Ed DeChellis (born November 14, 1958, Monaca, Pennsylvania) was a veteran American college basketball coach and educator. After earning his bachelor’s degree in secondary education at Penn State University (1982), he began his coaching career at his alma mater as a graduate assistant.
He served as an assistant coach at Penn State and Salem University before earning his first head-coaching opportunity in 1996 at East Tennessee State University (ETSU). There, he turned around a struggling program, leading the Buccaneers to three conference division titles and an NCAA Tournament berth in 2003.
In 2003, he returned to Penn State as head coach of the men’s basketball team. Under his leadership, the team achieved a school-record 27 wins in 2008-09 and captured the 2009 National Invitation Tournament (NIT) championship — the first national post-season title in the program’s history.
In 2011, DeChellis became the head coach of the United States Naval Academy men’s basketball program, where he served for 14 years until his retirement in March 2025. At Navy, he guided the Midshipmen to multiple 20-win seasons, earned two Patriot League Coach of the Year honors, and became the school’s all-time leader in games coached.
Throughout his career, DeChellis has been known for emphasizing character development, academic achievement, and cultural-turnaround in his teams. His sustained success across multiple institutions underscores his reputation as a committed and adaptable leader in college athletics.
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Quick Facts:
East Tennessee State 1996-2003
2001 Southern Conference Coach of the Year
2002 Southern Conference Coach of the Year
2003 Southern Conference Champions/ Reached the NCAA tournament
Penn State 2003-2011
2006 NIT tournament
2006 National Coaches vs. Cancer Man of the Year
2009 Big Ten Coach of the Year
2009 NIT Champions
2009 School Record of 27 Wins
2011 Reached the NCAA tournament
Naval Academy 2011-2025
“When I did my interview at Navy, Vice Admiral Miller was the Superintendent at the time, and he said, ‘Coach, I want you to recruit very good basketball players who can help us get to the NCAA Tournament. But at the end of the day, you have to recruit young men who are going to be officers in the most powerful military force in the world and we take that very seriously here at the Naval Academy.’ And that really hit home with me and I knew I wanted to be a part of it.”
- Head coach Ed DeChellis
2014 Created the Veterans Classic played annually to pay tribute to our nations veterans
Hosted teams such as : Michigan State, University of North Carolina, Ohio State, Temple, Memphis, University of Maryland, Virginia Tech, Davidson, Marquette, Houston, and Princeton.
2021 Patriot League Coach of the Year
2022 Patriot League Coach of the Year
