The Windsor Lancers are pleased to announce that Lancer football defensive line coach Mike Circelli has been named the OUA football volunteer coach of the year, as announced by the league Thursday at their annual football awards banquet.
 
The 2022 edition of the Windsor Lancers returned to the OUA postseason for the first time in eight years, and defensive line coach Mike Circelli was an inspirational figure on that journey.
 
Circelli, a retired teacher from London, Ont., is this year's recipient of the Volunteer Coach of the Year Award. Circelli is a legend in Ontario football circles due to his unwavering commitment to developing the sport at a variety of levels. His high school coaching career began in London almost 40 years ago. He won multiple city and OFSAA championships at Catholic Central High, while also serving as the league commissioner and face of Forest City Football, among other programs.
 
A certified Level 3 coach, Circelli was a long-time contributor to the Western Mustangs team from 2007 to 2015, and in 2019, he joined the Windsor program to start a new chapter in his illustrious career. Despite his volunteer status, Circelli made regular appearances at team functions, practices, and meetings during the lost 2020 season, and with his guidance, the team's growth continued into this season, culminating in a well-earned playoff berth.
 
Circelli's love of the game and commitment to excellence has always been evident to those players and colleagues around him for the past four decades, and he becomes the first member of the Lancers program to receive the award.