IU to begin quest for 8th NCAA championship tonight at home

Seven stars lay stitched above the IU logo on the IU men’s soccer uniforms and apparel.

On the shirt’s left side, the stars and logo are placed over the players’ and coaches’ hearts.

The road to a possible eighth star begins at 7 p.m. today when the Hoosiers take on No. 6 Louisville at Bill Armstrong Stadium in its 23rd consecutive appearance in the NCAA tournament.

Former IU coach Jerry Yeagley said the only aspect of men’s soccer that has changed since it gained its first star is the appreciation for the program’s history.

“I think one of the things that has evolved over the years is the tremendous pride in the
uniform and the respect for the tradition and those who have worn uniform in past,” former IU coach Jerry Yeagley said. “Only your best performance is acceptable. When you walk on field wearing the IU uniform, you expect to win.”

That expectation comes from what the stars represent for the Hoosiers and their fans.

Since the men’s varsity program started in 1973, the Hoosiers have hoisted seven NCAA championship trophies, the most of any school in the nation since that year.

Along the way, IU has accumulated 17 College Cup appearances, 74 NCAA tournament victories in 23 appearances and has fostered 24 All-Americans.

IU also has the best all-time NCAA Tournament record at 74-24-4. Last year, the team finished its season in the NCAA quarterfinals  

Ten years prior to the team’s promotion to varsity status, Yeagley came to Bloomington as a physical education teacher and coach of the IU club soccer team.

During that time, the Hoosiers’ program developed a winning tradition.

“It didn’t happen overnight,” Yeagley said. “We had 10 years of club before varsity. It was where foundation was laid. From the very beginning, it was not about just being satisfied to play but to win. We wanted championship-caliber from the start.”  

The Hoosiers have won back-to-back titles on three separate occasions. Of IU’s championship years, the 1988 team is the only team not to have a repeat title.  

“One of the things is, the guys know the tradition,” IU coach Mike Freitag said. “It is passed on from group to group. This is Indiana soccer. You play right.”

Freitag, the second coach in IU history, has coached the program since 2004, the year after Yeagley’s retirement. He was involved in five of the Hoosiers’ seven championships as an assistant and head coach.

For almost four decades, an expectation to win by coaches and alumni is what Yeagley said has kept the winning attitude rolling for IU.

“It’s a tremendous pride being an IU soccer player,” Yeagley said. “Expectations were high from the beginning, and I expect them to be high in the future. When people play the Hoosiers, they know they will be in for a tough night and a tough game. Tough
competitors and will to win are ingrained in the program.”

Freitag, who also played for the Hoosiers, knows what has worked for the program in the past.

“To win a national championship, there’s no magic formula,” he said. “You work your tail off, and as a coach, you very seldom have a day off. You also have to be lucky.
Sometimes there are teams who are great and get injuries, but you have to stay positive and keep on shooting for perfection. We’ll never get there, but we want to be as close as we can.”

Perfection has eluded this year’s IU team. They went 10-9-1 and nearly missed the NCAA tournament. But IU has historically been the closest to perfection of any soccer program in NCAA history.