A native of Colonie, N.Y, James Holmes was hired by Rensselaer ahead of the 2021-22 season.
During the Holmes’s two seasons with the program, the team has had a record of 42-15. During the 2021-22 season, Rensselaer had one of the most successful campaigns in school history, finishing 23-6 overall (15-3 in the Liberty League), including a ‘Sweet 16’ appearance in the NCAA Tournament for only the second time. The team also won the Liberty League regular season championship and finished the ranked No. 21 in the country by D3hoops.com. Out of 416 Division III programs in the nation, RPI was No. 1 in scoring defense (57.4).
The following season (22-23), the Engineers had another successful campaign finishing 19-9 overall. The squad advanced to the Liberty League Conference Tournament Championship game for the second time in three seasons. Dom Black and Jonny Angbazo were both All-Conference selections, and Black was named “Liberty League Defensive Player of the Year” for the 3rd consecutive season. RPI was No. 3 in the country in scoring defense (57.1).
Holmes’ responsibilities include coordinating the programs recruiting efforts, as well as being the team’s scouting director. He is also the academic coordinator for the teams’ upperclassmen. In addition, he is heavily involved in on the court player development, operations, budgeting, and fundraising for the program.
Prior to his arrival in Troy, Holmes spent three years as top assistant coach at SUNY Oswego, where he helped the team to records of 43-14 overall and 27-9 in the SUNYAC. The 2018-19 squad was 24-6 and finished first in the conference (15-3) before winning the league tournament and advancing to the Sweet 16. Oswego won 19 games the following season (19-8) and advanced to the SUNYAC Tournament semifinals. During his time in Central New York, Holmes coached and recruited five student-athletes that earned All-Conference and two that were named All-Region.
Holmes began coaching on the staff at SUNY Oneonta, where he served for three seasons, including one year as a student assistant and two as a graduate assistant. The Red Dragons played in back-to-back SUNYAC Tournament Championship games (2017, 2018) for the first time in school history and four players were named All-League.
He earned a bachelor's degree in history in 2016 and a Master's in school counseling in 2018, both from Oneonta.
A graduate of Shaker High School, where he played basketball and baseball, he comes from a family lineage of basketball coaches. His father, Jeff, coached the boys' varsity team at Shaker for more than 25 years; his uncle, Steve Holmes, was a college coach at SUNY Geneseo and Salisbury University in the 1990s-2000s; and his grandfather, Ray Holmes, was a long-time high school boys' coach in the Plattsburgh and Potsdam areas. Also an athletic administrator, Ray Holmes is a member of multiple Athletic Halls of Fame.
