Chuck Winkelman is in his third year as head women's basketball coach at Calvin College.
In his first year at the helm of the Knights, Winkelman led Calvin to a 22-6 overall record, a berth in the MIAA Tournament Championship game and a trip to the 2017 NCAA Division III Tournament. The NCAA Division III Tournament appearance was the 18th in program history.
Winkelman picked up his 300th collegiate victory while at Calvin in February of 2017 with a 67-65 victory over rival Hope in the MIAA Tournament Semifinals.
Winkelman arrived at Calvin in 2016 after spending the previous six years as head women's basketball coach at Millsaps College in Mississippi.
"One of the things that drew me to Calvin is that the school is an intentionally Christian college that places a high value on academic excellence," said Winkelman. "From an athletics standpoint, I think that Calvin is a place where we can pursue the ultimate prize in competing for national championships in women's basketball. It's a place that is close to my Midwest roots and upbringing, a culture that I am very comfortable with. My family and I are embracing this new adventure together. We are looking forward to becoming part of the Calvin community and the greater Grand Rapids community in the days ahead."
A native of St. Cloud, Minnesota, Winkelman has 17 years of head collegiate basketball coaching experience with him to Calvin with a combined career won-loss record of 316-131 for a winning percentage of .707.
Winkelman began his collegiate coaching career at Division III Hendrix College in Conway, Arkansas. In nine years at Hendrix, Winkelman compiled a won-loss record of 168-66 that included three Southern Collegiate Athletic Conference titles and three appearances in the NCAA III Tournament. He was named the Division III South Region Coach of the Year in 1997. He then spent four years teaching and coaching at Pulaski Academy in Little Rock, Arkansas, and followed with two years as a teacher and coach at Little Rock Christian Academy.
He returned to collegiate coaching in May of 2010 when he was hired as the head women's basketball coach at Millsaps College. In six years at Millsaps, he compiled a won-loss record of 110-53 that included three Southern Athletic Association regular-season titles. In his first year at Millsaps, he led the Majors to a 12-13 record, one year after the school had posted a 1-24 mark. For his efforts, he was named the 2011 co-Southern Collegiate Athletic Conference Coach of the Year along with DePauw University head coach Kris Huffman. The award came prior to DePauw leaving the SCAC and the league's renaming to the SAA. In 2012, he was named the D3hoops.com South Region Coach of the Year after leading Millsaps to a 22-6 record and an appearance in the SAA Tournament Championship game. In 2015, he was named the Southern Athletic Association Coach of the Year.
Collectively as a head women's basketball coach at Hendrix and Millsaps, Winkelman has coached three Division III All-Americans.
Winkelman received his Bachelor of Arts degree in Kinesiology from Hamline University (St. Paul, MN) and later received a Master of Science degree in Kinesiology with an emphasis in Sports Administration from the University of North Texas (Denton, TX). At Hamline, Winkelman was a varsity letter winner in football and was a member of the men's varsity basketball program in different capacities as a student-athlete and student-coach.
During the summer of 2015, Winkelman attended the Center for Coaching Excellence (by invitation only), an initiative supported by the WBCA and the NCAA, along with 35 other head coaches from around the country serving at all levels of college basketball. Winkelman is also an Impact Player Development Specialist, completing the necessary courses of study during the summer of 2015.
Winkelman and his wife Denise have three daughters, Callie, Addie, and Millie.
