Dartmouth men's assistant lacrosse coach Jon Torpey was named the head coach at High Point University in North Carolina, though he will finish the 2010-2011 season with the Big Green between making the transition. High Point is about to launch a new program, with its first season being the 2012-2013 academic year.
Torpey said that after seeing the opportunity and checking out the campus, he knew it was the right choice.
"It is a dream come true to start a program from scratch," Torpey said. "It will be a lot of hard work but it is a challenge that I want."
At Dartmouth, Torpey has been the assistant coach in charge of defense for the past year. Before coming to the Big Green, he worked at the University of Denver for six years.
Torpey will finish out the 2011 season with the Big Green before moving to High Point.
As head coach of High Point, Torpey will be one of the youngest head coaches in Division I lacrosse.
At age 28, Torpey was the youngest assistant coach in Division I when he was at Denver.
High Point will field a full Division I program complete with the maximum number of coaches and scholarships allowed by the NCAA for a Division I program.
Torpey says he spends his mornings and nights devoted to High Point, but the day still belongs to Dartmouth.
"We still have an Ivy-League championship to win," he said. "Nothing has changed for me at the moment at Dartmouth."
Head coach Andy Towers said that he believes Torpey will be successful at High Point.
"What you see is someone getting rewarded for their hard work," Towers said. "He is a guy driven by success and he has always talked about building a new program."
Towers added that the Big Green players feel bittersweet about Torpey's departure
"I think they hate to see someone good leave the program," he said. "But it is also a feather in their cap because they helped him get to where he is now."
Torpey said he has greatly benefited from his time at Dartmouth, citing in particular his experience coaching alongside Towers.
"Being around Andy has helped me prepare myself for this opportunity," he said. "He is one of the best coaches in the country."
At Dartmouth, Torpey said he learned how to get the most out of his athletes and how to be there for them off the field.
Torpey said that he has gotten nothing but positive responses from Big Green lacrosse players and alumni.
"The response is really all I could ask for," he said. "Everyone has been very supportive."
Co-captain Adam Boardman '11 said he was happy that Torpey notified the team now as opposed to in the middle of the season. Boardman added that it will be good for the team to not have major changes now.
"We are all sad to see him go," Boardman said. "But we are pretty happy for him."
Torpey's work ethic shows in his preparation for games and the time he puts into the team is a quality that emanates through the players on the team, Boardman said.
"He really shows a commitment to the game and responsibility," Boardman said. "He only needs to say things once and we do it."
Looking towards next year, the team will look internally to replace the man who installed the Big Green's fast tempo defense, according to Towers.
"[Assistant coach] Ryan Danehy [06] will take over on the defensive side of the team," Towers said. "Ryan has been groomed for this position and we are fortunate for his development as a coach because of Torpey's late departure."
Torpey agreed that Danehy is the right person to replace him.
"Ryan has done a great job," he said. "I think it will be a seamless transition."
