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2004 & 2006 NSCAA National Coach of the Year • 2004 & 2005 Big West Conference Coach of the Year
Tim Vom Steeg enters his ninth season as head coach of the UC Santa Barbara men's soccer program, having guided the Gauchos to four Big West Conference titles and five consecutive trips to the NCAA Tournament. He was named the NCAA Division I National Coach of the Year by the NSCAA for the second time in the last three seasons after leading UCSB to the program's first national championship in 2006.
In 2005, Vom Steeg became the career victory leader at UCSB after surpassing Andy Kuenzli (1981-89) with his 96th win when the Gauchos defeated UC Davis in double overtime October 26. He went on to become the first coach in program history to reach the 100-win plateau after he led that squad to a 2-0 victory over San Diego State in the opening round of the NCAAs. The Gauchos tied a school record with nine players chosen to all-conference teams in 2005.
In his eight years at UCSB Vom Steeg has comprised an overall record of 117-45-11, making him the 10th-winningest coach at the Division I level with a .708 winning percentage. In addition to garnering Big West Conference Coach of the Year honors in 2005, Vom Steeg earned his first NCAA National Coach of the Year award after guiding the Gauchos to their first ever College Cup appearance in 2004. He also earned his first Big West Coach of the Year award that season. In his first year with the Gauchos, he was named Mountain Pacific Sports Federation Co-Coach of the Year.
Since taking over the helm of the men's soccer program in 1999, he has coached 14 players who are currently playing professional soccer, including three in Europe and three in Major League Soccer. With just one All-American to come out of UCSB prior to his arrival, Vom Steeg has produced a total of 12 -- including two Freshman All-Americans -- in addition to the Big West's Offensive Player of the Year four of the last six years. He has also coached three conference goalkeepers of the year and has produced the Big West's Defensive Player of the Year three years running.
Vom Steeg guided Santa Barbara to its first- ever Big West Conference Championship in his third season in 2001 and led the Gauchos to a 13-7-0 record in his first year at the helm of the UCSB men's soccer program in 1999. He was named the MPSF Pacific Division Co-Coach of the Year at the end of the season after guiding Santa Barbara to a 10.5-game improvement on their 1998 record, the best turnaround in the NCAA at the Division I level that year.
Vom Steeg achieved a milestone in 2002 in his fourth season with the Gauchos, guiding Santa Barbara to its first-ever NCAA Tournament and posting its first tourney victory in the process. Since then, UCSB has recorded a 13-4 overall record in NCAA tourney play, advancing to the Sweet 16 in 2003, to the national title match in 2004, and winning the NCAA Championship last season. Furthermore, Santa Barbara has never lost a postseason match at Harder Stadium (7-0).
The Gauchos had nine players named All-Big West the first year they made the tournament with Rob Friend repeating as the conference's offensive player of the year. From there, UCSB began its charge onto the national scene. After advancing to the second round of the NCAA Tournament, the team finished the season with a No. 21 national ranking, an 18-3-1 record and a Division I second-best +2.14 scoring margin.
As much success as the squad enjoyed in 2002, Vom Steeg solidified his program's standing amongst the best in the nation in 2003, trumping the standards set by the previous year's team. Playing one of the top-five toughest schedules in the nation, the 2003 squad went 16-5-1 and advanced to its first-ever Sweet 16, where it lost in double-overtime to the eventual national runner-up St. Johns. UCSB ended the 2003 season ranked 12th in the nation by the NSCAA and had its second and third players drafted by an MLS squad, as David McGill and Memo Arzate joined Rob Friend from 2002.
Then came the 2004 squad's trip to the College Cup, where the Gauchos dismantled Duke 5-0 in the semifinals to reach the program's first national final. UCSB battled Indiana to a 1-1 double-overtime tie in the NCAA National Championship match, before losing 3-2 in a penalty kick shoot-out. After earning the program's first-ever No. 1 national ranking in week four, UCSB spent a majority of the season there, entering the tournament with the tag of "nation's best." Santa Barbara wound up finishing the year with a school-record and nation's second-best 21-3-1 overall record and No. 2 final ranking.
Two years later, the Gauchos were back in the College Cup, only this time they would not be denied. UCSB battled a very good Wake Forest team through a scoreless 110 minutes in the semifinals, forcing another shoot-out during college soccer's final weekend. 2006 proved to be the Gauchos' year as they prevailed 4-3 to return to the final, where UCLA awaited. Nick Perera scored just 2:12 into the match and Eric Avila added the game-winner early in the second half as UCSB went on to win 2-1 and capture the NCAA National Championship. The win was just the third-ever for the Gauchos against the Bruins and first since 1982. Perera was named the College Cup Most Outstanding Offensive Player, while Andy Iro took home top defender billing. Unlike the 2004 season, things did not come easy for last year's squad. With a record of 7-6 and out of the national rankings at one point during the season, Santa Barbara rebounded to win 11 of its final 12 games -- including six straight contests in the tournament -- capping an improbable run to the school's second national title as an institution.
Prior to his return to UCSB, Vom Steeg was the head coach at Santa Barbara City College, where he amassed an impressive 121-18-4 (.860) overall record from 1992 through 1998, leading the Vaqueros to five Western State Conference Championships and a 1996 California Community College State Championship. In addition, SBCC reached the State Final Four four times under Vom Steeg, most recently in his final season, 1998. Vom Steeg was a five-time WSC Coach of the Year choice in his seven-year tenure and was also named State Coach of the Year in 1996 and NSCAA Far West Region Coach of the Year in 1997.
Vom Steeg played at UCSB from 1985 to 1988, and graduated in 1989 with a B.A. in history. He received his master's degree from UCSB in 2000. He has also earned his USSF National "B" Coaching License.
Vom Steeg resides in Santa Barbara and is married to Almeria Vom Steeg. They have four sons, Justin, Carson, and twins Caden and Jared.
