Loyola-Chicago Announces Tribute To Sister Jean

Key Points:

• Loyola-Chicago will honor longtime men's basketball chaplain Sister Jean with a new uniform feature.
• Sister Jean acted as the Ramblers' chaplain from 1994-2024.
• The California native became an internet sensation when Loyola reached the 2018 Final Four.

Loyola-Chicago and the college basketball community mourned when the Ramblers' longtime chaplain Jean Dolores Schmidt — also known as 'Sister Jean' — died at the age of 106 on Oct. 9.

Sister Jean became synonymous with the Loyola program in recent years, as she first became a viral sensation when the Ramblers manufactured a Cinderella run to the 2018 Final Four. That resulted in the then-98-year-old appearing on "Good Morning America," throwing out the first pitch at a Chicago Cubs game and making plenty of other celebrity cameos.

Through it all, Sister Jean maintained her status as the chaplain for the men's basketball program, as she religiously led the Ramblers' players in a pre-game prayer and was a mainstay at all of their contests.

Ahead of a highly anticipated campaign under fifth-year head coach Drew Valentine, Loyola-Chicago announced that it will be honoring Sister Jean throughout the season with a custom-made patch that will be sewn onto the players' jerseys.

The patch shows a smiling Sister Jean donning the school's trademark striped scarf, with the program's gold and maroon colors prominently featured.