ALBANY >> The University at Albany has apparently found the successor to legendary coach Bob Ford.

The University will announce on Monday that Maryland assistant head coach Greg Gattuso will be named the next head coach of the Great Danes.

Gattuso, who spent the past three seasons on Randy Edsall’s staff with the Terrapins, will be formally introduced as UAlbany’s coach on Tuesday.

Reports of Gattuso’s hiring were made early on Saturday and it was confirmed by multiple sources to The Record, later in the afternoon.

Gattuso was promoted to assistant head coach at Maryland in February 2012, having first worked exclusively as the defensive line coach. A member of the 1982 national championship Penn State squad, Gattuso also worked as an assistant coach at Pittsburgh (2005-10) and the head coach at Duquesne (1993-2004). 

Gattuso emerged from a group of five that included former UAlbany assistant Pete Rossomando, former Delaware coach K.C. Keeler, Holy Cross assistant Antoine Smith and current UAlbany associate head coach Ryan McCarthy.

Ford announced in August that this would be his 44th and final year as coach of the Great Danes. UAlbany finished 1-11 in 2013, in their first season in the Colonial Athletic Association. Ford retired as the winningest active coach in Division I college football, with a final record of 265-190-1.

The Washington Post is reporting that Maryland assistant head coach Greg Gattuso has taken the UAlbany football job.

Gattuso has been at Maryland for three years, before that working at Pitt, and as a head coach at Duquesne for 12 years.

Of course, I'm working on getting this confirmed.

Previously, it was reported that former Delaware coach K.C. Keeler had taken the job and that ended up being a premature report.

As noted below, former Maryland coach Gary Williams stopped by Siena practice on Tuesday.

Williams gave current Saints coach Jimmy Patsos his first coaching gig, two decades ago, as an assistant with the Terrapins.

Also in Wednesday's paper, columnist Steve Amedio tackles the issue of mascot names, taking us back to when Siena went from the Indians to the Saints.

The issue is of course in the news, as people call for the changing of the Washington football franchise's nickname.

There may be only a few people who know the real Jimmy Patsos.

Beyond the character of the coach that jumps up and down on the sidelines and behind the public person who can sometimes overshadow his professional resume is a coach who has succeeded everywhere he's been.

One of the people who may know Patsos best is former Maryland coach Gary Williams. Patsos worked with Williams for 13 years with the Terrapins, winning a national title together in 2002 (and beating Rob Lanier's Siena club along the way).

Williams was in the Capital District on Monday and stopped by Siena's practice on Tuesday.


"I think Jimmy looks at the challenge to get (the program) where it was," said Williams.

Patsos left Williams in 2004, to take the head job at Loyola (Md.) and was with the Greyhounds the past nine seasons.

When he took over at Loyola, the team had one just one game, a far cry from the tradition-rich program that Siena is. The Saints have been down for the past few seasons, but when they are good, there's no question it's the best coaching job to have in the MAAC because the crowds are big and the Capital District is swept up in the program and the team.

When Athletic Director John D'Argenio hired Patsos, I'm sure he was thinking that Patsos would be a great guy to sell people on the program's revival.

"If there's a guy who can get the community involved with a team, Jimmy's that guy," Williams said.

Patsos turned that 1-win program around, finishing the past two seasons with a combined 47 victories and two postseason berths. Along the way he became a national name for both good and not so good reasons. There's no doubting he can coach. But sometimes he took away from what he could do with his players on the floor, with his own antics.

He's mellowed over the past few seasons, coincidentally or not, during the most successful years with Loyola. There's no doubt he'll put on a show as head coach of the Saints -- everyone with Siena is just hoping its a box office bonanza.

"I want to watch Jimmy in action," Williams said.

The area will finally get the chance to see the real Patsos, when Siena opens the season against crosstown rival UAlbany, on Friday, Nov. 8, at 7 p.m.
 
Below is Williams wearing a nice Siena Under Armour polo shirt before practice began. 

J.S. Carras/The Record

The NFL Draft kicks off tonight in New York City.

The first round takes place Thursday evening, with the draft stretching to Friday and Saturday. Over
the weekend, a few local products hope they hear their names called or their phones ring with interest from NFL teams.

RPI quarterback Mike Hermann (right) impressed scouts at a Pro Day at Stony Brook, back in March, and his size (6-5, 260) is big league. He hopes to get a chance with a NFL team. 

The most recent local player to be drafted was former Albany Academy standout Dion Lewis, who was chosen in the fifth round by Philadelphia, in 2011, after a college career at Pittsburgh. Lewis, who was The Record's 2006 Offensive Player of the Year, was traded to Cleveland two weeks ago. 

University at Albany running back Drew Smith (below) hopes he can either be chosen in the late rounds or find himself to a team as a priority free agent. Also, CBA grad Joe Vellano could be chosen in the late rounds.

AP

 Below is video of Hermann talking about his chances, on Wednesday, before he gets in a workout. 

COLLEGE PARK, Md. — Alex Len played the first collegiate game of his career on Wednesday evening.

The University of Maryland freshman sat out the first 10 games, due to a NCAA suspension.

The University at Albany men’s basketball team wished he sat out 11.

Len finished with 14 points, eight rebounds and three blocks in 27 minutes, as Maryland had just enough offense to defeat UAlbany, 83-72, at the Comcast Center.

“Alex Len couldn’t have sat one more game?” said UAlbany coach Will Brown.

The Great Danes (7-6) hung tough, even taking a second-half lead on a basket from Gerardo Suero.

The game went back and forth in the early stages of the second half, but in the end, the Terrapins (8-3) pulled away, using a big run to gain a double-digit lead.

Suero matched for game-high honors with 22 points, while Luke Devlin added 16 points for UAlbany.

“I’m glad that Luke stepped up, took some shots and knocked them down,” Brown said.

Suero also had eight assists and seven rebounds, in 36 minutes of action.

Terrell Stoglin, the Atlantic Coast Conference’s leading scorer, finished with 22 points for Maryland.

Len, the 7-foot-1 Ukrainian big man, was a force offensively and is projected to be a very good player. 

“I think we would have won this game is Len didn’t play,” Brown said.

Logan Aronhalt and Mike Black each chipped in 13 points for the Great Danes.

“I’m proud of our guys’ effort,” Brown said. “I thought we really buckled down and did some good things.”

UAlbany is now 0-5 all-time against the ACC.

The Great Danes remain in the nation’s capital, as they will take on Mount St. Mary’s for a New Year’s Eve matinee, at 3:30 p.m., on Saturday.

Jeff Couch/The Record

The University at Albany has a huge road test on Wednesday evening.

The Great Danes will take on the Terrapins of the University of Maryland.

The Terrapins aren't one of the top teams in the ACC, picked ninth in the preseason poll. Despite that, Maryland has some very talented players and certainly are the favorite.

The Great Danes have won five of their last seven games and are playing good basketball right now.

Here are some links to read up on Maryland.The big news clearly is the eligibility of 7-foot-1 freshman Alex Len.

Terps excited to get 7-foot-1 freshman Len into the mix - Baltimore Sun

With addition of Alex Len, Maryland basketball continues to tinker with lineup - Washington Post

Terps finally to play with full deck - Washington Examiner