During his time at the University of Denver, Jack Hannah became the face of Pioneers' lacrosse.
He was a team captain, an All-American, and a second round draft pick in the National Lacrosse League.
Now, this prodigal son is making his long-awaited return to a city he calls his second home.
“A couple times I pump-faked myself a little bit and got excited and then it didn’t happen. Once I was actually traded it was super exciting," says Hannah, now a forward with the Colorado Mammoth.
In a blockbuster deal early this NLL season, the Mammoth acquired Hannah from the Las Vegas Desert Dogs in exchange for a compensatory first-round selection in the 2026 NLL Entry Draft, a first-round selection in the 2027 NLL Entry Draft and a second-round selection in the 2028 NLL Entry Draft.
But ever since Hannah left the turf at Peter Barton Stadium, he kept one eye on returning to Colorado.
"Denver is beautiful," said Hannah. "I'm very comfortable with the area, I really like it and I always have and I'm excited to be here full time."
He made an instant impact in his first game with the Mammoth, scoring two goals and tallying eight points in a big victory over Rochester.
“Game one couldn’t have been better," said Hannah. "You don’t realize how loud that place gets, it was a super exciting environment. [I] get to go out and play lacrosse in front of a packed house every weekend, [that] was my dream as a kid and we’re living it now.”
Hannah is devoting his life to lacrosse in every sense of the word — in addition to playing for the Mammoth he runs a local training facility and serves as a coach as well.
“Sharing all the time that I’ve spent on this game, sharing it with a kid and making them excited to learn new things, doing all I can to make the game of lacrosse fun for them, [that's] incredibly fulfilling," said Hannah. "If I can pass [that] on to the next generation of kids and they can make professional lacrosse even better for us, that’s a dream come true. That’s a pretty cool impact to have.”
He's fitting like a glove with his new Mammoth teammates, and winning that first game seems like it may be just the beginning to a beautiful Colorado reunion.
“[The Mammoth are] a super competitive bunch, a super tough bunch of guys," said Hannah. "I couldn’t be more excited to be a part of it because I think we have a good chance of making a run this year.”
Originally drafted by Panther City Lacrosse Club during the second round (31st) of the 2021 NLL Entry Draft, the Milford, Ohio, native spent his first three professional campaigns with the Las Vegas Desert Dogs where he accumulated a combined 222 points (98g, 124a), 207 loose balls, 9 caused turnovers and 17 penalty minutes across 54 career appearances.
The 6 foot 2, 215-pound athlete most recently recorded a career-high 82 points (36g, 46a), 75 loose balls and 4 caused turnovers throughout 18 games in Las Vegas during the league’s 2024-25 campaign.
At the University of Denver Hannah played in 56 career games, posting 155 points on 103 goals and 52 assists. He reached 100 points eighth fastest in program history, getting to the milestone in 37 career games, making him the second fastest midfielder to the century mark.
Hannah also scored 100 career goals at DU in 55 career games, the 6th fastest to 100 goals in program history, including the fastest midfielder, edging out All-American midfielder Erik Adamson by six games.
