After losing Bob Chesney to James Madison, Holy Cross has filled its head coaching vacancy from a nearby school.
Merrimack head coach Dan Curran has accepted the same job at Holy Cross, the school announced Friday.
Curran set the Merrimack all-time record with 53 victories in his 11 seasons on the job and, more importantly, led the program from the Division II Northeast-10 Conference to FCS. Merrimack reached the Northeast Conference title game in both 2022 and '23.
"Holy Cross football has established its reputation as arguably the best place in Division I to pursue both an elite undergraduate degree and compete nationally at the highest level," AD Kit Hughes said. "Worcester has become a place for outstanding students, athletes and people to develop themselves in every dimension of their lives, and I could not be more excited to enhance that reputation under Coach Curran's leadership. His deep understanding of Holy Cross, our values as a Jesuit Catholic institution, our commitment to academic excellence, and demonstrated ability to build and lead a quality and highly respected program helped him to distinguish himself throughout an incredibly competitive process. Coach Curran embraces not just the program that we are currently, but the one that we can be. His respect for the past, vision for the future and enthusiasm for the present will serve our student-athletes, College and community incredibly well moving forward."
Chesney left behind a program that went 44-21 over its past six seasons, including a 28-4 mark in Patriot League play with four FCS playoff berths, including a trip to the quarterfinals in 2022.
"It's an absolute pleasure and honor to be named the next head football coach at Holy Cross," Curran said. "I would like to thank President Vincent Rougeau, Kit Hughes and Nick Smith for this wonderful opportunity. Holy Cross is truly a special place, one where our student-athletes can have an elite academic experience, compete for championships and be a part of an amazing community. My family and I are thrilled to now be a part of the Holy Cross community, and could not be more excited to get to work and compete for championship number 12."
A former NFL fullback, Curran completed his playing days in 2009 and entered coaching as Merrimack's offensive coordinator in 2010. Holy Cross represents his first coaching post outside of Merrimack.
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