Coaching Staff
Eugene Lewis is in his second season as Buffalo State's head cross country coach and seventh as the school's head track and field coach.
Lewis took over after Jim Ramos ended his 22-year reign as the leader of the Bengals. Under Ramos, Buffalo State developed into one of the more recognizable cross country programs in New York State, producing one male SUNYAC Champion and a combined total of 26 runners who have achieved All-Conference recognition. In addition, the Bengals' women's team captured the New York State women's cross country title in 1996, one of the best finishes by any Buffalo State team in the history of the program.
On the track side, Lewis is well on his way to returning the program to the prominence it enjoyed in the early to mid-1980’s. His athletes have rewritten the Buffalo State record books, breaking 40 school records. In addition, they have earned 50 SUNYAC Championships and 27 NYSCTC titles, while 13 athletes have qualified for the NCAA Division III National Championships, including Willie Hordge who captured the national championship in the 100-meter and 200-meter dash events at the 2007 outdoor meet.
Lewis was a standout track performer at Youngstown State University in the mid-1990's. He competed in sprints and jumps, and was named newcomer of the year in 1995. In high school, he was a City Athlete of the Year Finalist for track and field, representing Garfield (Ohio) High School.
Lewis has also coached football at Kent and Youngstown State Universities. As a football player, Lewis helped Youngstown State to three Division I-AA National Championships.
A native of Akron, Ohio, Eugene earned a bachelor's degree in business communications from Youngstown State. He currently resides in Cheektowaga with his wife Tina and their son Eugene Jr. and daughter Lanese.
Assistant Coach Jessica Coe
Jessica enters her first season as an coach with the Bengals’ cross country and track and field teams. A former three-time First Team All-Allegheny Mountain Collegiate Conference (AMCC) honoree and CoSIDA Academic All-American as a runner at Penn State Behrend. A native of Union City, Pa., she completed her bachelor’s degree from Behrend in marketing. She is also working towards a master’s in elementary and special education at D’Youville, where she served as the head cross country coach in 2006. She completed the 2006 Buffalo Marathon and is currently training for the Erie Marathon.
