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When Mitch Murray took over the helm of the Santa Clara men's soccer program in 1991, many saw success in the eyes of the native Californian. For the past 10 years, Murray has been establishing himself as one of the best Division I coaches in the nation as he propels Santa Clara to the top of the charts year after year. Two national finals appearances, 10 consecutive seasons in the national rankings, four West Coast Conference championships, and 71 all-conference selections later, fans and peers alike continue to see the fire of success burning in Murray's eyes. With 131 wins at Santa Clara and a career coaching mark of 131-50-17 (.705) in 10 years, Murray ranks as the Broncos' all-time winningest coach. It is not difficult to understand from where the success comes. Murray is devoted to excellence on the field and in the classroom. It is a devotion that can only produce champions. His commitment harbors sincerity and dedication to every student-athlete that crosses his path. In 10 years as head coach of the Santa Clara men's soccer team, Murray has guided his teams to four West Coast Conference titles, 10 consecutive winning seasons and five top-10 national finishes, including back-to-back top-five national finishes in 1998 and 1999. Despite losing a heartbreaker to Indiana in the 1999 College Cup final, the Broncos established themselves as the team to beat and produced their second-best record ever with a 16-4-3 mark. Murray etched his name in the record books early, becoming the first rookie head coach to lead his team to the national finals. Murray coached Santa Clara to victory in his first 12 matches, eventually rolling up a 20-1-2 record in 1991. He has since led the Broncos to NCAA Tournament appearances in 1993, 1995, 1996, 1997, 1998 and 1999, including back-to-back appearances in the national championship tournament in 1998 and '99. This past season, Murray guided the Broncos to their school-record fifth consecutive NCAA Tournament, leading the team to the national finals against eventual champion Indiana. Murray's success is no secret to his peers. Since 1991, he has collected an impressive array of accolades for his coaching and teaching success. The 1991 National Coach of the Year has earned two All-Far West Region Coach of the Year awards and one WCC Coach of the Year honor. Nine of Murray's student-athletes have earned All-America honors, including two-time All-American Eric Denton. Denton earned third-team All-America honors as a junior and was selected first team All-American in ‘99. Santa Clara has had phenomenal success in the West Coast Conference under Murray's tutelage. A Santa Clara player has been named WCC Player of the Year four times since 1991, WCC Defender of the Year twice, including Jeff Stewart last season, and Adam Eyre earned WCC Freshman of the Year accolades in 1996. A total of 69 student-athletes have also received All-WCC recognition since 1991. Murray's on-field coaching instruction and recruiting efforts have been instrumental in Santa Clara's rise to national prominence. Murray and predecessor Steve Sampson have coached the Broncos to a 195-69-36 record since 1986, a stretch that has seen the team reach the national championship game and earn a share of the national championship in 1989, and reach the title game once more in 1991 and 1999. Murray has extensive coaching experience at the international level, as well. In the spring of 1997, he was named as the head coach of the United States U-18 National Team. Murray also served as a scout for former U.S. National Team head coach Steve Sampson. During the summer of 1995, he coached the West team to a 2-1-1 record at the Olympic Sports Festival. Murray began his coaching career in 1977 at his alma mater, Fremont High School in Sunnyvale, Calif. Two years later, he accepted a head coaching position at Buchser High School in Santa Clara where he coached the team to the league championship in his first season and a fourth-place finish in the CCS championships. The next season, Murray returned to Fremont High School as a head coach and also served an assistant at Foothill College. The 1981 and '82 seasons saw Foothill win back-to-back California State Championships. Murray took his first major college coaching position in 1983, landing the top assistant's job at San Diego State. After two seasons, he returned to Foothill as the assistant coach, helping the team to another state championship. Murray then met up with Sampson at Santa Clara in 1986. Murray's coaching experience has touched all parts of the world. He earned his Deutscher Fusball-Bund A license in 1979, and followed that by obtaining a USSF license in 1980. He studied under Hans Oft of the K.N.V.B in 1981 and then went on to receive his Canadian level IV license in 1982. He also trained with UNAM Pumas and the Mexican National Team coached by Bora Milutinovic in 1983. Born in New York, Murray lived in Mexico, Switzerland, Burma and Libya before settling in the Bay area at age 12. He attended Fremont High School and DeAnza College before receiving his degree from San Francisco State in 1977. Murray and his wife, Nikki, reside in Milpitas.
Murray's Career Coaching Record Overall Year W L T Pct. 1991 20 1 2 .913 1992 10 7 1 .583 1993 14 3 2 .789 1994 12 5 2 .684 1995 15 3 2 .800 1996 9 6 3 .583 1997 10 9 0 .526 1998 15 5 2 .727 1999 16 4 3 .761 2000 10 7 0 .588 Career 131 50 17 .705 West Coast Conference Year W L T Finish 1991 4 1 0 2nd 1992 3 2 0 3rd 1993 4 1 1 T-1st 1994 5 0 1 T-1st 1995 4 1 1 2nd 1996 5 1 0 1st 1997 4 2 0 T-1st 1998 3 2 1 3rd 1999 3 1 2 2nd 2000 4 2 0 3rd Career 39 13 6 .724 NCAA Tournament Year W L T Finish 1991 4 0 1 National Finals 1993 0 1 0 First Round 1995 2 1 0 Quarterfinals 1996 0 1 0 First Round 1997 0 1 0 First Round 1998 3 1 0 National Semifinals 1999 3 1 1 National Finals Career 13 6 2 .619 Santa Clara Rankings Under Murray Year ISAA SA SN 1991 1st-6th 1st-2nd 1992 7th-nr 11th-nr 1993 7th-9th 8th-12th 1994 15th-nr 16th-nr 1995 7th-7th 9th-9th 10th-12th 1996 5th-nr 8th-nr 6th-nr 1997 23rd-nr nr-nr nr-nr 1998 19th-5th nr-nr 20th-8th 1999 1st-18th 1st-18th 13th 2000 2nd-nr 2nd-nr 2nd-nr Santa Clara Soccer Under Mitch Murray 71 All-West Coast Conference Selections 10 Consecutive Winning Seasons 10 Consecutive Seasons in National Rankings 9 All-Americans 7 NCAA Tournament Appearances 6 WCC Defensive Most Valuable Players 4 West Coast Conference Championships 3 NCAA Semifinal Appearances 2 All-Far West Region Coach of the Year Awards 2 National Final Appearances 1 National Coach of the Year Award 1 WCC Freshman of the Year |
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