The Loyola-Chicago men’s basketball team is head back to the NCAA Tournament, and so is Sister Jean. On Tuesday, the school confirmed that Sister Jean Dolores Schmidt, the 101-year-old chaplain for the basketball team, would attend the first-round game Friday against Georgia Tech. The Ramblers earned the No. 8 seed in the tournament after winning the Missouri Valley Conference Championship.
Sister Jean became a big star when Loyola-Chicago reached the Final Four in 2018. However, she hasn’t been able to attend any games since the COVID-19 pandemic began last year. This past season, Sister Jean delivered her prayers to the team virtually while staying in a senior independent living apartment in Chicago.
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Despite being with the team on Friday, Sister Jean will not directly contact the players. While in Indianapolis, Sister Jean will have a nurse and security to help escort her from the hotel in Indianapolis to the game.
“What they wanted to do was be sure that all the safety factors were taken into consideration,” Sister Jean said Tuesday during a videoconference with reporters, per ESPN. “Sometimes people who haven’t gone to the games or to the NCAA or even to March Madness, they’re not sure exactly what goes on there. Sometimes they think it’s like a teenage concert, where everybody’s going to surround me and might not have any breathing space.”
Sister Jean went on to say that she lobbied for weeks to attended the tournament before getting clearance. “I had other offers from people at the university,” she said. “One alum wrote and told me that her husband was willing to drive me down. Another person told me she was going to sneak me out of the university, and another couple said they would like to kidnap me, and Loyola would have to search for me.”
Loyola-Chicago’s Final Four appearance in 2018 was surprising; it was the first time since 1963 they advanced that far in the tournament. In the national semifinal matchup, the Ramblers lost to Michigan 69-57. Michigan would go on to lose to Villanova in the national championship game.
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