Men's Soccer Coaches
JOHN SMITH
HEAD COACH
He had an impact on the Incarnate Word Cardinals 2006 season.
Taking on the duties of his first-ever head coaching assignment in the spring of 2006, John Smith attacked the situation with fevor and the results showed in the final accounting. The Cardinals posted 14 victories, they won another Heartland Conference title, they advanced to the NCAA regional tournament for the fifth straight year, and they finished ranked high in the nation again (18th).
And, in bringing in a huge recruiting class of 11 players, he saw one, Nick Evans, earned All-American honors at season’s end. That’s a pretty good start on his head coaching career.
John Smith did all the right things. He played, most successfully, at the collegiate level before spending time playing professional soccer. He then accepted a job as an assistant coach at a respected university during which time he worked in the city’s youth programs.
Then came the opportunity to head up his own program and he jumped at the chance. Now, after that start at Incarnate Word, the general feeling is that John Smith is where he was meant to be.
Hired in March of 2006, Smith jumped immediately into the remolding of the Cardinals program. He patched together a tough schedule. He set out on the recruiting trail and restocked a roster that had seen 15 players depart including five recognized starters. And during the spring training season, he installed his own style and philosophy.
While Smith himself didn’t, and wouldn’t ever, say it, the aura about the Cardinals in 2006 was “so they lost some distinguished players, wait until you see the latest version’. That same sentiment and almost the same words could describe 2007. While Coach Smith’s recruiting class is not so extensive as 2006, the talent level has gone up and the Cardinals will be a national force, again.
UIW Athletic Director Mark Papich used glowing words about Smith in announcing his hiring. “He was an integral part, and had a leadership roll, in the program at Cal State / Bakersfield,” Papich said. “He is an affable presence and he is well-spoken with a coaching style that is a great fit within the University’s mission.”
For the past eight years Smith worked as the assistant coach for both men’s and women’s soccer at California State University at Bakersfield. In that capacity, he was charged with conducting training sessions, with recruiting, scheduling, and the management of student-athlete eligibility and scholarship allocations.
Over that period of time, CSU Bakersfield won a conference championship, once was runnerup in the conference and twice advanced to the NCAA Division II national championship tournament.
Smith earned the respect of his colleagues when they selected him, an assistant coach, as soccer chairman for the Far West Region of Division II. The primary duties of that position were to direct his fellow coaches in regional rankings and as a liaison to national committees. He holds a USSF A License.
A native of Wigan, England, Smith played three years of professional soccer including a season with the Columbus Crew after that club made him the first foreign player ever drafted out of college by Major League Soccer. In 1997 he was the draft’s 13th selection. Later, in 1999, his Hershey club reached the national semi-finals in the A-League. Playing with the Orlando Sundogs he earned All A-League honors.
Prior to his time in United States soccer, for two years he was an apprentice player with two different clubs back home in England. “His academic strengths combined with his accomplishments both as a student-athlete and as a professional player,” Papich said, “put him in a position to be an excellent role model for our Incarnate Word student-athletes.”
Smith earned his bachelor’s degree with honors from Rollins College in Florida, and his master’s degree from CSU Bakersfield.
As a player at Rollins, his on-field performances were unparalleled. He left that Winter Park campus as the Tars all-time leader with 142 career points including a record 42 assists. His 50 goals scored were third in school history. In 1995 he was a second team All-America pick and a year later, 1996, he went one better by being voted first team All-America.
Also, he was the 1996 Rollins Male Athlete of the Year and was the Sunshine State Conference Male Scholar-Athlete of the Year. In 2003, he was elected to the SSC Hall of Fame.
Smith and his wife Julie are the parents of Isaac, born in March of 2005.
MATTHEW O’SULLIVAN
ASSISTANT COACH
Matt O’Sullivan is into his first year as the assistant coach for the Incarnate Word men’s soccer program.
Most recently, O’Sullivan coached four years with the Bakersfield Gunner soccer club in California. Before that he played semi-professional soccer for the Bakersfield Brigade.
He played his college soccer at the University of California at Bakersfield. In his three years of action, he was in 57 games and scored 14 goals. He was a first team selection in the California Collegiate Conference.
He earned a bachelor’s degree in kinesiology and exercise science at Cal State / Bakersfield.
A native of Preston, England, he attended Tulketh High School where he played soccer, tennis and cricket.
OWEN COLLIE
GRADUATE ASSISTANT
He played at Incarnate Word four years, he coached one season of high school soccer and now Owen Collie returns to UIW as a men’s soccer graduate assistant.
The Aberdeenshire, Scotland, native earned his bachelor’s degree in sports management in December of 2006. That came on the heels of playing his fourth and final year with the Cardinals.
In his playing time, he was in a total of 57 Incarnate Word games.
He gained coaching experience with two seasons at San Antonio's Antonian Prep where that team reached the Final Four of the state championship tournament.
Back in Scotland, his Ellon Academy won the North of Scotland championship and won the JM Low Trophy. Additionally, his Stoneywood Boys Club team won two league titles and his U15 team won the Scottish championship.
During his term with the Cardinals coaching staff, his primary assignment will be with the junior varsity squad.
DANNY JUAREZ
STUDENT ASSISTANT
Danny Juarez got in one varsity season at Incarnate Word and now joins the coaching staff as a student assistant with primary duties related to the junior varsity squad.
In his senior year of eligibility, at UIW, he was in 17 of the 21 games. His four goals and two assists for a total of 10 points put him fourth on the Cardinals scoring list for the season.
The Bakersfield, Calif., native was at California State / Bakersfield for a year but did not play soccer. It was there he met up with John Smith who was an assistant coach but has now moved to UIW as the head man.
Danny is completing his bachelor’s degree in Spanish.
