Missouri soccer's Blitz nearing career milestone

The 14-year Tiger coach needs one win to reach 200 for his career.

By Pat Iversen

Published Sept. 10, 2010

A lot can change over time, as anyone who has followed the Missouri soccer program over the last 14 years can tell you. Players have come and gone, athletic directors have changed and the team has moved into a new stadium. But throughout the existence of Missouri soccer, one constant has remained: the head coach.

After manning the sidelines for each of the last 14 years of Tiger soccer, coach Bryan Blitz is one win away from securing his 200th career victory as a coach. As Tiger head coach, Blitz has a record of 154-128-17. His 200th win would move him into sole possession of 37th most wins in NCAA women's soccer coaching history.

Accolades aside, Blitz said he doesn't think about the record much at all.

"To me it's just a number," Blitz said. "I didn't even know about the record until they told me. It means that we've had a lot of good players playing for me over the years. In the end, I could care less (about the milestone)."

His players say they are fully aware of the implications of their next win. Senior captain Kari Adam said the achievement is just one of many the program has accomplished under Blitz.

"We've done a lot of great things during the three years I've been here, and obviously we've reached a lot of milestones," Adam said. "Especially last year, with the Big 12 Championship and the record. This is just another milestone for him."

The Missouri soccer program was founded in 1996, and was in need of a coach capable of building a successful program from the bottom up. Joe Castiglione, who was Athletic Director at the time, decided on a young coach from Butler who had just gained national notoriety for leading his squad on an undefeated run through the Midwestern Collegiate Conference, earning a Coach of The Year Award and invites to help coach the U.S. Women's National soccer team along the way.

Blitz said the opportunity to build up Missouri's program was one he couldn't pass up.

"Well I don't want to demean anyone else's opportunities, but for me it makes it special," Blitz said. "It's a special thing. It's something I don't think I'll ever get to do again in my life."

To help get the program off the ground, Blitz met with famed North Carolina coach Anson Dorrance to learn how to employ the Tar Heels' successful system. Along the way, the Missouri program has earned three national tournament berths and multiple Big 12 Championships. Adam said Blitz is as good a coach off the field as he is on the field.

"He really holds us accountable, he has high standards and we're supposed to meet those," Adam said. "During practice he's hard on us, and that's his job, but outside of practice he's a pretty goofy guy. He genuinely cares about his players. He goes out of his way to make sure everyone's okay and everyone's happy."

In fact, freshman midfielder Dominique Richardson said it was Blitz's approachability that played a factor in her decision to play for Missouri.

"It was huge," Richardson said. "Out of all the schools I went to I felt like he was the one coach who I could talk to about anything."

Over the last 14 years, Blitz said he's seen growth in himself as a coach and the program. Although the 200th win might be important to most coaches, Blitz insisted that it is the players he coaches that he is most grateful for.

"I'm certainly more mature, more composed," Blitz said. "I've made a lot of mistakes, but I've learned from those mistakes. Remembering all of the players from when we started the program and seeing where it's come from with their hard work when we were getting pummeled in those early years, I think from that standpoint it means a lot to me."