New Soccer Coach for the CNMI

This was one of those "Saipan" set of circumstances. I never check the messages on my cell phone, but I did yesterday and there was a call from someone in Texas from last Saturday who wanted to get more information on our house which he saw online. I called him up. "What will be bringing you to Saipan?" I asked. "I'm going to be the new football coach." "'Football' as in 'soccer.'" "That's right." I was pretty excited to hear this. I was one of the founding members of the NMIFA Board (was that only two years ago?!), and even back then we recognized the need to recruit a great coach to really move the program forward. This is huge!

Jason Higgins and his wife (who is from London) arrive on August 1. Jason is currently an Assistant Coach at SMU in Texas. Here is is bio from the SMU website. It sounds like this will be a leap forward for our football (and soccer) program in the Mariana Islands. Welcome, Jason!

***

Jason Higgins begins his third season on staff, having come to the Hilltop in the spring of 2005. At SMU, Jason is heavily involved in all aspects of the program. In particular, he is responsible for all team travel arrangements, scouting of opponents, game administration, and office administration. Jason also be assists with recruiting, video and match analysis, on-field coaching, off-season conditioning, and summer camps.

Prior to his involvement with SMU, Jason served as the head assistant men's soccer coach at the University of Dayton in 2004-2005. During that season, Dayton compiled a 11-7-1 record, making a trip to the Atlantic 10 conference semi-finals. His responsibilities included but were not limited to: recruiting coordinator, scouting of opponents, practice and game management and travel arrangements. During his tenure in Ohio, Jason also was involved with the Olympic Development Program for the `86' Boys team.

Prior to his Dayton experience, Jason served as the Director of Operations at Rutgers University in 2003-04 when the Scarlet Knights were consistently ranked in the Top 25 in the nation. He was involved with all aspects of the program and enjoyed a trip to the second round of the NCAA Soccer Tournament His major responsibilities included but were not limited to: travel coordinator, film editing, game and practice management, and day to day office administration.

Higgins has also held the position of Head Coach at Schreiner University in Kerrville, Texas, for two seasons. There, he recruited and coached the American Southwest Conference Offensive and Defensive Players of the Year. His initial season ended with a 4-15 record, but his squad rebounded to post an 11-5-2 mark in his second year, while consistently starting eight of his 17 recruited freshmen.

From 1999 to 2001, he was the assistant men's varsity soccer coach at his alma mater, Springfield College in Springfield, Mass. He earned a Bachelor of Science degree in psychology from Springfield in May 1999, and obtained his Master's degree in Education from the same college in May 2001.

Higgins holds a USSF "B" license and the Advanced National Coaching License.