SYRACUSE, N.Y (NCC NEWS) – Following one of the greatest coaching runs in the history of the sport, Syracuse men’s lacrosse coach John Desko has called it quits.
For the past 46 years, Desko has been affiliated with the Orange — as a player, as an assistant and as head coach. His 266-to-93 win-loss record places him among the top of the list as one of the winningest coaches of all-time. At the conclusion of the 2021 season, Desko ranked 15 in NCAA Division history for most career wins.
Desko’s immediate success as an assistant under legendary coach Roy Simmons Jr. catapulted him into a hall of fame career with the Orange. The former Syracuse mid-fielder (1976-1979), Desko, was inducted into the National Lacrosse Hall of Fame in 2020 while still coaching, making him one of the few coaches who can claim that feat.
During the press conference, Desko was introduced by Syracuse University’s athletic director John Wildhack.
“John’s greatest career accomplishments, is not so much the wins and the championships,” Wildhack said. “It’s the thousands of young men that he coached, mentored, and developed at Syracuse.”
Desko’s impressive run with the Orange does not happen without an uncanny ability to recruit the best players in the country. While at Syracuse, Desko had 75 players who earned All-American honors 135 times; two of those players, Mike Powell (2002), and Mike Leveille (2008), won the Tewaaraton Award, given to the best player in the country.
By the numbers: Desko led Syracuse to six consecutive final fours as he took over head coaching duties in 1999. The Orange went on to crush it’s competition as they won five national titles under Desko (2000, 2002, 2004, 2008, 2009). The head coach’s best seasons came in back-to-back years in 2008-2009. The Orange recorded a 16-2 slate in the win-loss column in each of those seasons, becoming the first squad since the Princeton teams in the ’90s to repeat as champions.
Desko has been a notable figure in Syracuse since the beginning of his athletic journey. As a youngster, he excelled at lacrosse, basketball and football in nearby West Genesee High School before he received a bachelor’s degree in sociology at Syracuse University.
