Dick Edell

Richard Irving Edell (1944 – May 2, 2018) was an American lacrosse coach. He served as the head coach for the University of Maryland, United States Military Academy, and University of Baltimore's men's lacrosse teams. Edell was inducted into the US Lacrosse Hall of Fame in 2004, at which time he held the second-most NCAA tournament appearances of any head coach.

Early life Born in Maryland in 1944, Edell attended Towson University, where he played lacrosse and was named an honorable mention All-American as a midfielder in 1967. He graduated in 1967 with a degree in physical education. Edell continued his education, earning a master's degree in education from Western Maryland (now McDaniel College) in 1970 and, later while coaching, a master's degree in science from the University of Baltimore in 1976. He also coached Army Black Knights men's soccer from 1979 to 1981.

Edell took over as the Maryland head coach starting with the 1984 season. During his 18-year tenure there, he led the Terrapins to three Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) titles and 13 NCAA tournament appearances, which included three appearances in the championship game. In his second year with the Terrapins, he led the team to a 2–1 conference record to secure the championship. The following season, Maryland finished with a 10–3 overall record and advanced to the NCAA quarterfinals before elimination. In 1987, Edell led Maryland to a perfect 3–0 mark for the conference title and led the team to the NCAA semifinals. From 1991 to 1998, the Terrapins secured an NCAA tournament berth each season. In 1995, 1997, and 1998, Maryland advanced to the tournament final before being eliminated. In 1998, the Terps again finished with a perfect conference mark, 3–0. The 57-year-old Edell said, "My mind and heart want to do this, but my body won't."

Records and honors At the time of his retirement, Edell, with 282 wins, was the fifth-winningest all-time head coach in terms of wins, and the sixth-winningest active head coach in terms of winning percentage. He was also the second-winningest active head coach by wins, behind Jack Emmer of Army with 289, and the winningest all-time ACC coach, with 171 wins, ahead of Jim Adams of Virginia with 137. Edell had the second-most NCAA Division I tournament appearances, with 17, behind Roy Simmons, Jr. of Syracuse who had 18. He was the seventh head coach to reach the 400-game benchmark and the first ACC head coach to reach the 150-win benchmark. the University of Maryland Athletic Hall of Fame, the Towson University Hall of Fame and the Army West Point Athletic Hall of Fame.

Personal life Edell and his wife, Dolores, had four children.

Head coaching record