Primary Recruiting Areas: North/South New Jersey, New York

TJ Lesniewski enters his fifth season as a member of the Merrimack College football coaching staff in 2022. He serves as the defensive line coach and director of football operations.

In 2021, Lesniewski helped Nicholas Lenon to a second team All-NEC selection at defensive end. Nick Martino also earned NEC defensive player of the week onors after a dominant win over LIU where Martino had four tackles, three sacks, a fumble recovery and QB hurry. 

In the spring 2021 season, he coached Cory Hagerman and Lenon to second team all-conference nods. Lenon was the conference leader in sacks with four in just three games and Merrimack also had five defensive linemen register a sack, which led the league. 

Hagerman was also named the first ever all-NEC preseason selection before the 2020 campaign. 

The 2019 season saw Merrimack's front four emerge as one of the top unit's in the Northeast Confernece. Lesniewski's group led the NEC with 36 total sacks on the year, while starting defensive ends Cory Hagerman and Nick Lenon combined for 13.5 sacks on the year. The duo ranked among the top 11 in the NEC with Hagerman sharing the league lead. Hagerman was also the NEC defensive player of the week after a performance against LIU that included 4.5 tackles for loss and 4.0 sacks to tie a single game school record. Lesniewski's defensive line helped the team to top-three rankings in scoring defense, yards allowed per game and rushing defense. 

In Lesniewski's first season, he helped coach an all-conference second team selection in Jesse Jones '19, who was a National Bowl participation. The Warriors finished the season with 18 sacks, averaging just under two sacks per game, and had the fourth-best red zone defense in the conference.

Lesniewski arrived in North Andover after spending two years as an assistant coach for the Muskingum University (NCAA DIII). He also served as an assistant linebacker coach at Marietta College (DIII) in 2015, and also at his alma mater, West Liberty University, with the running backs and special teams unit (2014).

Lesniewski graduated from West Liberty University in 2013 with a B.A. in Health and Physical Education. He was a four-year letter winner for the Hilltoppers and a member of the 2009 WVIAC Championship team. He received his Master's degree in Education from Muskingum in 2018. Lesniewski also serves as an adjunct professor in the Education department at Merrimack.