Indiana University Athletics
Juergen Sommer - Back Where it All Began
9/25/2006 12:00:00 AM | Men's Soccer
Sept. 25, 2006
It's not entirely unheard of for a college coaching staff to be composed completely of former players from the institution. Indiana University falls into that group, and while it's not prevalent in Division I, it's not unprecedented, either. But how many American schools have former World Cup and English Premier League (EPL) players as coaches?
Just a handful, to be sure, and IU can be counted in that exclusive crowd.
Juergen Sommer, a member of the United States' 1994 and 1998 World Cup teams and an alternate in 1990, was the first American-born keeper in the EPL. And after concluding a stellar professional career that also saw stops in Major League Soccer, Sommer has returned to where it all began - Indiana.
Sommer lives in Carmel and works in Indianapolis at a commercial real estate group, but makes the hour-and-a-half trek to Bloomington as often as he can to serve as a volunteer assistant coach for the Hoosiers. It's his way of giving back to a university that transformed him from a walk-on as a freshman to an NCAA champion in 1988 to the NCAA adidas Goalkeeper of the Year as a senior in 1990.
"I've always followed these guys around, even when I was playing and away from Bloomington, but now that I'm a little bit closer back, I've had an opportunity now to join these guys and participate a little bit," Sommer said. "I never felt like I was really away. I always kind of kept an eye on how the guys were doing and went to some of the championship games when I was available and had the chance to do it. For me, it's just giving back a little bit to the program that just gave me a lot."
The 1993 English Goalkeeper of the Year, Sommer's credentials speak for themselves. An elite player in both the collegiate and professional ranks, Sommer also has plenty of coaching experience, as he has coached youth teams for several years and served as a volunteer assistant at Harvard. So when Sommer and his family moved to the Indianapolis area, Indiana head coach Mike Freitag jumped at the chance to add him to his staff.
"I approached him," Freitag said. "We needed to find someone who could do it on a volunteer basis, and he was right up the road. Juergen is one I have always admired and watched him coach his youth teams. He felt he had the time and was willing to be a part of the program."
Sophomore keeper Chay Cain, who was started seven of the Hoosiers' nine games this season, also has high praise for his new coach.
"The goalkeepers love him," Cain said. "He's obviously the most experienced goalkeeper we've ever had here. He played in the World Cup and the EPL. His insight is second to none, and it's helped us a lot since he's been here."
Sommer picked up that insight during his days as a Hoosier and his lengthy and successful professional career. And he's never forgotten the program that started him on his way and afforded him the opportunity to become so knowledgeable about the game.
"I've just been fortunate to kind of get a start in the game here, really, at a real competitive level, at Indiana," Sommer said. "That kind of led me on to playing abroad for eight years, for a couple of World Cup teams, and back in the MLS. I've had a chance to see soccer at a lot of different levels. When you're coaching, especially from the youth level, from doing the U-4s all the way to the U-18s, I've just had a lot of worldly experiences in the game and just had an opportunity to see what different countries do, what our national teams do at various different levels of training and team building and preparation and postgame analysis, as well as everything under the sun from nutrition to strength and condition. I feel like I've got a really big, broad base of the game."
Freitag agrees. The second-year skipper lauds Sommer's ability to work with the Hoosier netminders, but also appreciates his knowledge of all facets of the game.
"It's great to have Juergen as part of our staff," Freitag said. "Sometimes goalkeepers are neglected, especially when you don't have the expertise on the staff. We're fortunate to have Juergen come down and work with the keepers and not have them neglected. He's a very good coach. His knowledge of the game is not just limited to goalkeeping. Having another pair of eyes is very helpful."
