John Jez, who led the LIU Post men’s lacrosse team to back-to-back NCAA Division II championships in 2009 and 2010, will not return as the Pioneers’ head coach in 2018.
“Our program decided to move in another direction,” LIU Post athletics media relations director Ian Schraier said in an email Wednesday.
On Thursday, the university announced it had hired Eric Wolf, the offensive coordinator at Harvard, as the 10th head coach in Pioneers history. Wolf previously was an assistant coach at Albany, his alma mater, and Siena.
“His passion for teaching the game is unrivaled,” LIU Post athletic director Debbie DeJong said in the announcement.
Jez compiled a record of 129-41 (75.9 percent) in 11 seasons after replacing National Lacrosse Hall of Famer Tom Postel at the helm in 2007. In addition to the two national titles, LIU Post finished as runner-up in 2014 and never finished below .500 under Jez’s watch. The Pioneers were 8-8 this season, falling to NYIT in the East Coast Conference semifinals.
Reached by phone Thursday, Jez said he was surprised by the decision, citing the success his teams had not only on the field, but also in the classroom.
“Our team had a 3.18 GPA,” Jez said. “I’m disappointed, given everything we did for the school and lacrosse overall. Hopefully better things will happen because of this. I still want to coach.”
“I know we didn’t have a great year, 8-8. It’s a sign of the times, I guess,” he continued. “Hopefully the next coach can carry on the tradition of excellence established there.”
Jez also has served as chairman of the NCAA Division II lacrosse championships committee, as a Division II representative on the NCAA men’s lacrosse rules committee, as general manager of the 2016 U.S. U19 team, as assistant general manager of the 2010 U.S. senior team and on the support staff of various U.S. teams since 2006.
Before taking over for Postel, Jez was an assistant coach for two seasons. For two seasons prior to that, he was the head coach at Pace, leading the Setters to a No. 3 national ranking at one point. He had been an assistant coach at Pace for six seasons.
Jez was a two-time All-American midfielder at Pfeiffer. He played post-collegiate club lacrosse until 2005, when he suffered a stroke.
“You can't sweat the little stuff,” Jez told Newsday before coaching in the 2009 NCAA championship game. “Take every day as a positive day.”
Veteran coach Frank Vitolo, who hired Jez as his assistant at Pace in the late 1990s, would later reverse roles with him at LIU Post.
“Johnny is very loyal and very conscientious in everything he does,” Vitolo told Newsday. “His values never changed. It wasn't taking a chance to work with Johnny.”
Neither Vitolo nor assistants Connor Drost and Mike Cama — both of whom were All-American players at LIU Post — are expected to remain on the new coaching staff under Wolf.
“The men’s lacrosse program at LIU Post comes with a historic tradition,” Wolf said. “The alumni and coaching staffs have built a tremendous foundation here and I am honored and humbled to build upon that.”