MIAMI (June 29, 2016) – FIU Head Men's Soccer Coach
Scott Calabrese has announced the hiring of Graeme Jaap as assistant coach.
"I want to thank Head Coach
Scott Calabrese for giving me this opportunity to join the Panther family," said Jaap. "I am excited to be joining a program with a rich soccer history and contributing to the development of the players on and off the field."
"We are very excited to welcome Graeme to FIU," said Calabrese. "He has been an integral part of Rollins College's success over the last several years which helped them rise to the top of Division II soccer. His experience in the state of Florida and internationally will continue to advance the future of FIU men's soccer. In addition, he will be a great asset to our players and to the program as we continue to improve through training and on-field performance."
Jaap comes to FIU following a successful five-year stint as assistant coach with the men's soccer team at Rollins College in Winter Park, Florida. While with the Tars, Jaap oversaw operations for the program, including scouting and game day tactics.
During his time at Rollins, Jaap helped guide the Tars to a 70-23-5 record, three Sunshine State Conference (SSC) titles (2015, 2012, 2011) and four NCAA Tournament appearances (2015, 2013, 2012, 2011).
Rollins' 2013 team finished the season 17-3 overall, including a 7-1 mark in the SSC, and opened the year with 16-straight victories. The unbeaten streak was tied for the longest unbeaten streak in program history, while the 17 wins equaled the most victories in the programs history. The Tars rose to as high as No. 1 in the country entering the last week of the regular season before suffering their first loss of the year. Rollins fell in the SSC Tournament semifinals, but still was named the No. 1 seed in Super Region 2. The Tars defeated West Florida in the Round of 16 but fell in the Quarterfinal to Carson Newman.
In Jaaps first two years with the Tars, Rollins posted a record of 30-8-2 and won back-to-back Sunshine State Conference Tournament championships.
Prior to arriving in Winter Park, Jaap was previously the head coach of the Brescia University Bearcats in Owensboro, Kentucky. In 2010, he led his team to the Kentucky Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (KIAC) championship.
A native of Hamilton, Scotland, Jaap enjoyed a successful playing career with the Hamilton Accies. He started his playing days as a standout for the U-18 Scottish national team, earning two caps.
Jaap started his collegiate career at the University Mary before transferring to Brescia in 2003. He earned NAIA All-American honors in 2004 before battling injury the next two years.
Jaap graduated from Brescia in 2006 with a degree in Business, focusing on Human Resources. Prior to coming to Rollins, he developed talent in Kentucky, coaching club in Owensboro.
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About FIU Athletics: FIU Athletics is home to more than 400 student-athletes in 18 different sports. Athletic events are played in seven different venues on FIU's campuses (Modesto A. Maidique and Biscayne Bay), including FIU Arena and Ocean Bank Field at FIU Stadium.
About FIU: Florida International University is recognized as a Carnegie engaged university. It is a public research university with colleges and schools that offer more than 180 bachelor's, master's and doctoral programs in fields such as engineering, international relations, architecture, law and medicine. As one of South Florida's anchor institutions, FIU contributes $8.9 billion each year to the local economy. FIU is Worlds Ahead in finding solutions to the most challenging problems of our time. FIU emphasizes research as a major component of its mission. FIU has awarded over 200,000 degrees and enrolls more than 54,000 students in two campuses and three centers including FIU Downtown on Brickell, FIU@I-75, and the Miami Beach Urban Studios. FIU also supports artistic and cultural engagement through its three museums: the Patricia & Phillip Frost Art Museum, the Wolfsonian-FIU, and the Jewish Museum of Florida-FIU. FIU is a member of Conference USA and has over 400 student-athletes participating in 18 sports. For more information about FIU, visit http://www.fiu.edu/.
