Mike Blaine Named Head Men's Basketball Coach at Plattsburgh
Brian Savard, Assistant Director of Athletics for Communications
PLATTSBURGH, N.Y. – Mike Blaine, who has served as the head coach at Medaille College—an NCAA Division III school located in Buffalo, N.Y.—the past five seasons, has been named the 11th head men's basketball coach at Plattsburgh State in the 83-year history of the program. Blaine takes over the program after the retirement of former head coach Tom Curle '82, who became the Director of Athletics at William Peace University this summer following a highly-successful 16-year career at Plattsburgh State.
"I am absolutely thrilled today to announce the hiring of Mike Blaine as our next head men's basketball coach," Plattsburgh State Director of Intercollegiate Athletics and Recreation Mike Howard said. "It has been a pleasure getting to know him throughout the interview process, and I could not be more excited to welcome Mike, his wife, Kara, and their daughter, Erin, to Cardinal Country. Mike has enjoyed success at all levels: as a player, as an assistant coach and, most recently, as a head coach over the past five years. He is also recognized as a man of exceptional character with an intense passion for developing well-rounded student-athletes."
"I would be remiss if I did not thank former head coach Tom Curle for his commitment to Cardinal Basketball," Howard continued. "His success on the court and his mentorship of our student-athletes off the court have positioned our program well for much continued success. I would also like to thank the search committee for their work throughout this process. We had an exceptional pool of candidates, and they devoted many hours to this process."
Medaille won two Allegheny Mountain Collegiate Conference (AMCC) championships under Blaine's direction, including most recently in 2016-17 when he earned AMCC Coach of the Year honors. He posted an 84-55 career overall record (63-27 AMCC) during his time at Medaille and qualified for the AMCC Tournament every year. Blaine's Mavericks made two NCAA Division III Tournament appearances during his time in Buffalo.
In addition to his coaching duties at Medaille, he served as the AMCC's representative on the NCAA Division III Great Lakes Regional Advisory Committee for men's basketball from 2016-18 and oversaw the department's NCAA compliance and student services.
Prior to Medaille, Blaine worked as an assistant coach at Division I Cornell University of the Ivy League from 2010-14 on head coach Bill Courtney's staff. He served as the program's primary admissions, alumni relations and game scheduling liaison and managed recruiting efforts in the Mid-Atlantic and Midwest regions of the United States.
Blaine also coached for two seasons as an assistant at Division I University of Maryland Eastern Shore, one season as an assistant at Division III Hampden-Sydney College, one season as an assistant at Division I Radford University, two seasons as the director of basketball operations at Division I Army West Point and one season as the director of basketball operations at Division I James Madison University.
As an undergraduate student-athlete, Blaine competed for Johns Hopkins University for four years, helping lead the Blue Jays to a 67-34 overall record during his tenure there. He finished his career ranked fifth in program history in field goal percentage (.572) and 10th in blocked shots (50). Blaine also helped Johns Hopkins defeat Navy, 66-61, on Dec. 4, 2002, marking the Blue Jays' first win over a Division I team under head coach Bill Nelson.
"To be the head coach at Plattsburgh State is an incredible opportunity," Blaine said. "It is a highly regarded program in the SUNYAC and the East Region. I am looking forward to meeting the team and building relationships across campus and in the Plattsburgh community. I would like to thank Mike Howard and the search committee for their confidence in me."
"Our program principles at Plattsburgh State will be centered around integrity, intensity and intelligence," Blaine continued. "We're going to act on and off the court with the highest level of integrity. We're going to play with a sustained intensity, and we are going to be intelligent in our practices and in everything we do. We will educate our student-athletes in all phases of their life: personal, academic and basketball. If we uphold these principles, I believe there are no limits to the success that can be achieved for Plattsburgh State men's basketball."
Blaine earned his Bachelor of Arts in political science and sociology from Johns Hopkins in 2003 and his Master of Arts in organizational leadership from Medaille in 2017.
The Cardinals will host a press conference to formally introduce Blaine next week at a date and time to be announced.
