Rowan University Men's Football

Pat Ruley completed his second season in 2025 as head coach of the Rowan Football Program where the team played in the postseason for the first time since 2014 season. The Profs capped an 8-2-1 season with a 26-20 win over Utica in the ECAC Bushnell Bowl. A total of 14 student-athletes were named all-conference including three marquee awards in the NJAC Defensive Player of the Year (Anthony Henriquez), the NJAC Offensive Rookie of the Year (Mordecai Ford) and the NJAC Defensive Player of the Year (Jaeden Everett). Additionally, Giaini Derameaux became the first Prof since the 2015 season to earn a D3football.com All-American honor. In his first season in 2024, Ruley guided the squad to a 6-4 record and a 4-2 mark in conference play, guiding a total of nine Profs to earn All-NJAC Honors including the NJAC Defensive Rookie of the Year in AJ Ryker. A Rowan alumnus, Ruley was named the eighth head football coach in Profs' history in June 2024, returning to Glassboro after spending six seasons as the associate head coach and defensive coordinator at Susquehanna University.   “After spending 40 years learning from coaches in all sports and in all levels, I have never had a better discussion than I did getting to know Pat Ruley. His views on recruiting, motivation, team building, staff building, and philosophy of football are filled with specific plans and passionate belief,” said Giannini. “He was a major force in making Susquehanna a Top 10 football program. I am beyond excited for what he can accomplish at Rowan, in one of the most successful athletic departments in the nation. He knows the potential of Rowan well as an alumnus with an All-American, All-Conference and NJAC Football Championship pedigree. Welcome home Coach Ruley!”   "Being the next head coach of the Rowan football program is a dream come true. My time as a student-athlete at Rowan created some of my strongest friendships and fondest lifelong memories. This place has such a rich tradition and I understand the standards and expectations that the alumni have for the program. Those high expectations are welcomed, and I wouldn't want it any other way,” said Ruley, a native of Margate, NJ.   “I want to thank (former) Dr. John Giannini for our conversation during my interview. I left that meeting feeling excited about the direction and vision for not only the football program, but the entire athletic department moving forward. My family and I are excited to be back in our home state and we couldn't be happier to plant our roots back in South Jersey,” said the coach.   “Our top priority with every decision we make in this program will always be about the student-athlete experience. My goal is to engage the alumni base and the current student body to be present and supportive in the next era of Rowan Football. We want to put a product on the field that will compete week in and week out. I can't wait to meet this team and get to work!"   Ruley arrived at Susquehanna in 2017 as defensive coordinator and inside linebackers coach and was promoted to associate head coach in 2023. He worked with the teams under head coach Tom Perkovich which compiled an overall record of 55-11. The River Hawks won two conference championships (Landmark, Centennial) and established themselves as a power in the East Region, qualifying for the NCAA Playoffs twice and being consistently ranked in the AFCA and D3football.com Top 25 polls. Susquehanna also posted four wins in the annual Centennial-MAC Bowl series during that time.   At Susquehanna, he coached four All-Americans, 11 D3football.com All-Region picks and 35 All-Centennial Conference selections, including the 2023 Landmark Conference Defensive Player of the Year and first team All-American Keith Green III.   He is responsible for molding the River Hawks’ defensive unit into a force, as the "Wild Dogs" routinely ranked among the top of the NCAA Division III defensive statistics. In 2023, SU led the Landmark Conference in every major defensive category and ranked seventh in the nation in total defense (231.5 ypg). In 2019, Susquehanna’s defense ranked among the nation’s leaders in seven different categories, becoming the only defense in any NCAA Division to be ranked in the Top 10 nationally in those categories.   Susquehanna put together back-to-back campaigns in 2022 and 2023 in which it went 10-0 during the regular season, won the conference titles and hosted NCAA Playoff games. The River Hawks reached the Top 10 for the first time in history during the 2023 campaign, peaking at number-nine in D3football.com’s poll, and ending the year ranked 14th in the nation.   Prior to joining the Susquehanna staff, Ruley was the special teams coordinator and linebackers coach at Alderson Broaddus University in 2016. He coached a pair of All-Conference selections at linebacker and punter, as part of the squad that won the Great Midwest Athletic Conference crown and had the second-ranked defense in NCAA Division II.   Ruley spent the 2014 and 2015 seasons at Muhlenberg College, serving as the outside linebackers coach. The Mules boasted the number-four rushing defense in the country in 2014 and in 2015, reached the NCAA Division III playoffs and earned selection to the Centennial-MAC Bowl.   He began his coaching career in 2013 at Division I Towson University as a defensive quality control coach and special teams assistant, helping the Tigers go 13-3 and make a trip to the NCAA FCS Championship game.     Ruley was a standout linebacker for the Profs from 2009 to 2012, earning All-NJAC honors twice. He was named a USA Sports College All-American in 2012 and was selected to play that year in the National Bowl, a bowl game for senior All-Americans. Ruley totaled 179 tackles and six sacks in 37 games (26 starts) and was a contributor on Rowan’s teams that went 28-12, won the 2010 NJAC title and made a trip to the NCAA Playoffs in 2012.   Ruley, who graduated from Atlantic City High School, received his bachelor’s degree in English from Rowan in 2013.   SUSQUEHANNA HEAD COACH TOM PERKOVICH: “Pat Ruley is an outstanding hire for Rowan!  Pat’s career at highly successful programs has prepared him very well for this position.  He has been an integral part of our success here at Susquehanna and will be greatly missed.  Pat is an excellent coach and recruiter with an incredible ability to motivate and connect with student-athletes. Coach Ruley understands the importance of relationships with others in athletics, people across campus, and alumni. This will serve the university well.  Rowan football is in great hands with Pat Ruley!     Rowan Coaching Record Season Overall NJAC Postseason 2024 6-4 4-2 2025 8-2-1 5-2 Asa S. Bushnell Bowl Champions TOTALS 14-6-1 9-4

Former Rowan standout Travelle Curry returns to his alma mater in 2022 to serve as the assistant defensive back coach. Curry played defensive back for the Profs from 2015 to 2018, where he was named to the All-NJAC Second Team Defense as a senior. Originally from Patterson, NJ, Curry played in 30 games during his career for the Profs where he registered 91 tackles and six interceptions. In 2018, he set the school record for pass break-ups with 18.   He graduated from Rowan in 2019 with his degree in health promotion and wellness management and was an intern with the Profs strength and conditioning program before going on to the same position at Saint Josephs University in 2022.  

Coach at Rowan University 

Ryne Morrison enters his third season with the Profs in 2026, serving as the team’s quarterbacks coach, pass game coordinator, and recruiting coordinator. The 2025 Rowan offense produced its most successful season in more than 20 years, averaging over 40 points and 440 yards per game during the regular season. The Profs ranked ninth nationally in passing efficiency, throwing for 27 touchdowns against just five interceptions while averaging 270 passing yards per game with a 65 percent completion rate. Second Team All-NJAC quarterback Nate Maiers and First Team All-NJAC wide receiver Michael Zarfati led a balanced passing attack that saw nine different players catch touchdown passes.  Running back Nunes Bukula earned First Team All-NJAC honors after completing the most decorated running back season in program history while finishing the season ranked in the top five in the NJAC in both receiving yards and touchdowns. Prior to joining head coach Pat Ruley’s staff, Morrison spent eight seasons at St. Joseph’s Preparatory School in Philadelphia (2016–23). During his tenure, the Hawks compiled a 96–8 record, captured six PIAA 6A state championships, and finished in the national top 10 four times. At The Prep, Morrison coached 18 First Team All-State quarterbacks and wide receivers, including All-Americans Marvin Harrison Jr. (Arizona Cardinals), Kyle McCord (Green Bay Packers), and D’Andre Swift (Chicago Bears). McCord was named the 2020 Pennsylvania Gatorade Player of the Year, while his successor, Samaj Jones, totaled 7,813 yards and 108 touchdowns over three seasons. Morrison played wide receiver at Colgate University from 2010 to 2013, earning a bachelor’s degree in mathematics. He also holds a master’s degree in coaching and athletic administration from Concordia University.    

Andrew Kirkland joins the Rowan Football staff for the 2025 season where he will coordinate Special Teams and assist with the linebackers. Last season, Kirkland was the defensive backs coach at Washington & Lee where he helped mold two All-ODAC and one D3football.com All-Region selections. Prior to W&L, he spent nine seasons at Division I Monmouth University where he was the linebackers coach. Kirkland was also the director of football operations for two seasons for the Hawks as well (2022, 2023). Kirkland coached for three seasons at Colgate, his alma mater, where the Raiders captured a pair of Patriot League titles. He spent two of those seasons mentoring the defensive backs, a position he starred at for as a student-athlete. After spending 2013 working with the team's outside linebackers, Kirkland shifted back to the secondary in 2014. In his first year back with the Raiders, he helped coach Colgate to its eighth Patriot League Championship in 2012. Kirkland has also spent time coaching at Wesleyan University in Connecticut for two seasons and one at King’s College. He played defensive back for Colgate's 2005 Patriot League championship team before gaining his first coaching experience as a student assistant during his senior season, which he missed because of injury. Kirkland helped guide the Raiders to another Patriot League title that fall before moving on to King's in 2009. Kirkland is a native of Voorhees, N.J., and played football at Eastern High School.    

Charles Faisst is in his fifth year at Rowan and in 2022, will serve as the defensive line coach. Previously, he worked with the tight ends after two seasons as the assistant defensive line coach.   Prior to joining the Profs’ staff, he spent seven years as the offensive and defensive lines coach at his alma mater, Oakcrest High School, with the last two as the head offensive line coach. Faisst also spent one year as the head offensive and defensive line coach at Clayton High School in 2001.   He enjoyed a six-year career in minor league football from 2010 to 2016, where he was a five-time league All-Star and four-year team captain. While playing for the South Jersey Storm in 2011, Faisst led the East Coast Football Association (ECFA) in sacks with 12. During his career, he also played for the South Jersey Generals, the Cecil County Raiders and then closed out his career in the North East Atlantic Football League (NEAFL) with the New Castle Saints in 2015 and the Delco Cowboys in 2016. A four-year captain in high school, he played at William Paterson University for three years before playing his final season at Rowan in 2000. Faisst, who received his bachelor’s degree in law and justice from Rowan in 2001, was a three-year starter during his college career on both the offensive and defensive lines.   Faisst, a graduate of the 140th class of the New Jersey State Police, he is a 17-year member of the force and is currently a Staff Sergeant.   Originally from Mays Landing, NJ, he and his wife Melissa have six children - Sylvia, Ella, Lincoln, Lyla, Theodore and Dorothy.   

Dave Ellen joined the Rowan staff in 2018 and will serve as the tight ends' coach in 2022, after previously working with the wide receivers.   Ellen had a highly successful tenure as head coach at Bridgeton High School, amassing 111 wins from 1998 to 2017. His program won the 1999 Group 2 South Sectional State Championship and captured a pair of Cape Atlantic League National Division titles (1999, 2013), while posting an 11-8 record in nine playoff appearances. He received multiple Coach of the Year honors, for the Cape Atlantic League in 1999, and was named the top coach by the Atlantic City Press in 2013 and by the Vineland Daily Journal in both 2011 and 2013. As an assistant coach at Bridgeton from 1988 to 1997, he saw the squad win the 1997 Group 2 South Sectional State title.   He was inducted into the New Jersey Scholastic Coaches Association Hall of Fame in 2011 and into the South Jersey Football Coaches Hall of Fame in 2015 and received the 2018 National Football Foundation Outstanding Contributor to Amateur Football Award. For his accomplishments at the high school level, Ellen was inducted into the New Jersey Scholastic Coaches Association Hall of Fame in 2011 and into the South Jersey Football Coaches Hall of Fame in 2015.    Ellen, who also served as the head baseball coach at Bridgeton from 1989 to 2001, has taught health and physical education at the school for the past 30 years, and was named the Teacher of the Year in 2018. The Glassboro State graduate was a member of the Profs' baseball team in 1984.    He and Patty, his wife of more than 30 years, have two children, Nick and Amanda.      

Dante Waugh returned to Rowan for the 2024 season and is serving as cornerbacks coach after spending a year working with Pat Ruley at Susquehanna. A graduate of Rowan, Waugh returns to New Jersey, having served as an assistant coach for two years at Winslow Township High School prior to joining Susquehanna in 2023. A wide receiver in college, he played his first two years at Alderson Broaddus University in 2017 and 2018 before transferring to Bowie State. Waugh ended up earning his bachelor's degree from Rowan in Sports Communications and Media with a concentration in Public Relations and Advertising. Waugh, a native of Erial, NJ, was an All-Conference player at Timber Creek High School where he played on both sides of the ball. He earned All-Conference Offensive First Team honors for three years (2014, 2015, 2016) as a wide receiver and was a two-time All-Conference First Team selection on defense as a cornerback. A member of Timber Creek's state champion team in 2016, Waugh was also named All-South Jersey First Team Defense and All-Group 3 South Second Team in both offense (2014, 2015) and defense (2016).