One year after winning the National Coach of the Year award, men's lacrosse head coach Mike Pressler resigned Wednesday.
Pressler guided the Blue Devils to the best season in program history last year, after it had failed to even make the NCAA Tournament the two previous seasons. They set an NCAA single-season record with 17 wins but fell in the National Championship game to Johns Hopkins by one goal.
With nine preseason All-Americans returning on this year's roster, Pressler had crafted a team that was expected to be one of the favorites to win this season's national title.
Pressler's departure ends a 16-year tenure at the school, during which he amassed a record of 153-82. He also led Duke to three ACC Championships and two Final Fours. He currently ranks within the NCAA's top 10 among active coaches in both winning percentage and overall victories.
Hired in 1991 after a highly successful five-year stint as head coach of Ohio Wesleyan, a Division III program, Pressler guided the Duke team to its first NCAA berth in just his second year at the helm.
"Without question, Coach Pressler has done a magnificent job of taking our lacrosse program to the highest level," Director of Athletics Joe Alleva said in the team's media guide.
But despite his success on the field, it was ultimately the off-the-field behavior of his players that forced the coach to resign. Several players refused to comment about their former coach for this story.
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