Felician University

In his 22nd season at the helm, Coach Chris Langan guided Felician University to a landmark 2025 campaign, culminating in the program’s first NCAA Division II Baseball East Region Championship Series title and an historic berth in the DII College World Series finals. The Golden Falcons shattered their single-season wins record with a 43–20 overall mark, a performance that firmly established them among the nation’s elite. Under Langan’s leadership, Felician also captured a share of the CACC North Division regular-season crown, advanced to the conference championship series, and climbed as high as No. 15 in the ABCA Division II national poll by late May. The season was highlighted by a dramatic NCAA regional victory over Pace that secured Langan’s 550th career win and propelled the program to its first College World Series appearance. His peers recognized his exceptional leadership by naming him the ABCA/Rawlings D-II East Region Coach of the Year, adding yet another accolade to his decorated tenure as the most successful coach in Felician baseball history.

Four-time Central Atlantic Collegiate Conference Coach of the Year, Langan has served as Felician’s head baseball coach since the 2004 season, guiding the program to unprecedented success. He has led the Golden Falcons to two CACC championships, five trips to the conference finals, six league or division regular-season titles, and four NCAA Regional appearances. His teams have qualified for the CACC playoffs following 14 of 18 completed seasons, including the last 10.

In 2021, Felician set a program record with a 10-game winning streak en route to capturing its fifth consecutive regular-season crown. Prior to the COVID-19 shutdown in 2020, the Golden Falcons had posted five 30+ win seasons over a six-year span. The team set previous program records for wins (35) and winning percentage (.700) in 2017, following a 34–21 campaign in 2016. Both squads claimed the CACC regular-season title (before divisional alignment) and reached the NCAA Tournament, with the 2016 team also capturing the conference tournament crown.

Langan was named CACC Coach of the Year four consecutive times from 2016 to 2019. Felician’s breakthrough season came in 2014, when the Golden Falcons won their first CACC championship and NCAA berth, finishing 30–20. Earlier in his tenure, the 2012 squad won the CACC regular-season title, and in 2006, Felician set a then-record 29 wins and earned its first in-season regional ranking.

Over his career, Langan has amassed a school-record 457 victories in 19 years, coached 92 all-conference and 34 all-region players (including three region Players of the Year), and produced six All-Americans. Twenty-eight of his players have signed professional contracts, with five selected in the Major League Baseball First-Year Player Draft. In June 2018, former Golden Falcon Jerry Vasto reached the majors with the Colorado Rockies. Four former players—Mike Rooth, Frank Quintana, Dennis Hulse, and Mickey Zudonyi—have been inducted into the Felician Athletics Hall of Fame.

Langan joined the program as an assistant coach in 2002 before being promoted to head coach in 2004. A standout at Keyport High School, he helped lead the Red Raiders to a state championship as a junior. He went on to earn all-league honors twice at Bloomfield College before transferring to Kean University, where he contributed to the Cougars’ 1998 NCAA Tournament team. In 1999, he was a non-roster invitee to the Kansas City Royals’ major league spring training.

He holds bachelor’s degrees in special education from Kean (1998) and in social services from Almeda College (2003). Langan currently chairs the CACC Baseball Coaches’ Committee and is a past member of the NCAA Division II East Regional Advisory Committee. He resides in Hazlet with his three daughters—Chelsea, Ava, and Ella.

last updated 8/9/2023