Sometimes, you can indeed go home again.

Gary Gait, a charter member of the National Lacrosse League Hall of Fame, was named today as the new head coach of the Colorado Mammoth.

"Gary has a one-of-a-kind knowledge of this sport," Mammoth general manager Steve Govett said. "He's been one of the most innovative players in the sport's history and he will coach the same way.

Gait replaces Jamie Batley, whose contract was not renewed.

The terms of the deal, which had been rumored for months, were not disclosed.

Just two months ago, Gait ended a legendary fifteen-year career in which he tallied 596 goals and 1091 points, both of which are NLL records.

The final three years of his career, Gait was a star attraction for the Mammoth, which moved to Denver in 2003 amid concerns that the franchise would never find a viable home city.

Instead, the Mammoth sold out Pepsi Center for its first-ever home game and has continued to draw huge crowds for each game.

Just as Gait helped the Mammoth build a fan base any team would be proud of, he now must reverse his team's long trend of underachievement, a problem which dates all the back to its days as the Baltimore Thunder.

That is where Batley fell short. Despite having the league's best team on paper, he could not bring home the Champion's Cup -- and his results arguably fell shorter of the mark each year.

Batley's promotion from assistant coach midway through the 2003 season sparked the flailing Mammoth to a 5-2 finish and the Eastern Division championship.

The next season, Colorado squandered a league-best 13-3 record by losing the Western Division Final to eventual champion Calgary.

Finally, this year, the Mammoth -- who appeared to be even more potent than before -- limped to an 8-8 record and was eliminated by Arizona in the first round of the playoffs.

The Mammoth might've been a bit distracted in 2005 by Gait's unofficial farewell tour and the eventual arrival of his twin brother, Paul, for one last stretch run.

That won't be an issue now, with Gary Gait off the turf for good and Paul Gait headed back to a retirement which began in 2002.

Getting the star-studded roster to play as a team was the bigger challenge, though.

"Gary is very focused on team chemistry, both on and off the floor," Govett said. "He'll work hard to develop player chemistry and, above all, Gary is well-respected by his players."

Gait's coaching technique is already familiar to several Mammoth players, who also play for him with the Baltimore Bayhawks of the Major League Lacrosse field league.