May 4, 2010
By Adam Wicks, Penn State Athletic Communications Student Assistant
The sport of lacrosse has seen dramatic change over the past 80 years. As a relatively new sport to most people, lacrosse saw an immense amount of transformation and development in the 20th century. In 1935, college lacrosse was a completely different animal than it is today, and the man in charge of taming that animal at Penn State was Nick Thiel.
Thiel was Penn State's head lacrosse coach from 1935-56, and was the man responsible for keeping the program afloat through a great deal of adversity. In a time when recruiting was nonexistent, sticks were made of wood, and few guys even knew what lacrosse was before coming to college, Thiel was the man who would teach them the game. As a head coach during that time period, he was responsible for teaching his team the fundamentals, explaining the rules of the game and coaching his players into elite college level performers, all in just four years.
Thiel did all this and more, establishing a foundation for the Penn State men's lacrosse program, keeping the program stable through the late stages of the Great Depression and into World War II, and ensuring that the program would be in able hands for many years to come. As the program continued to develop and Thiel continued to write his story as a Penn State lacrosse legend, his character, conduct and values were helping to mold a future Penn State lacrosse coach in his son, Glenn.
From a young age Glenn Thiel knew his future would be in the game of lacrosse.
"Even before we ever played the game, we spent a lot of time with sticks in our hands," Glenn Thiel said. "There was no high school lacrosse, there was no opportunity to play until you got to Penn State."
A high school and collegiate wrestler, Glenn Thiel learned the importance of hard work and determination long before he played competitive lacrosse. These values combined with his experience handling a lacrosse stick growing up provided the younger Thiel with an advantage over many other Penn State lacrosse players at that time.
Nick Thiel was promoted to an athletic administration position at Penn State in 1956, a position he would hold until he retired in 1974. In that span, Glenn donned the Penn State blue and white as a midfielder, scoring 27 goals with six assists in his senior season before graduating in 1966.
Upon his graduation from Penn State, Glenn Thiel knew he would be following in his father's footsteps. "I always wanted to go into coaching, I always knew I would do that," he said. "It was in my blood."
Nick Thiel |
Glenn would go on to coach the Virginia Cavaliers from 1970-77, leading them to an NCAA Championship in 1972. After his seven-year stint at Virginia, Glenn Thiel found himself taking a new job, one that he was all too familiar with. Glenn returned to his alma mater to take his father's old job and coach the Nittany Lions in 1977, and has been in Happy Valley ever since.
Thiel recognizes the foundation his father laid down for the future of Penn State lacrosse better than anyone. "It lends stability, people know to expect and they know the tradition, it certainly helped in a lot of ways," Thiel said.
Since taking the reigns in 1977, Glenn Thiel has amassed more than 200 wins in the blue and white. Thiel has guided the team to an NCAA Tournament appearance and an ECAC conference title, while establishing himself has one of the key figures in college lacrosse.
Over the past 33 seasons, Glenn Thiel has made a name for himself and Penn State lacrosse, a name that is synonymous with hard work, grit and determination. Senior Joe Britt, a co-captain for the 2010 season, is in his fourth year under Glenn Thiel, and can speak to the focus that Thiel puts on these aspects of the game.
"On the field he stresses the little things and fundamentals," Britt said. "There is nothing he likes more then a player who just works hard to do the little things right. He really stresses a blue collar, tough mentality."
Thiel credits his view of the game to his father, who, according to Glenn, "emphasized having fun and working hard" throughout Glenn's childhood. While much has changed in Glenn Thiel's 33 years behind the Lions' bench, his approach has remained the same. As the game slowly progressed and changed over the years, Glenn Thiel continued to adapt his coaching style, while maintaining an emphasis on all aspects of the game, always striving to make sure that he was putting "complete players" on the field.
No one appreciates Thiel's knowledge of the game more than his players. Known nationally in the lacrosse community as one of the great minds of the game, his expertise in all facets of the sport offer Penn State lacrosse players a learning experience unlike any other.
"Coach [Thiel] has been around for so long that he has been through tons of changes and revolutions in the game," says Britt. "Playing for someone who has withstood the revolution of lacrosse is a real big honor. There isn't a situation on or off the field that he hasn't had to deal with."
Glenn Thiel is a member of the Virginia lacrosse Hall of Fame, is a former member of the executive board of the USILA, is a past member of the United States Lacrosse Coaches Association executive board, and has over 300 wins in his coaching career. But even Glenn Thiel isn't quite sure how much longer he will be calling the shots for the Nittany Lions, as the end of this year will mark is 43rd season as a head coach. When Glenn Thiel leaves his office in the East Area Locker Building for the last time however, he can do so knowing that he has continued the work his father started, and placed a program with unbelievable tradition in the hands of his successor.