for success both on and off the court.”
The winningest coach in Southland Conference history, Chadwick topped the league’s record book with 211 career conference wins following the regular season finale in 2021-22. He surpassed James Smith’s mark of 210 from 1987-04 at Northwestern State. Chadwick’s career SLC record is 250-125 including 13 wins at Sam Houston, 111 at Stephen F. Austin and finishes with 126 at A&M-Corpus Christi.
Chadwick also reached the 750-win total in his career in 2023-24 and retires after hoisting a 765-485 final career record. 202 of those wins have come leading the Islanders, making him the first Islanders basketball coach – men’s or women’s – to reach the milestone on the Island.
In his 41 years at the Division I level, Chadwick has made eight NCAA Tournament appearances including most recently in 2023-24 when he made his return to the Big Dance after leading the Islanders to their first-ever Southland Conference Tournament championship with a 68-61 win over Lamar. It marked the program’s first trip to the NCAAs, but Chadwick’s eighth after guiding SFA to the postseason seven times. He is the last coach to guide a Southland Conference team to a win in the NCAA Tournament after leading No. 11 SFA to a 73-72 victory over No. 6 Xavier in Baton Rouge, La. in 2000.
It also marked the third championship in five years for the Islanders, all coming under Chadwick’s direction, after the program won its second regular season championship in 2022-23 with a 14-4 SLC record. It led the team to its first postseason appearance since 2005 as the Islanders earned the league’s automatic bid to the WNIT at Wyoming.
Between the 2022-23 and 2023-24 seasons, it was the first time the program ever had back-to-back championship seasons or made a postseason tournament appearance in consecutive years.
Chadwick coached the 2022-23 SLC Player of the Year in Alecia Westbrook, who also repeated at the league’s Defensive Player of the Year that season. It marked the first time in program history that an Islander was named Player of the Year, as well as the first time a player repeated a superlative.
Chadwick coached two SLC Defensive Player of the Years in three seasons after Alexes Bryant also won in 2019-20.
The 2019-20 season proved to best in program history for A&M-Corpus Christi, as the Blue and Green finished the regular season with a 23-7 overall record and a program best 17-3 mark in SLC play. The Islanders claimed their first regular season conference title in program history and earned the No. 1 seed in the Southland Conference tournament in Katy, Texas. A&M-Corpus Christi did not get the opportunity to compete for an NCAA Tournament bid after the SLC Tournament was canceled due to COVID-19.
Chadwick was named the 2019-20 SLC Coach of the Year for the second time with the Islanders following his 2013-14 selection. Chadwick became the first coach in program history to win 100 games on the Island, as he collected his 100th win against UTRGV on Nov. 23, 2019.
After the Islanders won the 2020 regular season SLC Championship, Chadwick became the only women’s basketball coach in conference history to win a regular season championship at two SLC different institutions.
On Nov. 18, 2015, Chadwick became the 44th coach in women’s college basketball history to reach 600 career wins, topping Rice 60-55 at the Dugan Wellness Center. In his first three seasons at Texas A&M-Corpus Christi, Chadwick output a 38-51 record, including an 18-win season in 2013-14. The Islander head coach picked up his second Southland Conference Coach of the Year honor (first came during tenure at Stephen F. Austin) and set the record for longest duration between awards.
Much of Chadwick’s success came at Southland foe Stephen F. Austin, where he led the Ladyjacks for seven seasons. Throughout his tenure at SFA, the team went 173-44 (.797) and advanced to the NCAA Tournament each season. The 1996 team reached the Sweet Sixteen, and Chadwick was named the Southland Coach of the Year one season later in 1997.
On his career, Chadwick owns a 4-8 NCAA Tournament mark with six of those losses coming to top four seeds and all of them to programs seeded eighth or better. Throughout his time in Nacogdoches, Texas, he secured the Southland Conference Tournament title six times and compiled a sparkling 111-13 (.894) mark in league play. Further, Chadwick’s teams won five Southland regular-season championships.
Chadwick led Marshall to seven winning seasons during his time in West Virginia, the most of any coach in program history. He compiled 161 victories for the Thundering Herd, including a 19-win season in 2004-05 that saw the team go 12-4 in Mid-American Conference play and win the MAC East for the first time in school history. From his third year at Marshall on, Chadwick managed 14 wins or more every season with the exception of one (when his team was decimated by injuries).
He also played a major role in the upswing of attendance at Marshall games. Chadwick saw a school-record 7,017 fans come through the turnstiles for a matchup with SEC foe Kentucky in 2004, marking the fourth consecutive season that the Herd had the highest-attended game in the conference. In his first season at Marshall, the team saw a 251 percent increase in attendance.
His first collegiate head coaching assignment came with Panhandle (Okla.) State, where he led his Aggie teams to 19 and 20 wins, respectively, across two seasons. At Sam Houston State, his next stop, Chadwick guided a school that had never posted a winning season to an 18-9 mark during the 1987-88 campaign, just one year removed from a 9-18 season.
In his five seasons at Howard Junior College, Chadwick compiled a record of 148-21, won four Western Conference titles, advanced to the NJCAA Tournament twice and was named National Coach of the Year in 1992. A multifaceted talent, Chadwick also served as Howard’s athletic director. In 1983, Chadwick broke into the coaching ranks at Olton High School in Texas where he led the Mustangs to a 21-5 record and their first district championship in nine years.
“Words cannot describe the feelings I have for this place and all the people,” said Chadwick. “This is home to me and Islanders are my family. We have had a great run, and I am so proud of all our accomplishments. I am truly grateful for the wonderful years and great teams we had together. Thank you from the bottom of my heart to every administrator, fan, staff worker, assistant coach and especially every player for giving their heart to our team.”
Associate Head Coach Roxanne White will serve as interim head coach while Islanders Athletics conducts a national search for the next Head Women’s Basketball Coach.
