Pete Mangurian will be new Lions football head coach

Pete Mangurian will be the new head coach of Columbia's football team, the athletic department confirmed Thursday morning. Mangurian, who was head coach at Cornell from 1998-2000, brings college coaching experience from powerhouses Stanford and Louisiana State and an NFL background from positions with the New England Patriots, the Atlanta Falcons, the New York Giants, the Denver Broncos, and, most recently, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

"Pete Mangurian is an outstanding football coach," M. Dianne Murphy, Director of Intercollegiate Athletics and Physical Education, said in a press release. "He brings tremendous experience with a plethora of impressive mentors, including Bill Arnsparger, Dan Reeves and Bill Belichick. He has worked in great organizations under Pat Bowlen, owner of the Denver Broncos, and Robert K. Kraft ’63CC, owner of the New England Patriots. Pete’s experience speaks for itself."

In his three seasons in Ithaca, the 56-year-old’s Ivy record were 1-6, 5-2, and 5-2. In his final year, he guided the Big Red to second place in the Ivy League—an achievement Cornell has been unable to match since then. His cumulative Ivy record for the 1999 and 2000 seasons, 10-4, was the best in the league for that period.

The challenge at Columbia, however, will be different for the Californian, as the Big Red was in a much better position when he came in than the Lions are now. The Light Blue went 10-32 in the Ivy League over the last six seasons, with former head coach Norries Wilson at the helm. The Big Red, in contrast, had finished second, third, and third, respectively, in the three seasons prior to Mangurian's appointment.

Mangurian, a defensive tackle, played college football at LSU. A year after graduation he became the assistant offensive line coach at Southern Methodist University. He then had several stints, mainly as an offensive line coach, with New Mexico, Stanford, LSU, the Broncos, the Giants, and the Falcons, before going to Cornell.

Three seasons later, he left the Big Red in order to rejoin the Falcons as offensive coordinator, before taking over as the tight ends coach for the Patriots. Most recently, he served as the offensive line coach for the Buccaneers until he was released in January 2011.

The athletic department, which initiated its search following Wilson's departure on Nov. 20, had set Dec. 15 as the deadline for hiring a new football coach. Murphy said the tight deadline was strategic: many programs are currently looking for new coaches, so the pool of candidates is likely to shrink in the coming weeks. A special committee of three former Columbia football players assisted Murphy in the process.

“I want to thank members of the search advisory committee, which include Associate Athletics Director Ray Tellier and football alumni Ted Gregory ’74CC, Don Jackson ’73CC, and Kevin Ward ’74CC. Their perspective, advice and counsel was instrumental in conducting this search,” Murphy said in the release. “I also want to thank University leadership for their commitment to our football program. The support of President Lee C. Bollinger, Chair, University Trustees William V. Campbell ’62CC, Columbia College Interim Dean James Valentini and Special Advisor to the President Susan K. Feagin ’74GS is greatly appreciated and critical in hiring our new head football coach.”

The statement issued by the athletic department confirms that a formal press conference will be held on Friday, Dec. 9, 2011, at 2 p.m. at Faculty House.