Cottle headed to MLL's Bayhawks

Former Terrapin men's lacrosse coach Dave Cottle has joined the Chesapeake Bayhawks as a consultant, the Annapolis-based Major League Lacrosse franchise announced Monday.

Cottle resigned from his post as coach of the Terps on May 23, just one day after the team suffered an NCAA Tournament quarterfinal loss to Notre Dame, 7-5. John Tillman, a renowned recruiter who previously coached at Harvard, replaced him officially June 16 by signing a seven-year contract.

During his nine-year tenure with the Terps, Cottle won 99 games and led the team to eight consecutive NCAA Tournament appearances. But he failed to make it past the postseason's second round during his final three seasons.

Looking back on his time at the university, Cottle said he will most miss working with his players on a day-to-day basis.

"I just really liked the kids. I was a very lucky guy to be able to coach kids that played hard and were tough," Cottle said. "Maryland's a great school, and I was very fortunate to be the coach at Maryland. I followed a good name in [former coach] Dick Edell, and I just really enjoyed my time with the players."

When asked how the university would remember him, Cottle said, "That's for somebody else to say."

The Bayhawks (4-5) are in a state of disarray after dropping four straight games. The team recently accepted the resignation of coach John Tucker. Brendan Kelly, the team's owner and president, assumed coaching duties July 14.

Chesapeake started the year with a 4-1 record and sat alone atop the MLL's standings. Now, the team is in a three-way tie for third with just three games remaining in the season. The top four teams in the MLL qualify for the postseason.

As a consultant, Cottle will help the team with player evaluations, scouting opponents and creating game plans. But he emphasized that he signed with the Bayhawks strictly as an advisor, not as a coach.

"Brendan Kelly is the head coach while John Lamon and Jamie McNealey are the assistants. If any of those guys ask my opinion about something, I'll be happy to give it to them," Cottle said. "That being said, they have the final decision on all matters. The coaching is going to be up to Brendan and his staff. I'm just here to assist them in any area that might be helpful."

Former Terps' and current Bayhawks' midfielder Jeff Reynolds said he was excited at the prospect of working with his old coach.

"He has a tremendous understanding of the game and should be able to provide the type of insight that will be very useful to helping this team win," Reynolds said. "To bring in someone with that level of experience shows that management is willing to do whatever it takes to be successful."

Cottle said he decided to stay in-state because his family has established itself in the area. He has two kids — a senior in high school and a freshman at this university — and his wife teaches at Annapolis High School.

Cottle said he plans on taking a year off from coaching and, in the meantime, watch his kids grow up as he figures out his next career move.

"I like Florida. I'll try to spend some time there in the winter. I don't like the cold weather as much as I used to like it," Cottle said with a laugh. "I have a lot of different things going through my mind right now. But the first thing is I'm going to help the Bayhawks out in any way they ask me to help."

engelke@umdbk.com