FLINT, Mich, Aug. 15, 2023 – Mott Community College (MCC) Men’s Basketball Coach Steve Schmidt was inducted into the Lansing Sports Hall of Fame Aug.10 at the Lansing Center.
Schmidt has led the Mott Bears to 796 wins and four national championships over the past 32 years. His success earned him a spot in the 2023 class of the Greater Lansing Sports Hall of Fame in his hometown. It is an honor that Schmidt takes to heart.
“I think it’s pretty special to be honest. Lansing is where I spent the first 25 years of my life,” Schmidt said. “The city, the people, the coaches and friends I had made a huge impact on my life. I’m in some other halls of fame, but this one is special and I can’t tell you how excited I am to be coming home and being part of this.”
Schmidt is already a member of the Greater Flint Area Sports Hall of Fame. And the gymnasium in Ballenger Field House at MCC was named after him in 2009.
Schmidt’s path from after his playing career at Waverly High School took many turns. He played at the junior-college level in California, then returned to play Division 1 basketball at Central Michigan and graduated in 1986. He then took an interesting professional route, touring around the world with the Washington Generals — the competition for the Harlem Globetrotters.
When his playing days were over, his path led him back to the junior-college ranks, where he started as an assistant with Lansing Community College, and then accepted the head coaching job at MCC in 1991.
Schmidt got MCC to the NJCAA tournament for the first time in 2001, and they earned their first title in 2003. Schmidt led the Bruins to back-to-back championships in 2007 and 2008 and then added another crown in 2012. MCC has also been the national runner-up three times during his tenure. Schmidt now ranks 15th on the all-time NJCAA wins list.
