CNR Athletic Director Harold Crocker to be Inducted into Iona College Athletic Hall of Fame

The College of New Rochelle Director of Athletics and the Wellness Center Harold Crocker is among five stellar former Iona College student-athletes and coaches that will be inducted into the Goal Club Hall of Fame during the 33rd Annual Goal Club Hall of Fame Golf Outing on Monday, June 2, 2014 at Wykagyl Country Club in New Rochelle.

Crocker served as Iona’s head football coach for 13 seasons from 1985 through 1997. He was the longest tenured and winningest coach in Iona College football history. In 1989, Crocker was named the Liberty Conference Coach of the Year after posting an 8-2 season record. He guided the Gaels to a 7-2-1 mark in 1991.

Crocker led the program through its transition from Division III to Division I-AA. In the program’s first season in the newly formed MAAC Football League, Crocker led the Gaels to a league title. Iona posted a 9-1 record during the regular season and made an ECAC Bowl appearance vs. Wagner. The nine wins in 1993 matched the program record and is the school record during the varsity era. For his efforts, Crocker was named both MAAC and ECAC Coach of the Year.

Among the many talented student-athletes he mentored at Iona, Crocker coached Goal Club Hall of Famers Kyle Flood, Tom Proudian, and John Schachinger. Flood is the current head coach at Rutgers University and Proudian and Schachinger are one of the top offensive and defensive players respectively in program history.

Prior to Iona, Crocker was head coach at New Rochelle High School and guided the Huguenots to the 1980 New York State Championship with a perfect 10-0 season. After Iona he served as a regional scout for the National Football League’s New York Giants. Crocker was inducted into the City of New Rochelle’s Athletic Hall of Fame in 1994.

He has served as CNR’s Director of Athletics and the Wellness Center since 1998 and has guided the Blue Angels to an athletic resurgence that has included four conference championships in the last five years among the College’s six NCAA Division III programs.  Crocker was also instrumental in the opening of the Wellness Center in 2008.  One of the best facilities in the Hudson Valley, the Wellness Center is the home of the Blue Angel basketball, swimming, and volleyball programs, regularly hosts conference and regional championships, special events, and has received numerous accolades, including a LEED-Silver certification.

A 1974 graduate of Central Connecticut State University with a Baccalaureate Degree in physical education, Crocker captained the 1973 Blue Devils to a 9-1 record.  He later earned a master’s in special education from The College of New Rochelle in 1978 and received his Professional Diploma in School Administration and Supervision from Iona College in 1993. He also holds New York State certifications in physical education, special education, and school district administration.

Learn more about the Blue Angels at CNRAthletics.com.