Maryland assistant coach Eric Golz replaces Drew Roff as ISU women's soccer coach. (Photo courtesy GoRedbirds.com)
By ISU Sports Information
NORMAL – Eric Golz has proven his ability to compete on a national stage with 12 years of coaching experience, and he will aim to lead Illinois State to similar success in his new role as the head coach of the Redbird soccer program, as announced by ISU Director of Athletics Larry Lyons Friday.
Golz replaces Drew Roff, who took the head coaching job at Purdue in December.
"I am very humbled, honored and privileged to have been named the next head women’s soccer coach at Illinois State University,” Golz said. “This is an absolutely incredible opportunity, and one that is a perfect fit for me personally and professionally. I would like to thank Larry Lyons, Leanna Bordner and the entire search committee. I was incredibly impressed by their vision, the culture of the athletics department, and the Redbird pride that was so evident throughout this process. We have it all at ISU. It is a highly regarded academic institution, one of the best college towns in America, and a soccer program that has consistently won MVC championships and qualified for the NCAA Tournament.”
Golz arrives at Illinois State following three seasons at Maryland as the women’s assistant soccer coach, where he helped a Terrapins’ defense that gave up the fewest goals for the program in the last seven years.
The 2014 season also marked the sixth-straight season in which Maryland notched a victory against a National College Soccer Coaches Association of America national top-25 opponent. Throughout his 10 seasons as an assistant college coach, Golz demonstrated that his coaching ability made him one of the nation’s top assistant coaches.
“We are going to strive for excellence in all capacities of the student-athlete experience, and we are going to put in a tremendous amount of work to build on our storied history and ensure that our future is even brighter,” Golz continued. “There is a great current group of players, and I am eager to meet, coach and build relationships with all of them. I am proud to be joining the Redbird family, and cannot wait to get to campus and get started.”
In addition to his collegiate experiences, Golz has significant experience as a head and assistant coach for both state and regional ODP (Olympic Development Program) programs, a variety of clubs, and also served as the head coach for a semi-professional franchise with the Iowa Rush in the Women’s Professional Soccer League (WPSL). As the head coach of the Rush, Golz ran all aspects of the team, including recruitment, training and fiscal management.
“I am pleased to announce that Eric Golz has accepted the position of head coach for our women’s soccer program,” Lyons said. “There was significant interest from head coaches and high level assistant coaches from across the country. Our search process was thorough, and Eric emerged as the right person to lead our program. His passion for the sport of soccer, as well as his exceptional ability to teach and coach and develop the student-athlete stood out. He has significant ties to the Midwest, which will be crucial to his ability to recruit high level talent. He will be a great fit in our department, on campus and in our community. Illinois State soccer is in good hands and we are very excited about the future under Eric’s leadership.”
At Maryland, Golz was also the team’s recruiting coordinator, where he put together three-straight top-25 recruiting classes. The Terps finished the 2012 season in second place of the Atlantic Coast Conference, which tied the highest conference finish in program history. During his three seasons at Maryland, Golz helped the team to two ACC Tournament appearances, including a conference championship berth in 2012, as well as one NCAA Tournament appearance.
Prior to Maryland, Golz was an assistant coach at Dayton, where he also served as the team’s recruiting coordinator. In addition, he was responsible for coordinating scouting reports and designing and organizing training sessions for the Flyers. Under Golz’s tutelage, the Flyers, which were ranked as high as No. 14 by the NSCAA during the season, won the Atlantic 10 Tournament to advance to the NCAA Tournament. Dayton finished the 2011 season with the 11th-best scoring offense in the nation, averaging 2.52 goals per game.
Coaching at Maryland was not Golz’s first time with the ACC or Big Ten conference, as he spent the 2009 season as an assistant coach at Clemson, where he also served as the recruiting and video coordinator.
Golz is also no stranger to the Midwest and the Big Ten, as he spent three seasons as an assistant coach and recruiting coordinator at Iowa.
Golz spent the 2004 and 2005 seasons as an assistant coach at Bowling Green, helping the Falcons to their first two NCAA tournament berths, thanks to back-to-back MAC tournament championships. He also served as Bowling Green's recruiting, academic and travel coordinator. Prior to working at BGSU, Golz spent a season as the assistant men’s coach at Westminster College in New Wilmington, Pa.
A native of Wadsworth, Ohio, Golz was a standout goalkeeper at Grove City College and was an All-Presidents Athletic Conference selection. He earned his bachelor's degree in finance in 2002.
Golz is engaged to be married in June to Kailey Corken. The couple will reside in the Bloomington-Normal area.
