Steven McRoberts was named Missouri State’s fourth head volleyball coach on Jan. 30, 2020.
In five seasons with Missouri State, McRoberts owns a 70-76 overall record while producing 10 all-Missouri Valley Conference players, including four first-team selections, 11 MVC Scholar-Athlete selections and 12 College Sports Communicators Academic All-District members.
In 2024, Missouri State was one of the top statistical defenses in the nation once again, ending the year ranked fourth in total digs and 13th in average. The Bears continued their classroom success with a pair of MVC Scholar-Athletes and four CSC Academic All-District honorees, and the freshman class made an immediate impact with outside hitters Rilynn Finley and Aniya Joseph each putting up historic numbers in their debut seasons.
The 2023 Bears improved as the season progressed, finishing 16-16 overall after posting a 6-3 record in the back half of the MVC schedule and winning a first-round conference tournament match. MoState placed Maddy Bushnell and Azyah Green on the all-MVC Second Team and Breanah Rives on the Freshman Team, with four Bears earning both MVC Scholar-Athlete and CSC Academic All-District honors. Green ended her career as one of the most prolific blockers in league history, and Teagan Polcovich ranked in the top 20 nationally in total digs, helping Missouri State rank 11th as a team in that category, their third top-32 finish in four seasons.
In 2022, the Bears ranked in the top 40 nationally in total aces and total digs and were heavily recognized for their work in the classroom, placing four student-athletes on the College Sports Communicators Academic All-District team, two on MVC Scholar-Athlete teams, with senior Manuela Ibarguen collecting both awards in addition to a first-team all-MVC selection.
The 2021 Bears went 17-13, posted the program’s best non-conference record since 2007 with a 9-3 mark, and finished the home schedule with an identical 9-3 record for a 23rd consecutive winning season at Hammons Student Center. Amelia Flynn was a first-team all-Valley pick for the second straight year, while Maddy Bushnell made the league’s all-Freshman Team with a conference-best .343 attack efficiency.
Year one under McRoberts saw the Bears exceed expectations and go 15-7 overall while tying for second in the Missouri Valley Conference standings at 11-5. Outside hitters Brooklyn Cink and Amelia Flynn both earned first-team all-MVC honors and finished in the top-21 nationally in total kills and points. Cink was also ranked 14th in total aces and MSU was sixth as a team with 148, averaging 1.61 per set for the program’s highest figure since 1995 with seven matches in double figures. Additionally, the Bears rated among the national leaders in total digs (10th), assists (22nd), blocks (24th) and kills (26th).
In 28 years as a collegiate head coach, including 20 at the Division I level, McRoberts owns a 657-321 (.672) overall record with 23 winning seasons and 19 years with 20 or more victories. He enters the 2025 season ranked ninth among active Division I coaches in total victories.
A 10-time conference coach of the year, McRoberts’ teams have won a combined 13 conference regular season, tournament, and national postseason tournament titles. He has mentored a total of 20 All-Americans, 76 all-conference players, 11 conference players of the year, 12 Academic All-Americans, and 29 total specialty award winners at the conference level.
McRoberts came to Missouri State after a six-year tenure at the University of Mississippi, where he posted a 111-82 record and guided the Rebels to the 2017 National Invitational Volleyball Championship title, the first postseason national championship for any program in the school’s history.
He guided Ole Miss to three 22-win seasons, the most wins during the rally scoring era, had a pair of school-record 14-match winning streaks, and received AVCA Top 25 votes in 2019 for the first time in 12 years. Additionally, the Rebels’ four consecutive winning seasons from 2014-17 marked a first for the program in three decades.
Prior to his time in Oxford, McRoberts led Tulsa to a 78-24 record, two NCAA Tournaments, two Conference USA regular season titles and a CUSA Tournament championship in three seasons. He coached five All-America selections at TU, including the NCAA's career leader in kills during the 25-point scoring era, and the school's all-time digs leader.
McRoberts was the Conference USA and AVCA Midwest Region Coach of the Year in 2011 as the Golden Hurricane won 28 matches and advanced to the second round of the NCAA Tournament. Tulsa won its second straight CUSA regular season crown and added a tournament title the following year for another NCAA bid, and led the NCAA in digs per set with a final RPI of 37 in his third and final season.
As the head coach at Central Arkansas from 2005-10, McRoberts posted a 146-58 overall record and built the Sugar Bears into a Southland Conference power, finishing his stay with back-to-back SLC regular season titles. That began a four-year stretch, extending into his time at Tulsa, where his teams combined for a 109-25 overall record and 63-5 conference mark.
The Southland Coach of the Year in 2008, 2009 and 2010, McRoberts tutored the SLC Player and Setter of the Year those same three seasons, adding four league freshmen of the year and one Libero of the Year in his six-year tenure. In 2013, McRoberts was one of seven coaches named to the Southland Conference All-Time Honor Roll.
Before taking over at Central Arkansas, McRoberts compiled a 252-81 record in eight seasons as the head coach at NAIA Lubbock Christian University. His teams won seven conference titles and three region championships, qualifying for the national tournament five times and finishing with a top-25 ranking on six occasions. A six-time Sooner Athletic Conference Coach of the Year and three-time Region Coach of the Year, LCU achieved the highest national ranking (4th) and highest postseason finish (5th) in school history during his tenure, setting a school record with 38 wins in 1998.
McRoberts received his bachelor’s degree in kinesiology with a minor in social studies and health from Harding University in 1993, and his Master's in physical education from Henderson State in 1996.
McRoberts and his wife, Stacy, have three children: sons, Jackson and Nathaniel, and daughter, Mollie.
| McRoberts's Year-by-Year Record |
| Year |
School |
Record |
Pct. |
| 1996 |
Lubbock Christian |
23-13 |
.639 |
| 1997 |
Lubbock Christian |
30-9 |
.769 |
| 1998 |
Lubbock Christian |
38-4 |
.905 |
| 1999 |
Lubbock Christian |
35-12 |
.745 |
| 2000 |
Lubbock Christian |
26-13 |
.667 |
| 2001 |
Lubbock Christian |
32-14 |
.696 |
| 2002 |
Lubbock Christian |
36-7 |
.837 |
| 2003 |
Lubbock Christian |
32-9 |
.780 |
| 2005 |
Central Arkansas |
24-14 |
.632 |
| 2006 |
Central Arkansas |
19-17 |
.528 |
| 2007 |
Central Arkansas |
24-9 |
.727 |
| 2008 |
Central Arkansas |
24-7 |
.774 |
| 2009 |
Central Arkansas |
27-3 |
.900 |
| 2010 |
Central Arkansas |
28-8 |
.778 |
| 2011 |
Tulsa |
28-7 |
.800 |
| 2012 |
Tulsa |
26-10 |
.722 |
| 2013 |
Tulsa |
24-7 |
.774 |
| 2014 |
Ole Miss |
22-10 |
.688 |
| 2015 |
Ole Miss |
22-11 |
.667 |
| 2016 |
Ole Miss |
17-14 |
.548 |
| 2017 |
Ole Miss |
22-14 |
.611 |
| 2018 |
Ole Miss |
14-18 |
.437 |
| 2019 |
Ole Miss |
14-15 |
.483 |
| 2020 |
Missouri State |
15-7 |
.682 |
| 2021 |
Missouri State |
17-13 |
.567 |
| 2022 |
Missouri State |
9-21 |
.300 |
| 2023 |
Missouri State |
16-16 |
.500 |
| 2024 |
Missouri State |
13-19 |
.406 |
| MSU Total |
5 Seasons |
70-76 |
.479 |
Overall
Total |
28 Seasons |
657-321 |
.672 |
