Heidelberg Athletics Hall of Fame
The face of the Heidelberg Men’s Soccer program for 26 seasons, Dr. Brian Haley racked up 243 victories -- more than the 12 other head coaches in program history combined. The tenure, which spanned parts of four decades, yielded two Ohio Athletic Conference crowns, hundreds of student-athletes and countless memorable stories.
Haley, a native of Bradford, England, wasted little time making an impact on Heidelberg soccer. In 1989, the first-year coach set a then-program record with an eight-win season -- the first of 18 seasons above .500.
After several near-misses, the 2010 squad hoisted the first trophy in the Haley era, going 7-0-2 in Ohio Athletic Conference play and winning the regular-season title. HU clinched the crown with a 3-0 win at home over Wilmington. Speaking about the championship, the silver-tongued Haley quipped, “We have had a lot of great teams at Heidelberg, but congratulations to this one for getting us over the hump. I knew it would come, I just didn’t know it would take 22 years.”
Four years later, having already announced the 2014 season would be his final campaign, Haley saved the best for last. More than 50 former coaches and players gathered for Haley’s final regular-season game -- a 2-0 win over Wilmington.
The team won their tournament opener at home over Marietta, 2-1, but trailed at halftime of the semifinal match at Baldwin Wallace, 3-0. Heidelberg netted three goals in the second half, including the equalizer in the 84th minute, forcing extra time. In the 12th minute, the Student Princes scored the golden goal -- sending HU to the finals on what Haley called, “The greatest night in my football career.” He asked the question, “Why did it take 26 years to win the biggest game of my life?”
But he might have wondered that three days too soon.
Through a relentless Northeast Ohio November rain, Haley and his plucky band of Student Princes brought home that elusive OAC Tournament crown for the first and only time in program history. But it wasn’t easy. Top seed John Carroll scored early to energize their home crowd, but Heidelberg scored three times before half and led by two. The advantage blossomed to 5-1 by the 70th minute, but for Haley and company, there simply weren’t enough buses to park in front of the goal to keep the Blue Streaks at bay. JCU scored three times in a 16-minute span, closing to within one. Having already hit the post three times in the game, the hosts were relentless in their pursuit of a game-tying goal. For 152 agonizing seconds, the 11 players clung to their “One Team - One Squad” mantra. When the final horn sounded, the Student Princes sprinted in jubilation to their cheering section and Haley tearfully embraced assistant coach Eli Zamora. Almost at a loss for words, which rarely happened in his 26 years at the helm, Haley remarked, “I’m just so happy for the team. I’m delighted.”
Heidelberg had its first OAC Tournament title and made its first-ever NCAA Tournament appearance the next weekend. For his efforts, Haley rode off into the sunset with OAC Coach of the Year honors.
In total, Haley was 243-199-41 overall and 113-98-23 in league play. During his 26 years, 40 players earned All-OAC honors a total of 68 times. He mentored Heidelberg Hall of Famers Darnell Chambers and Ryan Wise, both of whom earned All-American honors for the Tricolor.
Haley’s 243 victories remains third on the OAC’s all-time wins list.
