RPI, Ferris Hire New Men's Head Coaches

The coaching carousel began spinning last week in the NCAA Division I men's hockey ranks.

Rensselaer tabbed Eric Lang earlier today as its new bench boss. Lang, 49, an American International College graduate, spent the last nine seasons at his alma mater, which is reclassifying the AIC men's hockey program to NCAA Division II next season. He led the Yellowjackets to an overall mark of 153-139-30, which included four Atlantic Hockey regular-season championships, three Atlantic Hockey conference tournament titles, and three NCAA tournament berths. 

A former men's assistant at Army West Point, Lang, 49, also spent one year as the men's head coach at Manhattanville College, guiding the Division III Valiants to a 13-9-3 finish in 2011-12. Prior to that, he coached the Manhattanville women's team for three seasons, going 58-22-3 overall and leading the Valiants to two ECAC East titles and their most recent NCAA tournament appearance to date. He succeeds former RPI coach Dave Smith, who over saw the Engineers the last eight years.

Ferris State hired Long Island University head coach Brett Riley on March 31, the only coach LIU had known since the program began play in 2020-21. In four seasons at the helm of the Sharks, Riley, a Hobart graduate, led them to an overall record of 42-73-5, including a program-best 20 wins in 2024-25. He also coached Wilkes for one NCAA Division III season, fashioning a 16-8-2 mark in 2018-19, before serving one year as an assistant at Colgate. Riley, 34, succeeds long-time Ferris head coach Bob Daniels, who had led the Bulldogs the past 33 seasons.

ADDENDUM: LIU has hired Brendan Riley, cousin of Brett Riley, as the Sharks' new men's hockey coach. The son of longtime Army West Point head coach Brian Riley, Brendan Riley, 29, has served the past three years as an assistant coach at AIC. A native of West Point, N.Y., he skated at forward for Mercyhurst from 2016 to 2020, notching five goals and 11 assists for 16 points in 91 career games.

Jackson, Riley Coach Final Games

A pair of longtime men's college hockey coaching careers came to an end over the weekend.

Jeff Jackson coached his final game in Notre Dame's 1-0 loss at Michigan State on Saturday in the Big Ten semifinal round. An MSU graduate, Jackson finished his storied career with an overall record of 601-343-99. He coached at Lake Superior State from 1990 to 1996, winning two NCAA championships with the Lakers, and then helmed the Irish from 2005 to 2025, guiding UND to four Frozen Fours and two NCAA title games. He was also won a pair of Spencer Penrose Awards as NCAA coach of the year.

Brian Riley concluded his career that same night as Army West Point fell, 3-1, at Holy Cross in the deciding contest of their Atlantic Hockey America best-of-three quarterfinal series. A Brown graduate, Riley finished 258-379-94 in overseeing Army from 2005 to 2025, winning the 2008 Atlantic Hockey regular-season title. His retirement ends a 75-year tenure of Riley head coaches behind the Black Knights bench.

Riley to Step Down at Army After Season

Add Army West Point to the list of NCAA Division I men's hockey schools that will be introducing a new head coach following the upcoming season.

Brian Riley (middle, above), a West Point, N.Y. native who has guided the Black Knights since 2004-05, has announced that he will step down as Army's head coach following the 2024-25 NCAA campaign. In 20 seasons at the helm, he has complied an overall 242-359-92 mark, including the 2008 Atlantic Hockey regular-season championship. He has also been named Atlantic Hockey Coach of the Year four times in his career. Riley follows Cornell's Mike Schafer and Notre Dame's Jeff Jackson, who will also retire next spring from their respective positions.

A 1983 graduate of Brown, Riley skated in 97 games in all at forward for the Bears, tallying 28 goals and 35 assists for 63 points. He began his coaching career as an assistant at SUNY-Plattsburgh in 1984-85, before spending one year at UMass Lowell in 1987-88, where he helped the then-Chiefs to the NCAA tournament. He then moved on to Army in 1989-90 and remained there for seven seasons. After a two-year stint as head coach at Shattuck St. Mary's in Minnesota, Riley returned to Army in 1999, where he again served as an assistant to his older brother, Rob, before ultimately taking the head coaching reins himself in 2004.

Riley, 65, is expected to be succeeded by current assistant coach and former Black Knights defenseman Zach McKelvie in 2025-26. It will mark the first time since 1949-50 that a Riley will not serve as the head hockey coach at Army, as Rob Riley guided the Cadets from 1986 to 2004, after father Jack Riley oversaw the program from 1950 to 1986.