Hall of Fame
Noel served more than a quarter-century as the Meakem Smith Director of Athletics & Physical Education, leading the programs to unprecedented success while setting a course for continued prosperity. The Big Red teams parlayed Noel’s accomplishments into success on and off the playing field, winning 106 Ivy League team titles and 37 national championships (17 team, 20 individual) during his tenure. The program captured 31 Ivy titles during a four-year span from 2002-03 through 2005-06, setting a Cornell record dating back to the inception of the Ivy League, including a record nine in 2005-06. During his tenure as Athletics Director, nearly 2,300 athletes have garnered All-Ivy honors, including more than 850 first-teamers, and 400 were named All-Americans. During his tenure, he was part of a team that raised more than $70 million in support of capital projects and endowment, helping secure the financial future of the department. During the campaign, 21 coaching and staff positions were endowed, bringing the total number of endowed positions within the department to 30, the most of any school in the country. He also added women’s sailing to become the department’s 37th varsity sport. In 16 of his final 17 seasons, Cornell ranked among the top 100 programs in the NACDA Directors Cup standings with a high of 52nd in 2009-10. It finished in the top half of the Ivy standings by that measure in 11 of 14 seasons, including holding down the top spot among Ancient Eight schools in 2006-07. Noel was the Big Red’s head wrestling coach from 1974-88, helping his teams to four Ivy League championships and four runner-up finishes. Under Noel’s direction, the wrestling team established a strong network of support from alumni and friends. In 1990, he was recognized at the Eastern Intercollegiate Wrestling Association Championships for his distinguished coaching career at Cornell, and in 1992 he was inducted into the New York State Wrestling Coaches Association Hall of Fame. He is also a member of the Eastern Intercollegiate Wrestling Association (EIWA) Hall of Fame. He was inducted into the New York chapter of the National Wrestling Hall of Fame in 2014. Noel coached 10 NCAA qualifiers, three EIWA champions and an All-American and guided his teams to a 108-82-1 dual meet record, including 56-22 against Ivy League foes. His teams claimed four unbeaten conference titles in his final six seasons on the sidelines, and with wrestlers he recruited and developed, the teams went unbeaten in Ivy play for the next five years. After serving as head wrestling coach for 14 years, Noel spent two years as an assistant director in the department’s public affairs office, implementing the athletic department’s annual giving program. After six years in the private sector, Noel returned to Cornell in 1996 as an Associate Director of Athletics. His position was endowed in December 2003 by Scott Smith ’79 and Jack ’58 and Diane ’61 Meakem.
