It would be a dreary spring Monday at Chaminade High School, and out on the lacrosse field, kids were dragging.
Yes, they knew how lucky they were to be on varsity at one of the most storied programs in America, but you know, they were teenagers and it was Monday.
Maybe the weather was miserable, or they’d lost a big game over the weekend. But when the mustachioed fella with the whistle and ballcap came out on the field, everything changed.
Always with a spring in his step, Jack Moran would crack a few jokes. And then he’d say his signature line: “It’s always 70 degrees and sunny on the Chaminade field!”
“He never let you feel down and was always reminding you how lucky you are to play this game with 30 of your friends,” said former Chaminade player Justin McMahon, now competing for the University of Pennsylvania. “He always told us these guys were our brothers, and we looked up to him, completely.”
Since 1980, Moran has been molding future leaders and champions at the private school in Mineola, but he’s coached his last Flyers squad.
Moran’s incredible run at Chaminade came to an end on June 9, when he announced his retirement after 45 years.
His list of accomplishments could fill a book: Moran, 73, led the program to 629 total wins, 28 regular-season titles, and 21 CHSAA state championships during his tenure. This past season, Chaminade went 14-2 and was in the Top 10 in several national high school lacrosse polls.
Greg Kay, a former Chaminade player and longtime assistant coach, will take over as head coach, while Thomas O’Connell, who played for Chaminade in 2014-15, will be elevated from assistant coach to associate coach.
“I’ve been blessed to work with incredible young men, dedicated families, and a school that truly believes in forming character through sport,” Moran said. “I’m excited to take a step back and support the program in a new way while spending more time with my growing family.”
His former players speak of him in reverential tones, and when reached over the past week for interviews about Moran, they were all still a little stunned that his career is over.
“When you think of how many lives he touched, turning young lacrosse players into really successful young men, it’s pretty incredible,” said Charles Balsamo, a Flyers star in the early 2020s who is now at the University of Virginia. “Whenever you saw him striding out on the field and coming to talk to you, you knew you were going to get a life lesson and learn something. You never forget it when he talked to you man to man.”
Some players got especially close to Moran, either through their play, their personalities, or the responsibility thrust upon them.
Moran used to talk all the time about two players who were special to the program: Jimmy Regan and Ronnie Winchester. Both went into the military after graduating from Chaminade.
Winchester was killed while on foot patrol in western Iraq in September 2004. Regan died in February, 2007 when a roadside bomb exploded outside his Humvee.
Each season, Chaminade and Manhasset play a “Regs Rock” charity game in honor of Regan, and one Flyers player is chosen by his teammates each season to wear Regan’s old No. 19.
Balsamo got that honor in 2022.
“One of the most important things that has ever happened to me,” Balsamo said. “It’s a holy thing, and (Coach Moran) made sure you knew that. He told you you were temporarily holding something that’s going to last at Chaminade forever.
“You wanted to model your life after Jimmy Regan,” he said.
For O’Connell, one of Moran’s biggest strengths was knowing how to motivate different personalities.
“Some guys needed a kick in the butt all the time, while other guys always needed a pat on the back,” O’Connell said. “He builds confidence and builds kids up better than anyone I’ve ever been around.”
Multiple players interviewed for this story were happy to recall Moran’s quirks, such as joking when a player was having a lackadaisical practice: “What were you doing last night, out with Susie Cream Cheese?”
“Everybody’s girlfriend was Susie Cream Cheese,” remembered Pat Flaherty, now at the U.S. Naval Academy. “Same girlfriend for 30 years.”
But they all talked about his emotional control on the field; when chaos was reigning around them, late in a one-goal game or with a championship on the line, Moran kept his head and calmly offered instructions.
“I can’t remember him ever getting upset during a game,” McMahon said. “He would criticize and instruct, and he would certainly get his point across to you. But he stayed calm no matter what was going on.”
Liam Entenmann was an All-American goalie at Chaminade and a two-time national champion at Notre Dame in 2023-24.
He’s known Moran his whole life, as playing for the Flyers is a family tradition (his uncle, Ken, was the rare sophomore varsity player for Chaminade in 1981).
“He was always very big about serving, and being a leader, that’s part of why so many (Chaminade) players went into the military,” Entenmann said. “He constantly preached to us about leadership, and acting the right way, and using lessons learned to take with us.
“I know every day I’m grateful to have such a class act as Coach Moran be my coach. It was a true privilege playing for him.”
