Joe Brown has led Cortland to a combined 553-152-3 record, 15 NCAA Division III tournament appearances, eight World Series showings and 13 State University of New York Athletic Conference (SUNYAC) titles in his first 15 seasons (2000-14) as the Red Dragons’ head coach. His .783 winning percentage (prior to the 2014 season) was the best of any active coach nationally (NCAA Div. I, II or III) with at least 10 years experience, and the third-best all-time among all Div. III coaches with 10 years as a head coach.
Brown has been named the American Baseball Coaches Association (ABCA) New York Region Coach of the Year nine times (2000, 2001, 2005, 2007, 2008, 2010, 2011, 2012 and 2014) and the SUNYAC Coach of the Year on four occasions (2004, 2005, 2007 and 2008). He was also the inaugural winner of the Eastern College Athletic Conference (ECAC) Upstate New York Division III Coach of the Year award in 2009 and was the D3baseball.com East Region Coach of the Year in 2014. Twenty-four of his players have been chosen as All-Americans, including six who were also selected in the professional baseball draft. In all, 17 of Brown’s players have advanced to play professionally, including two selections in the 2006 draft, one in 2007 and one in 2009.
In 2014, Brown has guided Cortland to a 36-10 record, a SUNYAC title and a tie for fifth place nationally at the World Series. The program reached the 30-win mark for the 14th time in Brown's tenure and extended its streak of NCAA Div. III tournament appearances to 22 straight years – the longest active run nationally.
In 2013, Brown guided Cortland to a 38-11 record. Cortland won the SUNYAC title and tied for ninth nationally after finishing second at the NCAA Div. III New York Regional. In 2012, Brown led the Red Dragons to a 41-9-1 record, a SUNYAC title and a fourth-place national finish at the World Series. The team posted its fifth 40-win season under Brown.
In 2011, Cortland qualified for the NCAA Div. III playoffs, finished 36-10, won the SUNYAC title and tied for ninth nationally after placing second at the NCAA Div. III New York Regional. In 2010, Brown led Cortland to a 40-10-1 record and a second-place national finish at the NCAA Div. III World Series. The national runner-up showing was Cortland's second, both under Brown, with the first coming in 2005.
In 2009, Brown led Cortland to a 31-14 mark. The Red Dragons won the SUNYAC title and qualified for the NCAA Division III playoffs. In 2008, Brown's team enjoyed a 42-5 season that featured a school-record 38-game winning streak. Cortland won the NCAA New York Regional title and tied for seventh place at the World Series. In 2007, Brown guided Cortland to a 42-7 record and a fourth-place national finish with a 2-2 mark at the World Series.
Brown's 2005 squad finished second nationally and enjoyed the highest win total in school history with a 43-9-1 record. His 2000 and 2001 squads also won NCAA New York Regional titles and tied for fifth nationally each year. His 2003 and 2006 teams each tied for ninth nationally and his 2002 and 2004 teams both tied for 17th.
In 2000, Brown had the best season of any Cortland first-year head baseball coach, leading the Red Dragons to a 36-9 record, an NCAA Division III New York Region title and a tie for fifth place at the World Series. In 2001, his squad finished 34-11, winning a regional title and once again tying for fifth nationally at the World Series. In 2002, Cortland finished the season 31-11 and participated in the NCAA Division III regionals.
In 2003, the Red Dragons were 35-11, advanced to the championship game of the NCAA regionals and finished tied for ninth nationally. In 2004, the Red Dragons finished 29-16 and earned one of three national “Pool C” at-large tournament berths. In 2006, Cortland posted a 39-9 record and advanced to the NCAA regional finals.
Prior to his promotion to head coach, Brown was the top assistant coach and pitching coach for Cortland teams that made seven straight NCAA Division III tournament appearances from 1993 to 1999 and four World Series showings between 1995 and 1999. He also assisted with team recruiting duties. His Cortland hurlers were ranked in the top 25 nationally in team earned run average for five of six seasons between 1994-99. During that time, four Cortland pitchers earned All-America honors and two were drafted professionally.
From 1992-99, Brown was the head coach of the Ithaca Lakers in the summer Northeastern Collegiate Baseball League (NCBL). The most successful coach in league history, he led the Lakers to three league titles, three runner-up finishes and two third-place showings in eight seasons. He coached more than 25 players who moved on to the professional ranks, including major leaguers Brad Lidge and Scott Sauerbeck. Brown returned to summer coaching in 2006 and again in 2008 as the head coach of the New England Collegiate Baseball League's (NECBL) Sanford Mainers. He led the Mainers to the 2008 NECBL title. He coached the NECBL's Vermont Mountaineers in the summers of 2013 and 2014.
Born in Clifton Springs, N.Y., and raised in Maine, Brown moved back to New York and graduated as a three-sport letterwinner from Canandaigua Academy in 1986. He was inducted into the Canandaigua Academy Athletic Hall of Fame in 2006 and the Section Five Baseball Hall of Fame in 2014. A 1990 graduate of Ithaca College, Brown earned a Bachelor of Science in Physical Education. He played four years of baseball for the Bombers and was a member of the school's 1988 NCAA Division III championship squad.
Upon graduation from Ithaca, he served for one season as adjunct faculty instructor and assistant baseball coach at Finger Lakes Community College in Canandaigua. He earned a Master of Science in Sport Studies, concentrating in sports psychology, from Miami (Ohio) University in 1992 while serving as a graduate teaching assistant and assistant baseball coach for the Division I Red Hawks.
