Ewing, NJ … Eric Hamilton, the head coach of The College of New Jersey football program for the past 35 years, was honored by the American Football Coaches Association (AFCA) at its annual banquet in Nashville, Tennessee as their newest member of the Club 35.
Club 35 honors individuals for their longtime commitment to the sport. It is a support group made up of AFCA 35-Year members who will be the “eyes and ears of the AFCA,” according to Executive Director Grant Teaff.
“It is an honor to be recognized by the AFCA,” noted Hamilton, a 1975 graduate of Trenton State College. “It means much more to me, though, that I receive his honor having spent all 35 years in the sport coaching at the same institution. The College has been my home for 40 years, and it is sometimes difficult to grasp all of the relationships I have that were born from one special place.”
Members represent the AFCA in their areas of the country, calling on coaches in times of need and alerting the AFCA office to any difficult situations that may arise for a coach. They are also involved in promoting the AFCA and promoting membership in the Association, primarily at the high school level, in their regional locations. Membership in Club 35 also includes the opportunity to attend a special session at the AFCA Convention dedicated to the group.
Hamilton began his coaching career at the ripe age of 23, and at the time, was the youngest collegiate head coach in the country. During his tenure as head coach, the Lions have advanced to the NCAA Division IIII championship tournament five times: 1990, 1996, 1997, 1998, and 2007. They also garnered a pair of ECAC tournament bids in 1995 and 2003.
Under Hamilton, the Lions football program has enjoyed 22 winning seasons and eight conference championships
(two as a member of the New Jersey State Athletic Conference and six in the New Jersey Athletic Conference). The first in school history came in 1980 when his squad compiled an 8-1-1 record. They added conference titles in 1983, 1988, 1990, 1994, 1996, 1998, and 2007.
In 2010, Hamilton became the 12th coach in NCAA Division III history to garner his 200th win, claiming all of those victories as head coach of the Lions' program. Since taking over as head coach in 1977, he has compiled a career record of 212-144-6. Hamilton currently ranks fifth in the nation amongst active Division III coaches in career wins.
A graduate of Bordentown High School, he was a scholar-athlete at Trenton State College and an all-conference performer for three consecutive seasons. Hamilton left his mark at TSC in 1974 when the team captain became the first Lions football player to earn All-American honors receiving berths on the Kodak, Associated Press (AP) and United Press International (UPI) teams. In 1995, he was inducted into TCNJ's Athletic Hall of Fame.
Hamilton has received numerous coaching accolades during his career including being selected Coach of the Year by the New Jersey College Football Writers Association two consecutive seasons in 1980 and 1981. Hamilton earned NJAC Coach of the Year honors in 1983, 1990, 1994, 1996, 1998 and 2007 and was also cited by D3football.com as the East Region Coach of the Year as well after guiding the Lions to the NCAA's in 2007.
