After nearly a decade of building the Cary-Grove lacrosse program, Trojans head coach Brendan Gorman is moving on.
Gorman has accepted the head coaching position at Don Bosco Prep in Ramsey, N.J. He will also be a full-time physical education teacher and the school's strength and conditioning coordinator.
"It hurts. I started the program. I brought lacrosse, I brought the culture of the sport to the town of Cary and really to the county of McHenry, so it hits home a little bit," Gorman said. "It's definitely a tough decision but I can't hold back, if I have that passion to go this is definitely the next move. And hopefully this is a long-term thing, hopefully I stay at Bosco 20 years and leave a legacy when I'm finished."
Gorman coached the Trojans for eight of their 10 seasons, leading them to a 107-22 record during his tenue. He was Cary-Grove's first head coach beginning in 2006, left for two seasons (2012-13) and returned for the past two.
The Trojans were 14-5 last season, winning the Fox Valley Conference and advancing to the IHSLA Class B Lacrosse Cup playoffs.
Don Bosco has a recent history of success, winning county titles in 2012 and 2013. The Ironmen, however, have struggled the past two seasons, finishing below .500 both years. Gorman will be replacing Mike Springer, a four-time All-American player at Syracuse who spent 12 seasons at Don Bosco, amassing a 148-84 record. His contract was not renewed, however, after going 12-22 the last two years.
It's a homecoming of sorts for Gorman, who grew up in New York. Don Bosco's campus is 15 miles from his hometown, Gorman said.
The job offer came serendipitously. Getting a drink with some friends before one of the recent Grateful Dead concerts in Chicago, Gorman talked with Brian McAleer, the athletic director at Don Bosco. The two had played high school lacrosse together, but hadn't been in touch for years.
McAleer told Gorman it had been a rough summer, letting Springer go.
"In that conversation he was like 'You had another great year,' he goes 'You want a job?' It was kind of just like in passing," Gorman said.
Gorman told McAleer he wasn't exactly looking to leave Cary-Grove, but had considered moving back east. The following Monday he sent McAleer his application and eventually went to visit the campus and interview for the position.
Gorman said he is taking over a roster that already has multiple Division-1 commits.
"If I'm ever going to go to college, it's the natural progression of a coach," Gorman said. "You don't make lateral moves, you go up the ladder."
Gorman said he will be involved in helping select Cary-Grove's next head coach, and with the program's growth, he expects there to be plenty of interest in the opening.
"I think I planted a solid foundation," Gorman said. "Cary has certainly been the leaders in the Midwest and in my coaching philosophy I say it to this day that my goal was to be the ambassadors of lacrosse in northwest suburbs and the state of Illinois.
"There's no question we've attained that goal. The biggest thing is you must develop within, you must develop your coaches, you must develop players to come back and become coaches. I'm very confident that the tradition and success at Cary is going to continue without me simply because of that foundation."