Jay Accorsi completed his 22nd season as the head coach of the Rowan University football team in 2023 and is the longest-tenured coach in school history and the program’s all-time leader in victories with 143.
Accorsi, who became the seventh head coach in school history in 2002 after nine years as an assistant coach, has guided Rowan to seven appearances in the NCAA Division III Championship Tournament, two trips to the national semifinals and seven New Jersey Athletic Conference (NJAC) championships. His head coaching record stands at 143-78 in 22 seasons at Rowan while his overall college coaching career spans 34 years.
Due to Accorsi’s guidance and work in the community, Rowan Athletics was named the recipient of the Dr. Harry Gamble Coaches Award by the Adam Taliaferro Foundation. The Profs have annually provided ongoing support for the foundation’s events and has previously hosted the ATF Football Classic.
The 2023 squad went 4-2 in the NJAC to finish in a second-place tie in the league, while going 5-5 overall. The Profs placed 11 players on the All-NJAC Team, while two players (Nate Meiers, Carter Williams) were named the top rookies.
Accorsi’s 2022 Profs won five of their last six games to go 7-3 for the most victories since 2014. Rowan, which went 4-2 in the NJAC to post the best conference record since 2018, placed eight players on the All-Conference team, including four first-team selections.
Rowan returned to action in 2021 after the 2020 season was canceled due to the pandemic, and posted a 2-7 record. The 2019 Profs faced a challenging schedule with four opponents either ranked or receiving votes in the Top 25. Rowan finished the season strong, winning three of its last four games to notch a 4-3 record in conference play, and a 4-6 mark overall. The Profs didn't get a chance to build on that momentum as the 2020 season was canceled due to the Covid-19 pandemic. Returning from the layoff after the pandemic, they battled and picked up a late-season win over William Paterson and ended the year on a high note with a 35-21 win at TCNJ.
The 2018 season saw the Profs get back on the winning track with 6-4 record and go 5-4 in the NJAC. Elijah Rehm was named to the D3football.com All-America Second Team as he set numerous Rowan marks for returns. In 2016, the Profs were 6-4 overall and 5-4 in the NJAC with seven players earning All-Conference honors, including first teamers Ryan Brenner and Bobby Barbieri.
In 2015, Rowan finished with a 6-4 record (5-4 NJAC), while 14 Profs were named to the All-Conference team, including Sam Mills Defensive Player of the Year Darren Dungee. Dungee also received ECAC South Defensive Player of the Year and D3football.com All-America honors. In 2014, the Profs posted a 7-4 record and went 6-1 in the NJAC to earn a share of the conference championship and receive an automatic bid to the NCAA Championship Tournament. Accorsi was chosen the NJAC Co-Coach of the Year and 15 players earned All-Conference honors. Linebacker Tyler Jenkins was selected to the American Football Coaches Association (AFCA) All-America team while running back Withler Marcelin received D3football.com All-America honorable mention.
Rowan compiled a 9-3 overall record and a 6-1 conference mark in 2013 while taking a share of the NJAC title. The Profs received the league's automatic bid to the national tournament and defeated Endicott College, 24-0, in the first round. In 2012, Accorsi guided the Profs to a 7-3 season, and second place in the NJAC with a 6-1 mark. That earned Rowan an at-large bid into the NCAA Championships.
In 2010, the Profs were 9-1 overall and 8-1 in the conference to earn a share of the NJAC title with Montclair State and SUNY Cortland. Rowan posted a 7-3 record in 2009 and an 8-2 mark in 2008. In 2006, the Profs went 9-3 and won their third consecutive NJAC Championship, and fifth in six years. Accorsi's squad also advanced to the quarterfinals of the national tournament.
The 2005 season was a stellar one for Rowan and Accorsi. The Profs went 11-2, won the NJAC Championship and reached the semifinals of the NCAA Division III Championship Tournament for the second consecutive season. Accorsi was selected as the NJAC Coach of the Year and received the Maxwell Football Club Tri-State Coach of the Year Award. That followed a 10-3 campaign in 2004 which saw Rowan reach the semifinals of the national tournament, and after achieving a 7-3 record in 2003.
In his first year as head coach in 2002, Accorsi guided the Profs to a 10-1 record, the conference title and their 10th appearance in the NCAA Division III Championship Tournament. That effort led him being named the NJAC Coach of the Year.
Prior to coming to Rowan as a graduate assistant in 1993, Accorsi was an assistant football and baseball coach at his alma mater, Nichols College in Dudley, MA, from 1989-93.
The native of Somers, CT, graduated from Nichols in 1985 with a bachelor's degree in business administration. He earned a master's in sports science from the U.S. Sports Academy (Daphne, AL) in 1992 and a master's in business administration from Rowan in 1997.
He is a member of the AFCA, Maxwell Football Club and the New Jersey Football Coaches Association and is on the South Jersey Chapter of the National Football Foundation committee. Accorsi served as a NCAA representative during the 2007 NCAA Division III Championship Tournament. He is on the Adam Taliaferro Foundation Advisory Committee and previously served on the NCAA Division III East Region Advisory Committee as well as the AFCA Program and Rules & Exhibits Committees. Accorsi is a voting member of the AFCA Division III Coaches Poll and the chair of the AFCA Division III All-America Team Selection Committee.
At Rowan, Accorsi has been an advisor for Delta Phi Epsilon sorority and served on the Campus Aesthetics and Environmental Concerns Committee. He has been involved with the Peer Referral Orientation and Staff (PROS) program and has represented the athletic department at freshman and transfer orientations. He has initiated and participated in several service programs at the University, including: Coach to Cure MD, Campus Clean and Green, Adopt-A-Family Thanksgiving Basket Program through the Aids Coalition of Southern New Jersey, Get in the Game. Save A Life. Bone Marrow Registry, Gloucester County Clean Communities Program, Town of Glassboro Clean Up Day and adopting the DeFillipo family through the Friends of Jaclyn Foundation.
Accorsi continually attends various high school and youth organization clinics and is a common presenter for a wide variety of clinics and organizations. He has been the guest speaker for the Dr. Warren J. McClain Memorial Touchdown Club of Southern New Jersey and the Brooks-Irvine Memorial Football Club. In addition, Accorsi has been a speaker at the South Jersey Football Coaches Association Hall of Fame/Adam Taliaferro Foundation All-Star Banquet.
Accorsi and his wife, Nancy, have three children -Â Gabrielle, Rachel and Jack.
Accorsi's Recruiting Areas/Schools:
Bergen County Schools – Bergen Catholic, Bogota,  Don Bosco, Fair Lawn, Glen Rock, Hackensack, Indian Hills, Mahwah, Midland Park/Waldwick, Northern Highland, Paramus, Paramus Catholic, Park Ridge, Pascack Hills, Ramapo, Ramsey, Ridgewood,  St. Joes Montvale, Teaneck, Tenafly, and Westwood
Hudson County
All of New England
Junior Colleges
Prep Schools
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