Binghamton Hires Dernlan as New Wrestling Coach
VESTAL, N.Y. - Matt Dernlan, a 10-year coaching veteran with a strong
pedigree and recruiting ties, has been named Binghamton's new head wrestling
coach, Director of Athletics Patrick Elliott announced on Tuesday.
Dernlan, head coach at Clarion University last season, becomes Binghamton's
sixth head coach in 43 years and replaces Pat Popolizio. He inherits a Bearcats
program that recorded its highest Division I NCAA finish (14th) and highest
national ranking (18th) in school history in 2011-12.
This past winter, Dernlan led Clarion to an 18th place finish at the NCAA
Championship - that school's highest national finish in 15 years. The Golden
Eagles had four NCAA qualifiers and crowned two All-Americans - same as
Binghamton - at the championship in St. Louis. In his first season at the helm,
Dernlan's squad finished the regular season with a 6-7 dual meet record against
some of the top wrestling teams in the nation, placed third at the PSAC
Championships, fourth at EWL's and 11th at the prestigious Midlands Tournament.
He was chosen as the Amateur Wrestling News national "Rookie Coach of the Year"
for 2011-12.
"We are pleased and fortunate to hire someone with Matt's integrity and
experience," Elliott said. "He has a noteworthy pedigree of being part of a
championship program at the highest level and has shown rapid success as a
Division I head coach. Matt is committed to the academic achievement and
citizenship of his student-athletes and I believe he is a perfect fit at
Binghamton."
Prior to taking the head coaching reigns at Clarion, Dernlan served seven
years at Penn State, helping orchestrate the rise of the Nittany Lions to
back-to-back NCAA championships in 2011 and 2012. As head assistant and
director of recruiting from 2005-09, he produced three consecutive top-4
nationally-ranked recruiting classes (2005, 2006, 2007) and helped lead PSU to
a third-place NCAA finish in 2008. Dernlan served as director of operations
from 2009-11 under head coach Cael Sanderson and was part of the Nittany Lions'
staff that captured a 2011 Big Ten crown and then brought home the school's first
NCAA wrestling title since 1953.
"I want to thank President Stenger, Pat Elliott, Ed Scott and the entire
search committee at Binghamton University for this tremendous opportunity,"
Dernlan said. "It was very evident from our first conversation the passion and
commitment they have for the wrestling program. The unbelievable leadership at
every level of the university is very inspiring and is paramount in what this
program needs to position ourselves upward in the coming years. The wrestling
program has achieved a great deal at the Division I level in six short years
and I am humbled by Binghamton University's decision to choose me as the leader
to take the program to even greater heights. I am very excited to start this
journey and am very grateful for this opportunity."
At Penn State, Dernlan also was responsible for the academic success of the
wrestling team and served as the team's liaison with admissions, compliance and
student-athlete services. Additionally, he was head coach of the Nittany Lion
Wrestling Club, where he coached 10 full-time resident athletes in preparation
for the 2012 Olympic Games.
A native of West Liberty, Ohio, Dernlan enjoyed an outstanding competitive
career and was inducted into the Ohio High School Wrestling Hall of Fame in
2002. At West Liberty-Salem High, he went 154-4 overall and was a three-time,
undefeated Ohio state champion (1989-91) and a three-time USA Wrestling High
School All-American (1989-91).
Dernlan become an NCAA qualifier at Liberty University as a sophomore
126-pounder in 1993. After he red-shirted in 1994, Liberty dropped its
wrestling program but Dernlan stayed at the school and earned his bachelor's
degree in sports management in 1996. He then received a master's degree in
sport administration from Bowling Green in 2002 and has been working toward a
Ph.D. in higher education administration from University of Toledo.
He began his coaching career as an assistant at St. Paris Graham High School
(Ohio) from 1997-99 and then was an assistant coach at Ohio Northern from
2001-04, where he also served as assistant director in the school's host role
for the 2003 NCAA Division III Championship.
Matt and his wife, Carie, have two daughters,
Ava and Aubrey.