Bob Cortese Named Director of Football Operations for Stealth
April 29, 2002 - arenafootball2 (af2)
Wichita Stealth News Release
Wichita, KS - The Wichita Stealth on Sunday named Bob Cortese (kor-TEEZ) director of football operations for the arenafootball2 team. In this newly-created position, Cortese will oversee all aspects of football operations and also assume responsibility for Wichita's offense, working alongside head coach Land Jacobsen and the existing Stealth coaching staff.
Cortese brings four years of Arena Football League experience to Wichita, most recently as head coach and director of football operations for the defunct Oklahoma Wranglers. In two seasons (2000-01) at the Wranglers' helm, Cortese led his team to marks of 12-16 in the regular season and 1-1 in the ArenaBowl playoffs.
During their inaugural season in Oklahoma City, the Wranglers reached the AFL quarterfinals after battling through the league's toughest schedule. Cortese's club became the lowest seed ever (#10) to win an AFL playoff game, earning a 52-38 road upset of New England in the first round.
Cortese also spent two seasons (1998-99) as offensive coordinator for the Wranglers' predecessors, the Portland Forest Dragons, adding assistant head coach duties during his second year. In 1998, he helped the Forest Dragons improve their scoring average by 17 points over the previous season, and his tutelage of Oronde Gadsden helped the wide receiver develop into an All-Arena player and a fixture in the Miami Dolphins' lineup the last four seasons.
"Everyone associated with Arena Football knows and appreciates what Bob Cortese has accomplished," said Scott Gorsline, chief operating officer for DP Fox Sports & Entertainment, owners of the Stealth and the 2001 AFL champion Grand Rapids Rampage. "We are fortunate to be able to bring a proven AFL talent to Wichita at this stage of the season, and we remain committed to fielding a winning team for Stealth fans."
Originally from Rochester, New York, Cortese is no stranger to the Sunflower State. He led Fort Hays State University to three NCAA Division II playoff berths and a cumulative 55-32-3 record (0.628) during his eight seasons as the Tigers' head coach from 1990-97.
In 31 years as a head coach at the professional, collegiate and high school levels, Cortese boasted an overall mark of 240-99-9 (0.703) and claimed seven Coach of the Year trophies. He reached three state championship games and claimed one state title as a high school coach in Colorado, and spent two years as an assistant at his alma mater, the University of Colorado (1977-78).
Cortese's first major head coaching job came at Mesa State University, an NAIA school in Colorado, where his teams posted an 84-22-3 record (0.784) from 1980-89.
As a player, Cortese was a first-team junior college All-American at Northeastern Junior College (1962-63) in Sterling, Colorado, before playing center and linebacker for the University of Colorado (1964-65).
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