John Trask has taken the UIC men's soccer program to new heights in his four seasons at the helm, using a proven formula for success that has helped every side he has ever been a part of maximize its potential and garner a long list of accolades and championships over the past decade. The standard of excellence associated with Trask's formula has been on display throughout his first four seasons at the helm at UIC, with the Flames' back-to-back trips to the NCAA Division I Men's Soccer Championship Sweet 16 that included a historic run to the 2007 NCAA quarterfinals serving as the most recent examples of the program's continuous rise to national prominence under his watch. Bringing a winning philosophy that garnered back-to-back NCAA titles and a trip to the Major League Soccer semifinals during his previous coaching stops, Trask has installed his successful style at UIC in such a short amount of time that the Flames were transformed from a five-win team the season before he arrived into a squad that stood just three matches away from college soccer's ultimate prize a mere three years later. A glance at his work throughout the last 10 years shows that Trask has had an influential hand in some impressive team results. From coaching Indiana's national championship squads in 1998 and 1999, to guiding the Miami Fusion to the 2000 U.S. Open Cup final and the 2001 MLS Supporters' Shield, and to accumulating a long list of achievements for UIC, Trask's track record speaks for itself. The Flames have been molded into a prime example of Trask's victorious brand of soccer. UIC's 8-2-1 record against Top 25 teams on the road since 2005 and numerous Top 10 national rankings of its own are just a few of the accomplishments that serve as evidence to his penchant for success. In 2008 UIC stayed in the four major national polls from start to finish, reaching as high as No. 4 in the country for the highest slot achieved by UIC in any Top 25 rankings. The Flames began the year on a school-record 12-match unbeaten streak, won the Horizon League regular season championship and earned an at-large berth into the NCAA Tournament. UIC continued its recent success in the postseason by advancing to the NCAA Round of 16 for the second straight season in 2008, eliminating Dayton and No. 4 national seed Michigan State in a pair of dramatic penalty-kick sessions before falling just short of another quarterfinal appearance following an overtime loss at No. 15 seed North Carolina that saw the Flames without acclaimed goalkeeper Jovan Bubonja, who was injured and unable to play against the Tar Heels. Bubonja, junior midfielder Baggio Husidic and sophomore back Robert Younger headlined the individual accolades for Trask's side in 2008. Bubonja was a semifinalist for the prestigious Missouri Athletic Club Hermann Trophy awarded annually to the nation's top college player, while third straight selections to the NSCAA/adidas All-Great Lakes Region First Team and All-Horizon League First Team also highlighted Bubonja's haul. Husidic was named the Horizon League Player of the Year and Offensive Player of the Year while garnering All-Great Lakes First Team honors, and Younger, the league's Defensive Player of the Year, was picked to the All-Great Lakes Second Team. Bubonja and Husidic also earned NSCAA/adidas All-America First Team honors after the 2008 campaign, becoming the first First Team All-Americans in the program's history. Husidic went on to sign a Generation adidas contract in January 2009, the first UIC player to earn Generation adidas designation with Major League Soccer. Husidic was drafted by the Chicago Fire in the MLS SuperDraft later that month. Trask was named the Horizon League Coach of the Year in 2008, the second time in the last three years that he has earned the honor from his peers in the conference. The 2007 Elite Eight finish in the NCAA Tournament saw UIC advance past three nationally-ranked teams, doing so on the opponent's home pitch each time. The Flames eliminated No. 12 Saint Louis at Hermann Stadium in a dramatic penalty- kick shootout, defeated No. 16 Northwestern 2-0 on the Wildcats' Lakeside Field and downed No. 7 Creighton by a 1-0 score at Morrison Stadium to come within one match of UIC's first-ever College Cup berth. Along with the Flames' first-ever appearance in the Round of Eight, the 2007 season was capped by the program's highest end-of-the-year national rankings. College Soccer News ranked UIC ninth nationally in its final poll of the season, and the NSCAA/adidas Top 25 featured a season-ending ranking of No. 10 for the Flames. Midfielder Pavle Dundjer was named to the NSCAA/adidas All-America Third Team, marking the second consecutive season that UIC featured an All-American player. Bubonja was also feted with a slew of postseason honors for his work between the posts, earning selections to the College Soccer News All-America Second Team, NSCAA/adidas All-Great Lakes Region First Team and All-Horizon League First Team while also receiving the UMBRO/Chicagoland Soccer News Men's College Soccer Player of the Year and Soccer America Men's Second Team MVP awards. Cesar Zambrano capped his college career in style in 2007. The midfielder was named the Horizon League Championship Most Valuable Player and received NSCAA/adidas All-Great Lakes Region honors before he was drafted by Major League Soccer's Colorado Rapids, giving Trask's program an MLS pick for the second consecutive year after Tonci Skroce was taken by the Columbus Crew one year prior. UIC entered 2007 on the heels of a 2006 season that was one of the most successful in the history of the program. The Flames rattled off a nine-match unbeaten streak to open the campaign, notching road wins over nationally-ranked Saint Louis and eventual national champion UC Santa Barbara during that span. The Flames moved up the national polls, becoming a consensus Top 10 team for the first time and earning the team's highest-ever national ranking during the week of September 25th, reaching the No. 6 spot in the SoccerTimes.com College Coaches Poll. The Flames, who also achieved the No. 1 ranking in the NSCAA/adidas Great Lakes Region poll for the first time in school history, went on to finish 13-3-5 and finish atop the NCAA statistical rankings for team goals-against average (0.36) and team save percentage (.908).UIC's 2006 GAA was the fourth-best mark in NCAA history, while the Flames' save percentage that year stands as the best-ever in Division I men's soccer. UIC, which gave up just eight goals in 21 games and only two goals after intermission during the entire 2006 season, went on to earn the team's first-ever at-large berth into the NCAA Tournament. There UIC picked up a 3-0 win over Western Illinois in the first round before giving Elite Eight qualifier Notre Dame all it could handle on its home pitch in a narrow 1-0 loss to the Irish. The accolades poured in for the national noise made by the Flames. Skroce became the second All-American in program history after being selected to the NSCAA/adidas All-America Second Team for his seven-goal, seven-assist season. Four UIC players earned NSCAA/adidas All-Great Lakes Region accolades, while Skroce's Horizon League Player of the Year award, Bubonja's Horizon League Goalkeeper of the Year award and six All-Horizon League Team honorees highlighted the haul. For guiding the Flames to national prominence in 2006, Trask was named the league's Coach of the Year. The motto "defense wins championships" is one that Trask fully believes in, and it has proven to be the key to success for UIC. In 2006 the Flames set a new school record with 13 shutouts en route to the team's first Horizon League regular season title since 2000. That record did not last long, as the 2007 UIC men's soccer team busted that mark with 14 clean sheets, including five shutouts in seven postseason matches, to win the school's first league tournament title in seven years. UIC's goals-against average during the past two seasons is a paltry 0.49. Trask began to lay the foundation for success in 2005, when the first-year manager guided a team that went 5-12-2 in the fall prior to his arrival to a fantastic 10-5-2 campaign and the sixth-best turnaround in the nation. The Flames stepped up their level of play against top competition in their first season under Trask. UIC earned road victories over Top 25 teams Loyola Marymount and Creighton that season, along with a road draw against 2005 NCAA Tournament team Milwaukee. In addition, the Flames battled to a spring exhibition draw against 2005 NCAA quarterfinalist Akron and fought national power Indiana tooth-and-nail in a preseason road match. Along with stellar showings against some of the nation's best teams, UIC also proved to be a club with better preparation and fitness under Trask's watch. The team's 5-1-2 record in overtime matches during the 2005 season proves such a statement. UIC's success in 2005 brought in various individual awards and team recognition. Dundjer, Skroce and Zambrano were named to the 2005 All-Horizon League First Team, while Pawel Otachel earned Second Team honors. Dundjer also became the first UIC player since Joe Morelli in 2002 to earn NSCAA All-Midwest Region Team accolades. The Flames finished the year ranked ninth in the NSCAA/adidas Midwest Region Rankings, the first time UIC has been ranked in the final region poll since 2002, while also receiving votes in the national poll for the first time since 2001. Not only has Trask improved UIC's play on the field, he has already taken enormous steps in upgrading all facets of the program. Night games at Flames Field debuted last fall thanks to the installation of lights over the pitch. Theme nights, promotions and other additions to the operation of games at Flames Field have been implemented successfully, helping increase attendance by nearly 700%. Plans for a soccer-specific stadium and other improvements are in the works. The Flames have become more active in the community through Trask's affiliation with the America SCORES program, an afterschool reading, writing and soccer program dedicated to inner-city children in 16 cities around the country. Trask has served as the lead clinician for the America SCORES Coaches Workshop at the UCLA campus the past three years. Trask, his staff and his players have proven to be a great resource for the America SCORES Chicago chapter with their volunteer involvement in clinics and camps, and Trask and the Flames teamed with Major League Soccer's Chicago Fire to play a charity friendly at Flames Field the past two years and raise over $14,500 for the organization.
Trask came to UIC with an impeccable soccer pedigree. An assistant at Indiana University for nearly a decade under legendary head coach Jerry Yeagley, Trask played a vital role in cultivating a Hoosier dynasty that claimed eight Big Ten titles, reached five College Cups and earned back-to-back National Championships (1998-1999) during his tenure from 1991 through 1999. Indiana amassed an unbelievable 169-29-12 record during Trask's nine seasons, including four 20-win campaigns. Not only did Trask play a vital role in the championship success of the team as a whole, he also assisted in the recruitment and development of the nation's finest players. Under Trask, Hoosier players amassed five Big Ten Player of the Year awards, 18 All-America honors, 27 All-Region First Team accolades, and 64 All-Big Ten selections. Trask also guided midfielders Brian Maisonneuve and Todd Yeagley to national player of the year honors in 1994, with Maisonneuve earning the Hermann Trophy and Yeagley winning the Missouri Athletic Club Player of the Year award. Along with Maisonneuve and Yeagley, Trask has had a hand in developing a slew of professionals, Olympians and World Cup players from the Indiana program. Dema Kovalenko, Yuri Lavrinenko, Lazo Alavanja and Pat Noonan are just a few of the former Hoosiers that have gone on to significant post-collegiate success on the soccer field following their tutelage under Trask. During his nine-year run at Indiana, Trask quickly made a name for himself in the national prep ranks, particularly in the Midwest. He served as the men's state senior coach for the Indiana State Soccer Association from 1992-1995, followed by a five-year reign as the state director of coaching for the ISSA. He has worked extensively with United States Soccer Federation youth national teams in developing professional and international players for the U.S. over the course of his coaching career. Trask also directed the Indiana Soccer Camp for 11 years and developed the famed John Trask Total Soccer series of camps, which he has brought to the UIC campus with a variety of spring and summer offerings for young players. After his successful apprenticeship at Indiana, Trask took his coaching skills to the professional level for five seasons as an assistant in Major League Soccer. Trask began his career in MLS with Miami in 2000, helping the Fusion earn the MLS Supporters' Shield and a berth into the MLS semifinals in 2001 while serving on the Eastern Conference coaching staff for the 2001 MLS All-Star Game. He guided Alex Pineda Chacon to the league scoring title in 2001 en route to the MLS Honda Most Valuable Player award. Following his two seasons in Miami, Trask spent two years with D.C. United before heading to Dallas as an assistant for the Burn (now FC Dallas). While in Major League Soccer, Trask tutored some of the biggest names in the game. From popular veterans like Preki to young sensations such as U.S. National team member Eddie Johnson, Trask has trained a long list of professional talent from all across the globe. Prior to his coaching career, Trask excelled on the pitch for the Hoosiers as a midfielder. A four-year letterwinner at Indiana from 1984-1987, Trask played for the 1984 College Cup team and two NCAA regional finalists. UIC marks a homecoming of sorts for Trask. Raised in Milwaukee, Wis., Trask was actually born in Chicago and lived in the city for three years prior to moving up north. Trask graduated from Indiana with a bachelor of science degree in management from the School of Public and Environmental Affairs in 1990. He also earned a master's degree in kinesiology in 1993 while serving as a graduate assistant coach with the Hoosiers. Trask and his wife, Jela, were married in February 2008 and reside in the River North neighborhood in downtown Chicago. They recently welcomed a new addition to their family with the birth of their son, Jack, in 2009. JOHN TRASK'S COACHING CAREERHEAD COACH - UIC Year Record Postseason/Team Accomplishments 2008 12-4-6 NCAA Round of 16/Horizon League Regular Season Championship 2007 13-6-6 NCAA Quarterfinals/Horizon League Tournament Championship 2006 13-3-5 NCAA Second Round/Horizon League Regular Season Championship 2005 10-5-2
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