Yale coach Siedlecki announces retirement after 12 years
Jack Siedlecki retired yesterday after a dozen years as Yale's head football coach, accepting a position as an assistant athletic director at the school.
"I have been given an opportunity to stay affiliated with Yale athletics for the balance of my career, and I deeply appreciate that," said the 57-year-old Siedlecki, who posted a 70-49 record and won two Ivy League titles during his tenure, which was surpassed only by that of predecessor Carm Cozza, who coached for 32 years.
Siedlecki, who was named New England Coach of the Year for the second time in 2007 when his squad posted its best record (9-1) in nearly four decades, compiled a 23-7 mark the last three seasons. But his record was 4-8 against archrival Harvard, with seven losses in the last eight meetings, including a 10-0 blanking at the Stadium last weekend, which was only the Bulldogs' second shutout loss in the series since 1966.
"The announcement came as a shock to me, because the Yale football program is in such good shape," said Crimson coach Tim Murphy, who had coached against Siedlecki since 1997 and was an assistant with him at Lafayette. "I had a great relationship with Jack because he was a tremendous competitor, a person of integrity, and an outstanding football coach."
Siedlecki quickly turned things around in New Haven, going from 1-9 his first year to 9-1 in 1999, when his squad rallied to beat Harvard in the final 30 seconds to win a piece of the Ivy title for the first time in a decade. Two years ago, the Bulldogs won another share of the crown by defeating the Crimson in the Stadium for their first victory in the series in six seasons. Despite an up-and-down campaign this year, Yale handed co-champion Brown its only league loss and shut out Princeton for the first time since 1937.
"I am very proud of what we have accomplished here over the past 12 years," said Siedlecki, whose 126-71-2 career record includes five years at WPI and four at Amherst. "Finishing my coaching career with the Ivy League title on the line in the final game the past three years has been a tremendous experience."
Two of those times, though, Yale lost "The Game" to a Harvard team having its best sustained run in nearly a century, with eight straight years of seven or more victories, four league titles, and two perfect campaigns.
Last year, the Crimson ruined Yale's flawless season with a 37-6 beating that was Yale's worst home defeat in the series since the Bowl was built in 1914. Last weekend, Harvard shut out the Bulldogs for the first time since 1992, limiting them to 90 yards of offense and sparking what the Yale Daily News described as "increasingly harsh criticism from students and alumni."
"I think the emphasis on Harvard is inevitable," Siedlecki said in an e-mail to the Globe. "It goes with the territory."
Siedlecki's sudden retirement was startling even to his players.
"It came as a surprise to me," said captain Bobby Abare, the Acton native many consider the best defensive player in school history. "I wasn't expecting him to resign. Coach told the team in an e-mail that he went out the way he wanted to and that the program would be in good hands. I think he's done a great job and he'll leave a great legacy."
Yale, which has had only four football coaches since 1952, will begin an immediate search for Siedlecki's replacement. One top candidate is likely to be longtime defensive coordinator Rick Flanders, whose unit allowed the fewest points in the country this fall.
John Powers can be reached at jpowers@globe.com. 