SAN FRANCISCO – Entering his 33rd-year as a collegiate coach, Academy of Art's head baseball coach Dan McDermott will be honored with inductions into two Halls of Fame over the next month. The first induction will take place on January 13 into the Colorado Dugout Club (acceptance speech above, courtesy of Jerry Howard, Biokats Sports Network). The organization is run by high school and college coaches in Colorado, helping promote, recognize, and facilitate the sport of baseball in the state. McDermott kicked off his full-time coaching career in his home state at Wheat Ridge High School. There, he spent two years serving as both the head baseball and softball coach. In addition to the impact he had with the baseball team, McDermott was also one of the pioneers of high school softball in Colorado: he coached the first two years in which the program was offered in the state, helping mold the program to what it is today.
 
McDermott will also be honored on February 3 with an induction ceremony into the Briar Cliff College Hall of Fame in Sioux City, Iowa. He spent nine seasons with the Chargers where he compiled a 345-181 record while earning six league titles. His teams were nationally ranked for seven-consecutive seasons during that time, and seven of his student-athletes were selected in the Major League Baseball Draft.
 
After serving as the pitching coach for the Sioux City Explorers (a professional, independent league team) over the next four seasons, McDermott's Colorado coaching lore continued when he was hired as the head coach at Regis University, which is based in Denver. Dan spent 13 years with the Rangers, winning a total of 333 games, reaching nine Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference post-season tournaments, and earning an NCAA Championship berth in 2012. During his tenure, Regis was nationally ranked three times and he left the program in 2014 as the school's most winningest baseball coach.
 
"I am really looking forward to returning to both Denver and Sioux City for the ceremonies over the next few weeks," said McDermott. "Both are tremendous baseball communities that were very good to both me and my family."
 
The Wheatridge, Colo. native is about to embark upon his fourth season at the helm of the Urban Knights' baseball program and he already owns more wins than any other coach in the program's 10-year history. Last season, McDermott led the team to its most successful season to date with an overall record of 20-30 and a 16-20 conference mark, good for a sixth-place tie in the PacWest Conference. On May 7, 2016, Dan received his 700th-win as a head coach when his team earned a doubleheader sweep over Holy Names. McDermott's overall coaching record now stands at 721-581.
 
"For as long as I can remember, baseball has always been a great passion of mine," said McDermott. "My father passed down his love for the sport and it has always been a part of my life. Both Briar Cliff University and Regis University exemplified what intercollegiate sports can provide for both the student-athlete and the academic community as a whole. The experiences that those universities provided has been beneficial in my efforts at Academy of Art University."