March 25, 2004

Fordham University head football coach Ed Foley has announced the formation of his staff, hiring five new assistant coaches to join three members of last year's staff.

The returning coaches are Joe Tricario, Jeff Skelton and Kieta Malloy. Tricario will continue his duties as the Defensive Coordinator while also being responsible for the Defensive Backs while Skelton is being promoted to Offensive Coordinator and Quarterbacks in 2004 after serving as the Wide Receiver Coach the past three years. Malloy, who joined the staff prior to the 2003 season, will move from Tight Ends Coach to Running Backs Coach.

The new additions to the Fordham staff include: Jim Miceli, who will serve as the Recruiting Coordinator and be responsible for the Linebackers; Andrew Cohen, who will coach the Defensive Line; Mark Melnitsky, who will lead the Offensive Line; Joseph Dougherty, who will coach the Wide Receivers; and Brandon Walker, who will serve as the Assistant Offensive Line Coach.

Miceli arrives at Rose Hill after spending the past five years as the head coach at Bryant College in Smithfield, Rhode Island. At Bryant, he started the football program from scratch, recording a winning record in the programs' first year. He established the school as a significant player in the Northeast-10 Conference, with a recruiting network that spanned the Northeast, the Mid-Atlantic region, Florida, and Texas. Since the program's inception, Bryant produced seven Verizon District I Academic All-America selections, including the 2001 ECAC Division II Scholar-Athlete of the Year.

Prior to his stay at Bryant, Miceli served as an Assistant Coach at the University of Maryland from 1993-97. He served as the Recruiting Coordinator for the Terps, bringing in the ninth ranked recruiting class in the nation in 1995 as well as several other Top 20 classes. On the field, he was the coordinator for the short yardage goal line option game from 1993-95 and also coached the tight ends and receivers in 1993 and 1994 and the tights ends and offensive line in 1995.

Miceli also spent two years as an Assistant Coach at the University of Pittsburgh from 1992-93, being responsible for tights ends and tackles.

The head coach at Ramapo College in Ramapo, New Jersey from 1988-92, Miceli took over a program that had gone 1-29-1 in the previous three years, and led the Roadrunners to a four-year record of 32-9. A 1990 National Coach of the Year finalist, he earned New Jersey Athletic Conference Coach of the Year Honors that fall.

Miceli is a 1979 graduate from Southern Connecticut State University where he received a degree in Physical Education, Recreation and General Science.

Cohen comes to Fordham after spending the last four years as the Defensive Coordinator and Recruiting Coordinator at Stony Brook University. He helped the Seawolves to a 14-6 record over the past two seasons, including an 8-2 slate in 2002.

Cohen's 2002 defense at Stony Brook ranked as the third scoring defense in the country, and sixth overall, while this year's defense held opponents to under 14 points in eight of the ten games. This past fall, three members of the Stony Brook defense earned All-Northeast Conference honors.

The brother of former Fordham Defensive Coordinator and current University of Delaware Defensive Coordinator Dave Cohen, Andrew Cohen gained Patriot League experience as an Assistant Coach at Bucknell University from 1995-2000. He was responsible for the defensive line in 1995, 1996 and 1999 while coaching the linebacker in 1997 and 1998.

A 1993 graduate of Marist College with a degree in Public Relations, Cohen got his start in coaching at Stony Brook from 1993-94 where he served as the defensive line coach.

Melnitsky recently served as the Offensive Coordinator/Offensive Line Coach at Widener University in Chester, Pennsylvania this past season where he was responsible for implementing and coordinating all facets of the offense, helping the Pioneers average over 31 points per game.

Before coaching at Widener, Melnitsky was the Offensive Coordinator/Offensive Line Coach at Ursinus College from 2001-02 and the Offensive Assistant at the University of Pennsylvania from 2000-01.

A 1997 graduate of Hamilton College with a Bachelor of Arts degree with a concentration in Government, Melnitsky earned three letters with the football team and served as the team captain as a senior. Following graduation, he stayed on at Hamilton, serving as the Offensive Intern in 1997 before moving to Trinity College as a Graduate Assistant from 1998-99.

Dougherty joins the Fordham staff after serving as the wide receivers coach at Lafayette College last fall. He joined the Leopards staff last year after two years at Rowan University where he was responsible for the quarterbacks as well as serving as the Recruiting Coordinator for the Profs. The 2002 Rowan team finished the season with a perfect 10-0 record and advanced to the NCAA Division III tournament while the 2001 team went 11-2, falling in the national semifinals.

Dougherty earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Biology with a minor in Psychology from Dickinson College in 1999. He was a four-year letterman in football at Dickinson, while also lettering in indoor and outdoor track and field.

Walker, the youngest member of the staff, comes to Fordham after serving as a Graduate Assistant Coach at the University of Delaware the past two years, helping the Blue Hens to the 2003 NCAA I-AA National Championship. At Delaware he was responsible for all defensive film breakdowns and cut-ups and for recruiting Western Pennsylvania.

Walker received his start in coaching at Willowbrook High School in Villa Park, Illinois in 2001 before moving to Henderson State University as a Graduate Assistant Coach in the spring of 2002.

A 2001 graduate of Elmhurst College where he received as Bachelor of Arts degree in Physical Education, Walker was a four-year starter on the offensive line for the Blue Jays.