The NC State men’s soccer team has a new head coach, as George Kiefer has been named as the replacement for Kelly Findley, who parted ways with the program earlier this month. Kiefer comes to State from the University of South Florida, where he spent 15 seasons in charge.
During his time at USF, Kiefer posted a record of 162-86-51 while leading his team to 10 NCAA Tournament appearances. This past season saw the Bulls finish 10-6-4 en route to becoming the American Athletic Conference champions. Kiefer also led USF to an impressive 29-26-11 record against ranked opponents.
“George has had considerable success on every level,” State Director of Athletics Deborah A. Yow told NC State Athletics. “NC State has hired one of the best respected college soccer coaches in the nation.”
Along with his success at USF, Kiefer was also an assistant coach at the University of Connecticut and Southern Connecticut State University. During Kiefer’s six years at UConn, the team qualified for the NCAA Tourney four times and were crowned national champions in the 2000 season.
Kiefer also experienced success as a player. Kiefer played four years at Southern Connecticut State, and he helped to lead the Owls to four New England Collegiate Conference championships as well as two NCAA championships. He also played professionally for the Connecticut Wolves of the United States International Soccer League.
“I first would like to personally thank Debbie Yow for trusting me to be the next men’s soccer coach at NC State,” Kiefer told NC State Athletics. “I have been very fortunate over the past 15 years to coach a diverse population of student-athletes at USF and each and every one of them has played a role in the opportunity opening up for me. I look forward to the journey with the new group of players at NC State and the added excitement of ACC soccer.”
The Wolfpack is coming off of a 5-12 (1-7 ACC) season in which the team failed to make a postseason appearance. The addition of an experienced and successful head coach in Kiefer should help to revitalize the State program.
