- Chris Jastrzembski
Utah hires Robert Morris' Andrew McMinn as next head coach
The Utah Utes have hired Robert Morris head coach Andrew McMinn as their second men's lacrosse head coach in program history. The school made it official in a press release Tuesday.
McMinn comes over after spending 16 years at Robert Morris, 10 of them as head coach. The Providence graduate took over for Bear Davis as the program's second head coach before the 2012 season where he led the Colonials to back-to-back Northeast Conference championships in 2018 and 2019. He was a part of the Colonial coaching staff for all but one of their 17 years of existence.
McMinn, a Pittsburgh native, leaves Robert Morris as the all-time winningest coach in program history with 76 wins. 25 of his players have gone on to play professional lacrosse, including Kiel Matisz, Ryan Smith, and Tyson Gibson, the top overall pick of the 2019 NLL Entry Draft. As of the 2020 season, Robert Morris' 12 NLL players are the most by any college or university.
Robert Morris has also been known for the large number of Canadian players on rosters each season. On the 20211 roster, 13 players were from Canada, with four of them coming from the westernmost province of British Columbia.
Sources say McMinn had been a "mystery" candidate throughout Utah's hiring process, keeping that info close to himself and others. But his name was linked to the job on Friday, when he was in Salt Lake City for an in-person interview. A number of other coaches also interviewed virtually, and a second finalist came for an in-person interview.
McMinn will bring along Sean Doyle as an assistant on his new staff, according to multiple sources. Doyle is a Robert Morris graduate and was an assistant with the program for two seasons. He also spent a year as defensive coordinator at VMI under Jon Birsner.
Utah is entering their fourth year as a varsity program after head coach Brian Holman stepped down on August 4. 2022 will be their first season as a member of the new ASUN Conference along with Robert Morris, Air Force, Bellarmine, Cleveland State, and Detroit Mercy. The Utes fell to the Colonials in last year's season finale, 16-12, in Salt Lake as Robert Morris scored the game's final eight goals to get the victory.
In a press release of their own, Robert Morris announced they will "begin a national search to identify its next head men's lacrosse coach."