Mike Cute is in first season as D'Youville Women's Rowing Head Coach and was after being in hired in August 2021.
"I want to thank Ona Halladay, Rebecca Capinera, and all those involved with the search committee for providing me with this opportunity. I'm looking forward to taking the D'Youville College Saints to new heights as a Division II women's rowing program. There are a lot of resources available at D'Youville College and within the Buffalo, rowing community to support a strong foundation and competitive program for many years to come," said Cute.
"I'm very excited to start my role as head coach during a major transformational period for the athletic department and college. I was very impressed with the recent upgrades to the college and athletic facilities. These upgrades and future upgrades will provide the best possible experience for our student-athletes."
Cute joins the D’Youville women's rowing program after a six-year stint as the director of rowing and head coach at the West Side Rowing Club in Buffalo, N.Y. Before his role at West Side Rowing Club, Cute spent four years as a varsity assistant coach at Colgate University for their Division I men’s rowing program.
His 10 years of coaching experience and 18 years of rowing experience includes time as a U19 and U17 men’s head coach at Westside Rowing Club, U23 assistant men’s head coach at Vesper Boat Club in Philadelphia, Pa., U23 head coach at Crescent Boat Club in Philadelphia, Pa., a volunteer coach at Fairmount Rowing Association in Philadelphia, Pa., and as a crew team administrative assistant and event organizer at Marietta College in Marietta, Ohio.
Cute rowed collegiately at Marietta College (Ohio) for four seasons (2007-2011) while also competing with the Fairmount Rowing Association during that time span. With the Pioneers, Cute made an appearance on the 2011 Top 10 Lightweight 8+ USROWING Poll.
A decorated student-athlete at Marietta, Cute was a 2011 Varsity Lightweight 8+ SIRA Champion, 2011 Varsity Lightweight 8+ Knecht Cup Champion, 2010 JV Heavyweight 8+ Dad Vail Silver Medalist, 2008 MACRA Freshman 4+ Champion, 2008 Indy Invite Freshman 4+ Champion, and a three-time Royal Canadian Henley Regatta finalist.
Cute’s accolades and accomplishments carried over to his coaching days. Recently, Cute guided West Side Rowing Club to New York State Championships in 2016 (Men's SR 4+, Woman's JR 4+, and Woman's Novice 8+), 2017 (Women's 2nd 8+ and Women's Novice 8+), and 2018 (Women's Youth Lightweight 4+). In 2021, he helped WSRC to a fourth-place finish at the Men’s Senior 4+ Summer Nationals, a fourth-place finish at the Women’s Varsity 8+ NYS Championship, and a ninth-place finish in the Youth Men’s 1x National Championship.
Cute graduated from Marietta College in May 2011 with a Bachelor of Arts in broadcasting while picking up a minor in journalism.
