Cleveland State University is turning back to a familiar face to lead its women's basketball program, announcing Monday that Bob Dunn will be the Vikings' next head coach. The hire is not quite official yet, with the university noting that the appointment remains contingent on a completed background check and approval from the board of trustees.
Dunn is no stranger to Cleveland. He previously worked on the Vikings' staff, carving out a niche as a recruiter and as the in-house specialist on video and analytics. Now he returns to run the whole operation, stepping into the job vacated when Chris Kielsmeier left in late March to become the head coach at Texas State, a move confirmed by Texas State Athletics.
Cleveland State's decision to elevate Dunn and the basic terms of the agreement, including the pending background check and trustee sign-off, were first detailed by WKYC.
What Dunn Brings To The Vikings
Dunn started his climb in college basketball at Dayton, where he worked first as a student manager and then as a graduate assistant. He later held staff roles at George Mason and Wagner before moving into a video coordinator position at Kentucky, a stretch that helped build his reputation as a detailed scout and film-room grinder.
From there, he joined Cleveland State's staff for multiple seasons. According to the university's official bio and Cleveland State, he handled a mix of scouting, recruiting and offensive development responsibilities during his previous stint with the program.
After working at Miami in 2023-24, Dunn moved to Penn State for the 2025-26 season, a hire the Big Ten program announced in June 2025. Supporters of the move point to those high-major stops, along with his analytics and opponent-scouting work at Miami, as part of the resume that suggests he is ready to run his own program.
Program Momentum And Expectations
Dunn takes over a team that has already tasted some of the best seasons in school history during the years he was on staff. Cleveland State went 30-5 in 2022-23, a program record reflected in the numbers compiled by Sports Reference. The Vikings then pushed their postseason profile further by reaching the WNIT Fab 4 in 2025, a run chronicled in Cleveland State's own recap of the tournament.
That recent on-court success has naturally raised expectations that Cleveland State will remain a factor in the postseason hierarchy. Director of Athletics Kelsie Gory Harkey has publicly backed the hire, and Kielsmeier has said he is proud to see his former assistant get a chance to lead a program of his own. Dunn told WKYC he is “honored and grateful” for the opportunity.
For now, the only thing standing between Dunn and his first official day is paperwork. Once the background check is completed and the board of trustees signs off, he will formally assume the role and dive into the less glamorous side of taking over a program: roster management, offseason recruiting and rounding out his staff ahead of the coming season.
