Penn State women's volleyball coach Russ Rose retired Thursday after 43 years with the Nittany Lions' program and 1,330 career wins -- the most in NCAA Division I history.
Rose led Penn State to seven NCAA titles -- including four straight from 2007 to 2010 -- and 41 NCAA tournament appearances. He won more than 85% of his matches, won at least 30 matches in a season 28 times, and coached four national players of the year and 112 All-Americans. His 2008 and 2009 teams went undefeated in back-to-back seasons as part of a 109-match win streak.
Rose, 68, will have an advisory role in the Penn State athletic department.
"While I have decided to step into retirement, it has been my pleasure to serve as the head coach of the Penn State women's volleyball program over the last 43 seasons," Rose said in a statement. "My time here has provided my family and me many memories and relationships that we will carry with us. I would like to thank the many players, managers and support staff for their dedication, in addition to all of the assistants who helped shape the culture and success of the program."
Rose's teams won 106 NCAA tournament matches -- the most of any team since the organization started sponsoring the sport in 1981. His teams never won fewer than 21 matches in a season.
"He is one of the greatest coaches of all time because everything he did, he did it his way and never deviated from it," said Oregon State coach Terry Liskevych, who also coached the U.S. women's national team. "He has been invaluable to the sport of volleyball and a coach every coach can learn from. Penn State volleyball under Russ was a program everyone wanted to emulate, and he leaves a legacy that goes beyond the court. Russ will go down as one of the greatest coaches of all time in any sport."
ESPN volleyball analyst Paul Sunderland added: "Russ was truly unique in so many ways. His success was unmatched over more than four decades with seven championships and at one point, an almost unthinkable four in a row. A truly remarkable run and just think of the hundreds if not thousands of lives he touched."
Rose is also a sought-out clinician and has a long tree of former assistants who have gone on to lead top programs.
"We send our heartfelt congratulations to Russ Rose on a phenomenal career at Penn State, and decades of tremendous impact on students, staff and community," Penn State athletic director Sandy Barbour said. "He has been a mainstay of our community for more than four decades and will long be remembered for raising the profile of women's volleyball, not just at Penn State but nationally."
Assistant coach Katie Schumacher-Cawley will serve as interim head coach. Penn State said it will conduct a nationwide search to replace Rose.