Rutgers has interviewed seven candidates for its soccer coaching position and AD Tim Pernetti told the Post he’ll bring several finalists back for second interviews next week. A source told the Post that Monmouth’s Rob McCourt is the front-runner to land the Scarlet Knight job, vacated after Bob Reasso’s “resignation.”
“I’ll tell you what’s going on with the search. I have the final one today. We’ve interviewed six, and the seventh is today. That’s where we’re at right now,” Pernetti told the Post. “The final round of interviews will be next week. All I can tell you is I’ve invited a few candidates to come back.”
Pernetti said McCourt was definitely invited back to Piscataway, but declined to name the other finalists because they hadn’t formally accepted his invitation yet.
The Post has learned the other half-dozen interviewees were present assistant Jeff Zaun, St. John’s coach Dave Masur, Virginia’s George Gelnovatch, ex-U.S. National Team star Tony Meola, St. Benedict’s (NJ) Prep coach Rick Jacobs and St. Louis’ Dan Donigan. The choice is expected to come soon.
“My plan has always been to try to have a soccer coach in place by the end of January and I think we’re well ahead of schedule,” Pernetti said.
Masur _ who was a standout at Rutgers, and coached the Red Storm to the 1996 NCAA championship _ was originally considered the front-runner to make a triumphant return to Piscataway. But with the basketball team floundering and the possibility of having to buy out the last THREE years of Fred Hill Jr.’s deal, one wonders how much the Scarlet Knights will spend?
Gelnovatch is a Wall (NJ) native who led UVA to this season’s NCAA title, but will be expensive as well. Jacobs is arguably the most accomplished high school coach in the nation, having molded U.S. National Team stars like Tab Ramos and Claudio Reyna. Zaun, a former MetroStar, was a standout at Rutgers who was also Reasso’s assistant.
Still, the combination of cost and track record may push McCourt to the front of the list, with Pernetti having already said he plans to improve Rutgers’ Olympic sports with cost-effective hires. He’s already started that with wrestling find Scott Goodale from Jackson (NJ) High School, and soccer is next.
McCourt, a Kearny native, coached Monmouth to an 18-2-2 mark, the best in school history. The Hawks cracked the Top 10 for seven weeks and the Top 25 for 11 weeks, getting knocked out of the NCAA in the second round.
He picked up his second NSCAA/adidas North Atlantic Regional Coach of the Year award and his fourth Northeast Conference Coach of the Year Award, after building the Hawks into a regional power. Despite playing in a lesser conference, McCourt regularly won recruiting battles against Reasso, which would bode well if he were given the resources of a large state school like Rutgers.
The Scarlet Knights reached the 1990 NCAA final and played in three Final Fours, and could easily return to that level of prominence with the right coach. Scarlet Knight midfielder Dilly Duka left school after his sophomore season, but is expected to be a first-round pick in tomorrow’s MLS SuperDraft.