Chris Grassie (born 21 September 1978)[1] is an English soccer coach who is currently the head coach of the Marshall University men's soccer team. During his tenure as coach of the Herd, he led the program to its first 2 Conference USA titles and the 2020 NCAA National Championship.[2]
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Chris Grassie | ||
| Date of birth | (1978-09-21) 21 September 1978 (age 44) | ||
| Place of birth | Newcastle upon Tyne, England | ||
| Position(s) | Goalkeeper | ||
| Club information | |||
Current team | Marshall Thundering Herd (coach) | ||
| College career | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| –2002 | Alderson Broaddus | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 2002–2003 | Northwich Victoria F.C. | ||
| Teams managed | |||
| 2003 | Alderson Broaddus Battlers (assistant) | ||
| 2004–2006 | Marshall Thundering Herd (grad assistant) | ||
| 2007–2010 | Michigan Wolverines (assistant) | ||
| 2011–2016 | Charleston Golden Eagles | ||
| 2017– | Marshall Thundering Herd | ||
| *Club domestic league appearances and goals | |||
As a player at Alderson Broaddus, Grassie was named to the all-conference team multiple times and was a team captain. He majored in political science and history.[3]
Grassie played in England from 2002 to 2003 with Northwich Victoria F.C.
Grassie began his coaching career as an assistant at his alma mater, Alderson Broaddus University in Philippi, West Virginia. After one season, he became a graduate assistant at Marshall University under coach Bob Gray from 2004-2006.[3]
Grassie would move on to become an assistant coach at the University of Michigan from 2007 to 2010. The Wolverines won the Big Ten championship in 2010 and advanced to the 2010 College Cup semifinals, losing to eventual national champion Akron. After the 2010 season, Grassie accepted the head coaching position at the University of Charleston.
During his 6 seasons at Charleston, Grassie would win 6 conference tournaments and 5 regular season titles as the Golden Eagles moved from the now-defunct West Virginia Intercollegiate Athletic Conference to the Mountain East Conference. While at Charleston, Grassie coached eight All-Americans and four former players landed professional contracts. His teams advanced to 3 NCAA Division II Final Fours, finishing runner-up twice.
Grassie became head coach of the Marshall Thundering Herd on January 10, 2017. Days after winning the 2020 NCAA Tournament, Grassie was recognized as the United Soccer Coaches College Coach of the Year for the season[4] and was given a five year contract extension through 2025 with a pay increase from $122,000 to $375,750 annually.[5]
| Season | Team | Overall | Conference | Standing | Postseason | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Charleston Golden Eagles (West Virginia Intercollegiate Athletic Conference) (2011–2012) | |||||||||
| 2011 | Charleston | 13–6–0 | 8–4–0 | 1st | WVIAC Tournament Champions | ||||
| 2012 | Charleston | 13–2–4 | 9–0–0 | 1st | WVIAC Tournament Champions NCAA Division II Second Round | ||||
| Charleston Golden Eagles (Mountain East Conference) (2013–2016) | |||||||||
| 2013 | Charleston | 12–5–1 | 9–3–1 | 2nd | MEC Tournament Champions | ||||
| 2014 | Charleston | 22–1–1 | 11–0–1 | 1st | MEC Tournament Champions NCAA Division II Runner-up | ||||
| 2015 | Charleston | 20–3–0 | 10–2–0 | 1st | MEC Tournament Champions NCAA Division II College Cup | ||||
| 2016 | Charleston | 19–3–2 | 9–2–1 | 1st | MEC Tournament Champions NCAA Division II Runner-up | ||||
| Charleston: | 99–20–8 | 56–11–3 | |||||||
| Marshall Thundering Herd (Conference USA) (2017–present) | |||||||||
| 2017 | Marshall | 8–10–2 | 3–5–0 | 6th | C-USA Semifinals | ||||
| 2018 | Marshall | 8–9–3 | 3–3–2 | 5th | C-USA Semifinals | ||||
| 2019 | Marshall | 16–3–3 | 5–1–1 | 1st | C-USA Champions NCAA Division I Third Round | ||||
| 2020 | Marshall | 13–2–3 | 6–0–1 | 1st | NCAA Division I Champions | ||||
| 2021 | Marshall | 11–4–3 | 5–1–2 | 2nd | C-USA Semifinals NCAA Division I Second Round | ||||
| Marshall: | 56–28–14 | 22–10–6 | |||||||
| Total: | 155–48–22 | ||||||||
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National champion
Postseason invitational champion
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University of Charleston
Marshall University
Current head men's soccer coaches of the Sun Belt Conference | |
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United Soccer Coaches College Coach of the Year winners | |
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| Men's coaches |
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| Women's coaches |
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