Coaching
Staff
Head Coach
ne of the main reasons why the FIU men's soccer team
has enjoyed such success and rich tradition on the playing field
can be traced directly back to its long-time head coach Karl
Kremser. He enters his 22nd season with the Golden Panthers,
averaging more wins per season than any other coach in school's
soccer history.
A veteran of some 30 years in the coaching profession, Kremser has worked hard at building a nationally-prominent program that represented the University in the 1996 NCAA Division I national championship game.
Kremser took over the reigns at FIU in 1980 and led the then-Division II program to four national title games over a six-year span. He made an immediate impact on the program, guided his very-first team to the NCAA National Championship title game against Lock Haven (PA).
In 1982, Kremser played an integral role in bringing FIU its first national championship in any sport. Before a standing-room-only partisan crowd at the University Park stadium, FIU defeated Southern Connecticut State, 2-1, for the national crown. The program was back in the NCAA finals in 1984 and 1985, claiming the title in 1984 with a 1-0 overtime win on the road at Seattle Pacific.
But none of that could compare with what he and his 1996 team experienced in search of a Division I national title. The Golden Panthers were the No. 1 seed of their bracket and battled all the way to the National Championship game in front of 20,874 soccer enthusiasts and a national television audience in Richmond, VA. Despite falling short in their efforts, it was an experience that will not be forgotten.
"It's hard to describe until you really get involved with it," said Kremser. "The whole experience--the fans, the media attention--is so much larger in scope (than the Division II tournament) and it's still growing."
In the decade of the 1990s, Kremser's Golden Panthers posted a 125-65-14 record, for a .644 winning percentage, despite playing against some of the top-rated programs in Division I. As a tribute to their success, the National Soccer Coaches Association of America (NSCAA) voted FIU as its No. 1 team in national rankings for the week ending September 1, 1997.
Last year, playing their first season in the newly formed Atlantic Soccer Conference, the Golden Panthers claimed the league's first-ever championship, sporting a 7-1-0 mark.
An all-around athlete himself, Kremser was born in Salzwedel, West Germany and attended the United States Military Academy in West Point, where he was an accomplished high jumper and soccer player. In 1965, he helped lead the Cadets' soccer team to the Final Four of the NCAA National Tournament. Kremser then transferred to the University of Tennessee.
| Karl Kremser's Collegiate Head Coaching Record | |||
| Year |
School |
Record | Percentage |
| 1977 | Davidson | 0-16-0 | .000 |
| 1978 | Davidson | 5-10-0 | .333 |
| 1979 | Davidson | 8-13-0 | .381 |
| 1980 | Florida International | 13-4-0 | .765 |
| 1981 | Florida International | 13-4-1 | .750 |
| 1982 | Florida International | 16-3-1 | .825 |
| 1983 | Florida International | 17-3-1 | .833 |
| 1984 | Florida International | 14-4-3 | .738 |
| 1985 | Florida International | 15-5-4 | .761 |
| 1986 | Florida International | 11-10-1 | .523 |
| 1987 | Florida International | 12-6-2 | .650 |
| 1988 | Florida International | 9-8-4 | .523 |
| 1989 | Florida International | 8-9-1 | .472 |
| 1990 | Florida International | 10-7-2 | .579 |
| 1991 | Florida International | 17-3-3 | .803 |
| 1992 | Florida International | 10-9-1 | .525 |
| 1993 | Florida International | 10-8-1 | .553 |
| 1994 | Florida International | 16-4-1 | .786 |
| 1995 | Florida International | 12-5-2 | .684 |
| 1996 | Florida International | 17-5-2 | .750 |
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Florida International |
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Florida International |
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Florida International |
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Florida International |
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| Overall |
24 Years |
275-167-33 | .614 |
| FIU | 21 Years |
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UT did not field a soccer team, so Kremser became the football team's soccer-style placekicker. The highlight of his collegiate football career came with a 54-yard field goal that helped the Vols defeat Alabama, 10-9, in 1968. That kick set a Southeastern Conference record for distance up to that time and still stands as one of the longest field goals in Tennessee history.
Following his college graduation, Kremser kicked for the Miami Dolphins and was the team's leading scorer in 1969.
After his NFL stint, Kremser's coaching career began in the early 1970s, when he started the soccer program at Palm Springs (FL) Junior High School. He moved to Miami Killian Senior High School in 1975, and a year later, guided the Cougars to a 15-5-2 record and their first-ever state championship.
Kremser entered the college ranks with Davidson College in 1977 and again started to build a program. By his third season, the Wildcats had five players named All-Southern Conference and Kremser was named Conference Coach of the Year.
At FIU, Kremser inherited a program that was already on the verge of national prominence. His goal then was not to build a program, but to maintain it. "This program had great tradition," Kremser said in retrospect. "My only concern was to continue what had already been developed."
His many honors and achievements include being named the State's Coach of the Year in 1980 and the Collegiate Coaches' South Region Coach of the Year in 1985. He was selected Trans America Athletic Conference Coach of the Year in 1991 when he guided the program to its first Conference crown and NCAA Division I Tournament appearance. He was voted TAAC Coach of the Year again in 1996.
With a 1-0 Atlantic Soccer Conference victory over Adelphi last November 3, Kremser joined an elite group with 275 career coaching victories. His current record is 275-167-33 (.614 winning percentage), including 262-128-33 (.658) at FIU. He has guided the Golden Panthers to 19 winning seasons and his teams enjoyed nine straight seasons with 10-or-more victories (1990-98).
Kremser has coached 32 All-State selections, including five State Players of the Year, 26 All-South Region selections and eight All-Americans. He also has had 35 former players graduate on to the professional ranks, including U.S. National team player Robin Fraser and MLS 1996 Rookie of the Year Steve Ralston.
Kremser and his wife, Hil, have two sons: Jon and Kurt.
Assistant Coach
 Munga Eketebi |
or
some 17 years now, Assistant Coach Munga Eketebi has been
an imposing figure on the sidelines for the FIU men's soccer
program. After a brilliant four-year playing career with the
Golden Panthers from 1983-86, Eketebi has been an invaluable
asset to the FIU coaching staff just about ever since.
A prolific scorer as a player, Eketebi's 50 career goals still tie him for top program honors. Additionally, his 124 career points rank second and his 24 assists tie him for third place among FIU's all-time scoring leaders. He was a key member of the 1984 Division II national championship squad and the 1985 runner-up team with six playoff goals, including four in an NCAA match win vs. Lock Haven (PA) in 1984.
Eketebi is one of only a handful of FIU student-athletes ever to be voted All-America three times. He was also a four-time All-State and three-time All-South selection. After helping FIU to the NCAA Division II National Championship finals, Eketebi was selected the State of Florida Player-of-the-Year in 1985.
Eketebi has roamed the FIU sidelines as an assistant coach ever since, except in 1996 when he served a one-year stint as the men's head coach at Nova Southeastern University. There, Eketebi guided the NAIA Knights to a 12-6-1 record that included an undefeated regular-season record in the Sun Conference.
Eketebi, who has his Florida coaching license, has served as an assistant coach with the USISL Florida Stars and the South Florida select program. He was involved administratively with the Miami Sharks and Miami Freedom of the American Professional Soccer League. He has also assisted with many international games played in South Florida, including the Marlboro Cup, U.S. Cup and the Pélé Cup. Eketebi headed the Gulliver Prep girls' squad and the Miami Futbol Club from 1991-93, K-Land Youth Clubs from 1985-90, Miami Springs High School in 1985-86 and Belen Jesuit Prep in 1983.
Before attending FIU, Eketebi was a member of the European high school championship team at College DeLeman (Switzerland) from 1976 through 1979. Schooled in Europe, he speaks four languages fluently (English, French, Italian and Spanish).
Eketebi's chief coaching responsibilities at FIU include helping with day-to-day practices, administrative duties and recruiting.
"FIU is fortunate to have an individual like Munga. He's is the first full-time soccer assistant in the history of the program and we couldn't have gotten a better one. He was an outstanding player, and he's a great recruiter and individual. Munga has been a great addition to our program," said Karl Kremser.
Assistant Coach
 Reginald Pierre-Jerome |
eturning
for his third year on the Golden Panthers coaching staff is former
professional goalkeeper and collegiate all-star Reginald Pierre-Jerome.
A soccer standout since his high school days at Hollywood (FL) McArthur in the mid-1980s, Pierre-Jerome went on to become an All-Region performer at both Miami-Dade Community College and at Coastal Carolina (SC) University where he earned a bachelor's degree in Business Administration-Marketing in 1992.
While at Coastal Carolina, Pierre-Jerome was selected Big South Conference Goalkeeper of the Year after helping the Chanticleers to a Top 20 national ranking in 1990. That season, he led the NCAA Division I South Region with a 0.87 goals against average.
Pierre-Jerome played professionally with the Miami Fusion (MLS), Ft. Lauderdale Strikers (APSL) and Miami Breakers (USISL). He was also a first-round draft choice of the Dallas Sidekicks of the Continental Indoor Soccer League and signed a contract to play with the Charleston Battery of the A-League.
A veteran international player, Pierre-Jerome was a member of the under-23 Haitian National team that participated in the 1991 Pan American Games and played in qualifying games with the Haitian National team for the 1991 Barcelona Olympics and the '94 World Cup. He has also trained with the U.S. National team, Alianza Lima of the Peruvian first division and for the Paris FC of France.
Locally, he competed with the Team Haiti club that won the Copa Latina soccer tournament three times between 1993 and 1997. Pierre-Jerome, himself, was named Most Valuable Player of that tournament in 1997.
As a coach, Pierre-Jerome worked as an assist at Barry University in 1996 and he is the director of goalkeepers at the Weston Soccer Club, while working full-time as a teacher in the Broward County School System.
"We're happy to have an individual with the expertise of Reggie on our staff," said Head Coach Karl Kremser. "Reggie is well qualified. He was a great player and has become an outstanding coach who had made important contributions to our program."
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