Reports: UMBC Hires James Purpura to Lead Men's Lacrosse Program

UMBC is set to hire Ohio State offensive coordinator James Purpura as its next men’s lacrosse head coach, according to Prep Lacrosse’s Ty Xanders, who confirmed the news originally reported by the Nothing Near Post Show on X. 

Purpura spent one season with the Buckeyes. He previously was the head coach for five years at VMI, culminating in the 2025 campaign in which he led the Keydets to a program Division I-record 10 wins behind the nation’s No. 2 scoring offense. He’ll take the helm of a historically successful UMBC team that found itself mired in controversy over the last year.

According to reporting by the Baltimore Sun, then-head coach Ryan Moran was placed on administrative leave last September after UMBC opened an investigation stemming from allegations of bullying and sexual misconduct between players. Assistant coach Craig Chick took over as interim head coach.

In February, Moran's attorney publicly stated that Moran had been cleared to return, but UMBC did not reinstate him. On April 9, following the conclusion of its investigation, UMBC announced that it had terminated Moran's employment. The university said only that the decision followed the completed investigation and was consistent with its institutional standards and the culture it seeks to build within its athletics department. It did not publicly release detailed findings.

Moran, who had coached the Retrievers since 2016, disputed the university's action and maintained he had done nothing warranting dismissal. He had been one of the America East's more successful coaches before the controversy. Morgan guided UMBC to a conference championship and NCAA tournament appearance in 2019, as well regular season titles in 2021 and 2025.

The Retrievers are coming off a 6-7 season in which they started 1-6, won five straight games to close the regular season and fell to eventual America East champion UAlbany in the conference semifinals.

Ohio State's staff under longtime head coach Nick Myers will have an entirely different look in 2027. In addition to Purpura's departure, associate head coach Travis Crane and assistant coach Justin Tuma have stepped away from college lacrosse, focusing on other pursuits.

Myers tabbed Mercer head coach Ryan Danehy and Bucknell defensive coordinator Kyle Gallagher to take over the offense and defense, respectively.