1. Jim Berkman

To be eligible for induction as a legendary coach, Berkman had to have completed his 26th year as a head coach, including his 25th at Salisbury (Md.) University. With a 428-48 record through the 2013 season, Berkman is the most successful coach in NCAA men’s lacrosse history. All 10 of Berkman’s national titles came at Salisbury University: in 1994, 1995, 1999, 2003-05, 2007, 2008, 2010, and 2012. He also placed second four times. Further, his 90.1% winning percentage in college coaching is the highest of any coach in the sport’s history.

Salisbury has gone 7-0 during Berkman’s tenure as head coach, and the team has won 17 league titles. He has coached 178 All-Americans and won national coach of the year honours three times (1991, 2008, 2012) at the USILA level. He has also won his conference’s coach of the year award eight times.

2. Hank Janczyk

Legendary Gettysburg College men’s lacrosse coach Hank Janczyk stepped down in May of 2021. Coach Janczyk’s success on the field can be seen in the box scores, and he is widely credited with elevating Gettysburg to the ranks of the best Division III schools. The success of the programme can be attributed in large part to the Coach, who added to the legacy of the team’s previous great coaches. In spite of his 34 years of coaching at Gettysburg, many people believe that Coach J’s greatest contribution was not on the field but in the lives of the players and students he mentored. The coach was there for the high points and the low points of his players’ lives, and he continues to be.

As one alumnus put it, “Coach shaped generations of young men”; while he got the most out of his players on the lacrosse field, many of those who spent time in Gettysburg with him will always remember the lessons he taught them about life. Coach spent a lot of time over the years building strong bonds with many Gettysburg residents, including students, parents, and faculty. He was more than just a coach—much more.

A group of committed alumni and parents have come together to create The Hank Janczyk Endowed Fund for Men’s Lacrosse in recognition of Coach Janczyk and his remarkable legacy. All of the money that is donated to this endowment will be used to further develop the men’s lacrosse programme and guarantee that it has the resources it needs to maintain its status as a top national programme for the foreseeable future.

3. John Danowski

John Danowski has been the head coach of the U.S. men’s national lacrosse team since 2016. He is widely considered one of the best college lacrosse coaches in the country. Danowski coached the U.S. men’s lacrosse team to a world title in 2018 at the tournament in Netanya, Israel, and he will do the same for the tournament in Southern California in 2023.

With his 2014 NCAA championship, Danowski joined an exclusive club of only nine other coaches who have won three national titles. Duke’s eight consecutive appearances in the NCAA semifinals are second only to Syracuse’s since 2000.

Following Duke’s 17-9 victory over Furman in 2019, Danowski became only the third head coach in the history of college football to amass 400 career victories.

After playing for Hofstra for 21 seasons (1986–2006), Danowski transferred to Duke University and was named Lacrosse Magazine’s 2007 Person of the Year. He finished with a 192-123 (.609) record as a head coach, eight conference titles, eight NCAA Tournament appearances, and 17 finishes in the top 20 in the final national rankings. One of the members of the 2018 U.S. men’s team that won gold was Matt Danowski, the latter’s son.

4. Bill Tierney

Bill Tierney, one of the all-time greats in college lacrosse coaching, led the University of Denver to its first national championship in his sixth year at the helm of the Pioneers and was named the 2015 USILA Division I National Coach of the Year.

After 20 years as Princeton’s head coach beginning in the 1988 season, Tierney took over the University of Denver men’s lacrosse programme in July of 2009. Tierney has compiled a 157-54 overall record and a 65-7 conference record in 13 seasons at DU. In order to become only the second coach in Division I career wins in men’s lacrosse history with 400 victories, the Denver Broncos head coach had to pass his longtime friend and rival John Danowski by a margin of 62 games.

Tierney has been a head coach for 38 years, and during that time, his teams have won 14 Ivy League titles, two ECAC titles, two BIG EAST titles, three ECAC regular season titles, & seven BIG EAST regular season titles. He has also appeared in nine NCAA finals. He has an impressive.745 winning percentage across his 429-147 collegiate record and 238-86 record at Princeton.

5. Keith Bugbee

In 2016, Keith Bugbee will begin his 33rd year as head men’s lacrosse coach and adjunct assistant professor of physical education at Springfield College. It’s under his leadership that the Pride have become one of the best teams in the country. Currently, Bugbee has a stellar 353-169 record as a head coach (.676 winning percentage).

There have been 29 postseason tournament appearances by Bugbee’s teams, including 20 NCAA Tournament appearances and one national championship. Forty-six of his players have been named to the All-America team, including Bob Felt, who was named the USILA Division II Player of the Year in 1994.

The United States Intercollegiate Lacrosse Association recognised Bugbee as the top coach in Division II in 1994 and 1995. In 1995, he led the North squad in the annual North-South All-Star Game, and in 1986, he led the West squad in the annual New England All-Star Game. In 2002, Bugbee was inducted into the New England Lacrosse Hall of Fame after serving as president of the New England Intercollegiate Lacrosse Association.

On April 23, 2011, Bugbee defeated Massachusetts Maritime by a score of 21-4, becoming just the seventh coach in NCAA men’s lacrosse history to record 300 career victories. Bugbee’s team beat MIT 15-5 the following Saturday, bringing Bugbee’s career win total to 301 and putting him ahead of New England Lacrosse legend Dick Garber in the win column.

Springfield defeated Babson College 13-7 in 2015 to win its eighth consecutive conference championship and earn a berth in the NCAA Men’s Lacrosse Championship Tournament for the fourth time in the last eight years, where they would face SUNY Cortland. The USILA recognised senior midfielder Bryce Serriello and senior attackman Dylan Sheehan as Honorable Mention All-Americas.

6. Dom Starsia

Starsia is one of only three men’s coaches in history to win at least 100 games as the head coach at two different schools, and he has been inducted as a truly great coach. From 1982 to 1992, he was the head coach at Brown, where his team went 101-46 and he was honoured as USILA Morris Touchstone Coach of the Year in 1985 and 1991. Brown won two Ivy League titles under his watch, and he guided the team to five NCAA tournament appearances. As of 2011, he was a three-time Touchstone Award winner.

He took over Virginia in 1993 and by the time of his induction in 2008, he had won three national championships with the Cavaliers (1999, 2003 and 2006). After 24 years and 274 wins with the Cavaliers, Starsia decided to retire after the 2016 season. In addition to the 1999, 2003, 2006, and 2011 NCAA titles, his teams also won the ACC championship in 1997, 1999, 2000, 2003, and 2010. Under his guidance, Virginia reached the national semifinals 13 times. Starsia holds the record for most wins by a Division I head coach with 375 victories at Brown and Virginia combined.

Starsia was a standout defender who was named to the All-America team twice during his time at Brown, was named to the All-Club team four times, and was a member of the 1978 U.S. national team. He is a member of three different halls of fame: Brown University’s, US Lacrosse’s New England chapter, and the Charlottesville, Virginia, chapter.

7. Steve Beville

With the 2014 season, Steve Beville enters his eighth year as head coach of the Cortland men’s lacrosse team. He has taken Cortland to the national semifinals in 2013 and 2010, as well as the national quarterfinals in 2011, and the Red Dragons to the NCAA Division III title game four times, winning the title in 2009. Beville has a 125-18 record in seven seasons with Cortland (.874). He led Cortland to a national title in 2009 with a 19-2 record, and in 2012 and 2013, he led the Red Dragons to undefeated regular seasons. After leading his team to a perfect 4-0 record in the NCAA tournament and a 9-7 victory over Gettysburg in the championship game in Foxborough, Massachusetts, he was named the 2009 USILA Division III National Coach of the Year. Cortland has gone to the NCAA tournament seven times in Beville’s seven years there and has won six SUNYAC championships (2008-13). Beville has won the SUNYAC Coach of the Year award three times (2008, 2010, 2012).

8. Mike Pressler

Pressler led the Bulldogs to a 130-77 (.628) record in his 12th season at the helm in 2018. Pressler has a 359-179 record as a college head coach over the course of 34 seasons (.667).

In 2018, Pressler’s Bulldogs continued a 12-year streak in which they won at least eight games. An honourable mention All-America pick by the USILA, Kenny Massa was one of three Bulldogs taken in the MLL Draft, alongside Tom Kennedy and Anthony Johnson. The three draught picks in the Major League Lacrosse were a record for an NEC team. In March, Bryant earned a 10-7 victory at then-No. 13 Robert Morris, giving them two wins over nationally ranked opponents in 2018.

Bryant defeated a top-10 Yale team on the road and the NEC regular-season champion Hobart, both on the road, to earn their fifth Northeast Conference title and fourth trip to the NCAA tournament in 2017. They defeated Monmouth in the NCAA First Round. The United States Intercollegiate Lacrosse Association recognised senior Tucker James as an honourable mention All-American, and both James and fellow senior Kyle Mummau were later selected in the Major League Lacrosse draught. Six Bulldogs were recognised as all-NEC performers.

In 2016, Pressler led his Bulldogs to a 10-4 regular season record and a top-20 ranking after they defeated then-unbeaten and No. 8/7 Harvard at home and won a thrilling 11-10 overtime contest against in-state rival and No. 2/3 Brown. Bryant had nine players recognised as All-NEC and senior goaltender Gunnar Waldt was named as a Tewaaraton Award Semifinalist.

After two selections in 2015 (Kevin Massa, and Gunnar Waldt), Pressler now has 11 Bryant All-Americans to his name. In fact, the programme has received at least one such honour in every season since making the jump to Division I prior to 2016. Pressler also had 11 players named to their respective conferences’ all-tournament teams, with Massa being honoured as the NEC’s MVP for a record-tying third year in a row.

Since Pressler took over the Bryant programme in 2006-07, Smithfield has become a perennial Division I national contender. More than ever before, that was the case in the 2014 season, when he led the Black and Gold to the NCAA Sweet 16.

9. Bill Pilat

When Pilat won his 300th game in 2015, he became just the 15th men’s lacrosse coach in NCAA history (all divisions combined). Since Pilat took over as coach, the team has made 16 trips to the NCAA Tournament and won 11 ODAC titles. The Maroons finished the season with their seventh straight 10-win season, which is a programme record.

To date, Pilat has won the ODAC Coach of the Year award more than any other coach in league history. The 2013 Old Dominion Athletic Conference title was his ninth overall.

Whether on the field as a player or behind the bench as a coach, Pilat is an essential cog in Roanoke’s lacrosse machine. Pilat was a three-time All-American, two-time ODAC Player of the Year, and the 1985 Roanoke Male Athlete of the Year. In 1985, Pilat was recognised as the best goaltender in the United States, earning him the C. Markland Kelly Award and the Hero’s Award. With 710 saves in his collegiate career, he is 29 saves ahead of the next closest keeper. Pilat has coached six of the nine other players who are in the top 10 on the school’s all-time saves list, making him the all-time leader in saves for the programme. The three goalies there are All-Americans.

Pilat’s involvement with the lacrosse community extends far beyond his roles as a coach and recruiter. He is the former president of the ODAC and the Division III Coaches Association and has served on the Division III Advisory and All-American committees. He has served on the player selection committee for the U.S. World Lacrosse Team and as chairman of the USILA Century Club. Pilat also operates several different summer camps in the states of Virginia, Florida, Connecticut, Ohio, and New York, making him one of the most well-known camp directors in the country. When it comes to goaltenders, nobody does it better than the Bill Pilat Goalie School. Pilat’s latest project is a goalie video designed to help players of all skill levels become better at their position.

10. David Urick

Urick, now a legendary coach, got his start in lacrosse at Cortland State, where he played defence from 1966 to 1970 and served as team captain twice in football.

In 1971, Urick joined Hobart College’s coaching staff as an assistant to future Hall of Famer Jerry Schmidt. After Schmidt’s retirement in 1980, he took over as head lacrosse coach, and from 1980 to 1989, the Statesman won ten consecutive national titles in Division III. Both in 1980 and 1981, he was named Division III’s top coach, earning him the Kraus Award. In 1986, he led the American squad as its head coach. Both the Cortland State and Hobart College Athletic Halls of Fame inducted him: the former in 1986, the latter in 1990.

Urick started his coaching career at Georgetown University in 1990 and led the programme until his retirement in 2012. The Hoyas went 223-99 during his tenure as coach, never had a losing season, and made 11 consecutive appearances in the NCAA tournament from 1997-2007. The 1999 season was the only time the Hoyas advanced to the national championship game. During both the 2003 and 2007 seasons, the Hoyas were ranked first in the nation.

In 1991, Urick was honoured by being inducted into the Lacrosse Hall of Fame, Upstate New York Chapter. Between the years 1990 and 1993, he presided over the NCAA’s Men’s Lacrosse Committee.