Lelan Rogers Returns to Cortland for Second Stint as Head Coach

Lelan Rogers, SUNY Cortland’s men’s lacrosse coach from 2001-05, is back in charge of the Red Dragons.

Following the retirement of the legendary Steve Beville, who spent 17 seasons as Cortland’s coach from 2007-23, Rogers is back after a one-year stint as the head coach of Utica.
 
With 30 years of coaching experience, Rogers has been a fixture in the men’s lacrosse landscape. Prior to coaching at Utica, Rogers spent 14 years as the defensive coordinator and recruiting coordinator at Syracuse (2007-21). During that time, the Orange won back-to-back national championships (2008, 2009) and made 14 NCAA tournament appearances on the back of his defense. Rogers led the unit to a top-five national ranking for three straight years (2008-10).

That was a return stint at Syracuse for Rogers, who graduated from the university in 1987 after helping Syracuse to the final four. He was a graduate assistant with the Orange from 1988-90, with each team winning a national title.

His first coaching stop outside of Syracuse was at Ohio Wesleyan from 1991-99. He led the team to seven NCAA tournament appearances and a 109-33 record. The program advanced to the NCAA championship game in 1993 and five other national semifinals and won six NCAC titles. He was named NCAC Coach of the Year four times.

From 2001-05 with Cortland, Rogers led the Red Dragons to a 76-17 record, including 32-0 in SUNYAC regular-season games. Cortland won four conference titles and made five NCAA Division III tournament appearances under Rogers, advancing to the national semifinals in 2003 and quarterfinals in 2002, 2004 and 2005. He was named SUNYAC Coach of the Year in 2003.

“We are excited to bring a coach of Lelan’s caliber to lead such a storied program,” Cortland athletic director Mike Urtz said. “I think he will thrive and flourish with what we have to offer. More importantly, I think these young men at Cortland will love playing for him.”