DALLAS, Texas (Nov. 9, 2021) – After a magical run to the 2021 season that included a C-USA regular-season title, FIU men's soccer head coach Kyle Russell was named the Conference USA Coach of the Year, the league office announced on Tuesday.
 
Voting on the award was done by the C-USA head coaches and media members in each conference city.
 
"I am honored by the recognition from our conference but I see this as a staff of the year award," said Coach Russell. "I get to work with a great group of coaches in Dannie Merida, Cameron Sauro, Morten Timm, and Randy Lavaire. We have an excellent trainer as well in Najeeb Emmanuel that has kept our team healthy. This award isn't possible without the grace of God, the hard work from my staff, and the trust of our players. I'm just having fun in my first full season and enjoying the process with the players and staff."

Coach Russell stands as the youngest head coach in an extremely formidable C-USA landscape that includes three top-ranked programs. In only his second year with the program, Coach Russell guided the Panthers to an undefeated 7-0-1 mark in the league while knocking off No. 1 ranked and defending NCAA champion Marshall to clinch the league regular-season championship on Nov. 9.

Under the guidance of Russell, FIU secured the most points ever (22) in the league standings since joining C-USA while posting a perfect 7-0-0 record at home.

The Panthers have also appeared in national polls for 10 consecutive weeks while reaching as high as No. 12 in the country. FIU secured the most program shutouts (7) in a regular season since the 2003 season en route to defeating a No. 1 ranked opponent for the first time in program history.

Meanwhile, the Blue & Gold lead the nation in shot-attempts (17.62) and rank second in shots-on-goal per game (7.75), while also ranking Top-25 nationally in several offensive and defensive categories.

At the conclusion of the regular season, FIU earned the No. 1 seed in the 2021 C-USA Men's Soccer Championships and a first-round bye in the tournament. The Panthers open play in the league tournament on Friday, Nov. 12, at 4:30 p.m. ET.

FIU awaits the winner of the match between No. 4 seed Kentucky and No. 4 Coastal Carolina, which will take place on Wednesday, Nov. 10.

All games at the 2021 C-USA Championship will be broadcast on ESPN+.

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