Soccer Banter recently spoke with University of Cincinnati Head Women's Soccer Coach, Neil Stafford, about the Bearcats, his coaching philosophy, some of his mentors, and his favorite topic - Liverpool Football Club. Follow Stafford on twitter @UCGaffer
Soccer Banter: A new school, a new league a new city - 2013 was a bit of whirlwind for you, describe your first year plus at Cincinnati?
Neil Stafford: You could include a new home and the birth of our son Kayden for Jacquie and me. It was a whirlwind both personally & professionally to say the least. All the people at the University of Cincinnati have been amazing from the get-go, very supportive and have done everything they could to help Jac and I settle in. Hylton Dayes, his associate Jeremy Bonomo and the men’s staff have been great in showing me the ins and outs of the athletic department. I even received a phone call from the president of UC, Santa Ono, asking if there was anything he could do to help.
It was quite overwhelming the commitment by UC, but I must give a lot credit to my assistants at the time Nate Lie and Gary Curneen. We absolutely came together and tackled a very difficult project in taking over a fractured & struggling program. Although Gaz is now gone on to be a head coach at CSUB, that first year of going through what the three of us did will never be forgotten and always appreciated.
It was weird being in the Big East for a minute and then evolving into the American Athletic Conference all before we had even kicked a ball. I was happy with the competition of the conference and thought it would still attract high quality student-athletes. When you have schools like UCONN, UCF, USF, Memphis, Tulsa and others you know it’s going to be a difficult time. It’s also nice to know that with the strength of the AAC you could possibly still make the NCAA tourney without the automatic bid. And on top of the soccer being good, you had UCF beating Baylor in the BCS Fiesta Bowl and of course UCONN, the men’s & women’s National Champions in basketball. Not too shabby for a first year conference.
The City of Cincinnati has been a pleasant surprise to both Jac and I. The investment in the campus & in pockets of the city have made Cincy culturally entertaining & diverse. It’s also nice to be back in a city after our time in Michigan. Growing up outside of Boston and now being in a smaller city like Cincy makes you realize just how much urban life can offer you and your family. We love the different areas like the Banks, Over the Rhine, but Mt. Adams is our favorite area to go.
Soccer Banter: A new school, a new league a new city - 2013 was a bit of whirlwind for you, describe your first year plus at Cincinnati?
Neil Stafford: You could include a new home and the birth of our son Kayden for Jacquie and me. It was a whirlwind both personally & professionally to say the least. All the people at the University of Cincinnati have been amazing from the get-go, very supportive and have done everything they could to help Jac and I settle in. Hylton Dayes, his associate Jeremy Bonomo and the men’s staff have been great in showing me the ins and outs of the athletic department. I even received a phone call from the president of UC, Santa Ono, asking if there was anything he could do to help.
It was quite overwhelming the commitment by UC, but I must give a lot credit to my assistants at the time Nate Lie and Gary Curneen. We absolutely came together and tackled a very difficult project in taking over a fractured & struggling program. Although Gaz is now gone on to be a head coach at CSUB, that first year of going through what the three of us did will never be forgotten and always appreciated.
It was weird being in the Big East for a minute and then evolving into the American Athletic Conference all before we had even kicked a ball. I was happy with the competition of the conference and thought it would still attract high quality student-athletes. When you have schools like UCONN, UCF, USF, Memphis, Tulsa and others you know it’s going to be a difficult time. It’s also nice to know that with the strength of the AAC you could possibly still make the NCAA tourney without the automatic bid. And on top of the soccer being good, you had UCF beating Baylor in the BCS Fiesta Bowl and of course UCONN, the men’s & women’s National Champions in basketball. Not too shabby for a first year conference.
The City of Cincinnati has been a pleasant surprise to both Jac and I. The investment in the campus & in pockets of the city have made Cincy culturally entertaining & diverse. It’s also nice to be back in a city after our time in Michigan. Growing up outside of Boston and now being in a smaller city like Cincy makes you realize just how much urban life can offer you and your family. We love the different areas like the Banks, Over the Rhine, but Mt. Adams is our favorite area to go.
SB: Looking ahead to this season, what are your thoughts on your team heading into preseason?
NS: We took over a team that had won one game the year before in conference. On the last night of the regular season this past fall we lost to Louisville in OT, if we had won that game we would have finished 3rd in the AAC. Out of our 5 AAC losses last fall we lost in OT 3 times including being 16 seconds away from PK’s with Rutgers in the conference playoffs. It was a great improvement, but I never thought we had the real quality to punish teams when they made mistakes. We want to do more than just be organized & compete this year. Hopefully some of our experiences last season will show us how to win and how to punish teams this year.
We also have 4 new staff members in Matt Cosinuke, Gavin MacLeod, Rachel Harris & Felicia Waldock along with 13 freshman & 2 transfers. That’s a lot of ingredients to add to the recipe, but I think we will be a bit more balanced. We will be incredibly young and I know with youth we may see some inconsistent performances & results at times. We are still the underdog, but we’ll probably be taken a bit more seriously than in the past and that will make the fight that much tougher.
SB: What is your own coaching philosophy and who helped shape it?
NS: I try to structure my coaching philosophy around the individual and then the team; “If we don’t get to know the person, then we can’t coach or teach the player.” Having someone understand their strengths and weaknesses and then getting them to buy into a role is vital. Every single person in the program from the All American to the student manager has to bring value to the program. Accountability and character are also key components. I would do anything for my coaches & players and I’ve seen some great results from a culture & environment based upon self-discovery.
I think my philosophy has been shaped by many things. I remember being younger and listening to my dad’s Bill Shankly tapes and listening to him talk about the “Liverpool Way”. I also valued my teaching experiences at Newton North HS in the “Pilot Program” working with kids that had emotional disorders. I miss that job as much as I miss any coaching job.
There were people who directly influenced me like my college coaches - Dan Shepardson & John Rootes, who is now at Lynn University. The coaches during my time at Seacoast United, Nancy Feldman at BU, Chris Flint at Bryant and many others. I also credit some of my assistants that I’ve been blessed with as their collaborations and efforts have surely had an influence on me. But overall I think the two people that influenced me the most were Peter Bradley from my time at Mass. Premier Soccer and Tom Anagnost whom I worked with at Central Michigan University.
NS: We took over a team that had won one game the year before in conference. On the last night of the regular season this past fall we lost to Louisville in OT, if we had won that game we would have finished 3rd in the AAC. Out of our 5 AAC losses last fall we lost in OT 3 times including being 16 seconds away from PK’s with Rutgers in the conference playoffs. It was a great improvement, but I never thought we had the real quality to punish teams when they made mistakes. We want to do more than just be organized & compete this year. Hopefully some of our experiences last season will show us how to win and how to punish teams this year.
We also have 4 new staff members in Matt Cosinuke, Gavin MacLeod, Rachel Harris & Felicia Waldock along with 13 freshman & 2 transfers. That’s a lot of ingredients to add to the recipe, but I think we will be a bit more balanced. We will be incredibly young and I know with youth we may see some inconsistent performances & results at times. We are still the underdog, but we’ll probably be taken a bit more seriously than in the past and that will make the fight that much tougher.
SB: What is your own coaching philosophy and who helped shape it?
NS: I try to structure my coaching philosophy around the individual and then the team; “If we don’t get to know the person, then we can’t coach or teach the player.” Having someone understand their strengths and weaknesses and then getting them to buy into a role is vital. Every single person in the program from the All American to the student manager has to bring value to the program. Accountability and character are also key components. I would do anything for my coaches & players and I’ve seen some great results from a culture & environment based upon self-discovery.
I think my philosophy has been shaped by many things. I remember being younger and listening to my dad’s Bill Shankly tapes and listening to him talk about the “Liverpool Way”. I also valued my teaching experiences at Newton North HS in the “Pilot Program” working with kids that had emotional disorders. I miss that job as much as I miss any coaching job.
There were people who directly influenced me like my college coaches - Dan Shepardson & John Rootes, who is now at Lynn University. The coaches during my time at Seacoast United, Nancy Feldman at BU, Chris Flint at Bryant and many others. I also credit some of my assistants that I’ve been blessed with as their collaborations and efforts have surely had an influence on me. But overall I think the two people that influenced me the most were Peter Bradley from my time at Mass. Premier Soccer and Tom Anagnost whom I worked with at Central Michigan University.
SB: Your professional rise to Head Coach at Cincinnati hasn't been all roses - what are some of the things you have learned along the way and what advice would you share to young coaches trying to start in the college coaching profession?
NS: John Rootes was my coach at SNHU and then I worked with him (upon graduation) as his asst. for several seasons before he left for other coaching jobs. He gave me my start and also put the idea of coaching women in my head. I wasn’t exactly mature and/or open-minded at that point. I didn’t understand the massive responsibilities of being a teacher / coach and the importance of being a role model.
The advice that I would give for any coach is that you have to set the example. I know that may sound cliché, but to day-in and day-out set the example for your administrators, boss, staff and of course the players is so important.
Relationships are a must in this business. I have met some incredible people along the way like Mark Krikorian, who helped me quite a bit when I was looking for my first full-time job. Take a coaching course, go work other coach’s camps. Value any relationship good or bad. It’s a very small world out there so don’t burn bridges.
SB: What characteristics are you looking for when recruiting players to Cincinnati?
NS: Nate, Matt & I are always looking for high achievers and hard workers in the classroom, it tells a lot about a person. There’s a definite correlation between academic success and on the field success. Players with high character and our program is built on a blue collar approach - so hard gritty workers that bring a high energy to the game. We always ask the question, “Do they impact the game?” “In what way do they influence the outcome of the game and the players around them?”
We have a few soccer junkies and more on the way, so players that have a real passion for the game and maybe even follow a certain “Red” premier league team from Merseyside.
NS: John Rootes was my coach at SNHU and then I worked with him (upon graduation) as his asst. for several seasons before he left for other coaching jobs. He gave me my start and also put the idea of coaching women in my head. I wasn’t exactly mature and/or open-minded at that point. I didn’t understand the massive responsibilities of being a teacher / coach and the importance of being a role model.
The advice that I would give for any coach is that you have to set the example. I know that may sound cliché, but to day-in and day-out set the example for your administrators, boss, staff and of course the players is so important.
Relationships are a must in this business. I have met some incredible people along the way like Mark Krikorian, who helped me quite a bit when I was looking for my first full-time job. Take a coaching course, go work other coach’s camps. Value any relationship good or bad. It’s a very small world out there so don’t burn bridges.
SB: What characteristics are you looking for when recruiting players to Cincinnati?
NS: Nate, Matt & I are always looking for high achievers and hard workers in the classroom, it tells a lot about a person. There’s a definite correlation between academic success and on the field success. Players with high character and our program is built on a blue collar approach - so hard gritty workers that bring a high energy to the game. We always ask the question, “Do they impact the game?” “In what way do they influence the outcome of the game and the players around them?”
We have a few soccer junkies and more on the way, so players that have a real passion for the game and maybe even follow a certain “Red” premier league team from Merseyside.
SB: Away from the college game, one of your other passions is supporting the red side of Merseyside - What are your thoughts on Brendan Rodgers as a manager and his role in bringing Liverpool back to the Champions League?
NS: He seems to be the complete package when it comes to his knowledge and man-management. He appears to have incredible character and the players seem to really trust him as they play their socks off for him. Not many people could have handled the Luis Suarez situations the way he did. I also think he respects all that’s come before him at LFC and he has immersed himself with the history of the club. That being said, I also think he has a specific vision of the direction the club is now going in. I completely admire the man and he’s going to be wonderful for Liverpool over the years.
SB: Life without Suarez - can Liverpool win the Premier League title without their best player (and arguably the best player in the league)?
NS: We all know that no one is bigger than the club and Liverpool will show that again as they did with all the great strikers that have left the club. I absolutely believe in Brendan Rogers and I think with LFC’s name, the style, culture and environment that’s being built combined with Champions League football they can lift the trophy. Will it be this season? Not sure. I do like the depth of the squad and the team approach they have, but we may still be one marquee signing / striker from doing it this season.
2014 College Soccer Interviews
Eric Da Costa - Quinnipiac University Head Men's Soccer Coach
Ian McIntyre - Syracuse University Head Men's Soccer Coach
Keidane McAlpine - University of Southern California Head Women's Soccer Coach
David DiIanni - University of Iowa Head Women's Soccer Coach
NS: He seems to be the complete package when it comes to his knowledge and man-management. He appears to have incredible character and the players seem to really trust him as they play their socks off for him. Not many people could have handled the Luis Suarez situations the way he did. I also think he respects all that’s come before him at LFC and he has immersed himself with the history of the club. That being said, I also think he has a specific vision of the direction the club is now going in. I completely admire the man and he’s going to be wonderful for Liverpool over the years.
SB: Life without Suarez - can Liverpool win the Premier League title without their best player (and arguably the best player in the league)?
NS: We all know that no one is bigger than the club and Liverpool will show that again as they did with all the great strikers that have left the club. I absolutely believe in Brendan Rogers and I think with LFC’s name, the style, culture and environment that’s being built combined with Champions League football they can lift the trophy. Will it be this season? Not sure. I do like the depth of the squad and the team approach they have, but we may still be one marquee signing / striker from doing it this season.
2014 College Soccer Interviews
Eric Da Costa - Quinnipiac University Head Men's Soccer Coach
Ian McIntyre - Syracuse University Head Men's Soccer Coach
Keidane McAlpine - University of Southern California Head Women's Soccer Coach
David DiIanni - University of Iowa Head Women's Soccer Coach
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