GREENEVILLE, Tenn. --- Josh Scott has been named the assistant men's soccer coach at Tusculum College announced TC head coach Allen Vital. Scott returns to Tusculum after serving in the same position during the 2011 campaign with Vital.
Scott replaces Gary Higgins, who left Tusculum after three seasons to accept the head women's soccer coaching position at his alma mater, Lenoir-Rhyne University.
Scott, a native of London, England, has coaching experience at all three NCAA levels as well as on the semi-pro circuit and within United Soccer Leagues, which is now a partner of Major League Soccer.
"I'm delighted to have Josh back on the staff once again. He is an experienced coach who will relate very well to our players," said Vital. "We are so fortunate to have in Josh someone who will help us make a relatively seamless transition in the assistant coach position. His knowledge of the conference and his experience as a college coach will be a great asset as we try to encourage our players to get better."
Scott comes to Tusculum after serving last season at NCAA
Division I Longwood University. While at the Farmville, Virginia
school, he served as the Lancers' top assistant coach. He assisted
in all aspects of the program, including coordinating all
recruitment efforts, team travel, player development, on-field
coaching, scouting, film analysis, academic monitoring and
mentoring and all the day-to-day operations.
Prior to Longwood, he served as co-founder and director of coaching
of the boys and girls U9-U20 teams at the Knoxville Soccer Academy.
Additionally, he will also continue to be the main scouting contact
in Tennessee for the United Soccer Leagues and a sought-after USL
scouting reference for identifying talent for the national USL
Olympic Development program.
Scott helped start the Knoxville Soccer Academy in August, 2011,
the Knoxville-based soccer club competed through the state leagues
of Tennessee and the Super Y and Super-20 Leagues of the United
Soccer Leagues where he focused on individual player development in
a team setting.
During his previous stint at Tusculum, he assisted Vital with the rebuilding stages of the program, which resulted in a second-place finish in the South Atlantic Conference with a 6-1-2 league mark and a 7-8-3 overall record, a massive improvement from the previous year of 2-12-3 overall and a bottom finish in the conference.
"I am delighted to return to the Pioneer Nation and to assist Allen Vital in continuing the programs goals of competing on a regional and national level once again," said Scott. "This opportunity is one that I am excited about and I look forward to getting situated. I would like to say thank you to (Tusculum Athletic Director) Frankie DeBusk and Coach Vital in allowing me to return to Tusculum. This is a good move for me and my family and we look forward to being part of the Pioneer Family."
Scott got his full-time professional coaching start at Emory & Henry College in 2009. He spent two seasons with the Division III program as an assistant coach and recruiting coordinator and also stepped in as interim head coach for the spring and summer of 2011.
Scott played his first two seasons of college soccer at Hiwassee College, an NJCAA affiliate. He was team captain from 2006-2008 and helped lead the program to consecutive conference championships and back-to-back appearances in the regional final.
Following his time at Hiwassee, he transferred to Milligan
College, where he stepped in as team captain in 2009 and earned
All-Appalachian Athletic Conference honors while leading the
program to the 2009 AAC Championship. He was also the recipient of
the Brian Letendre Award for motivational leadership which was
voted on by his peers.
Scott enjoyed a two-year stint in 2009 and 2010 playing
semi-professional soccer with the Chattanooga Football Club during
the summer months in front of crowds as large as seven thousand
people. He helped the team win the 2010 South East Conference
championship and also led them to the 2010 NPSL National
Championship game after placing second in the division in 2009.
Scott also played for the Fort Wayne Fever of the professional
development league in 2008 where he teamed up with a number of
current Major League Soccer players.
Scott holds his Premier Diploma, Advanced National Diploma and
Director of Coaching Diploma from the National Soccer Coaches
Association of America. He also holds his UEFA B license- modules
Level 1 and Level 2 certificates from the English Football
Association and is also NSC First Aid, CPR and AED certified.
After graduating from Milligan College in May, 2010, Scott received
his Bachelor of Science degree in human performance and exercise
science with an emphasis on physical education.
Scott is married to the former Brianna Buckley, who played her collegiate soccer at Carson-Newman University. Josh and Brianna are the parents of twins: son Fynn and daughter Rylee.
The 2014 Pioneers finished with an 11-6-3 overall record and captured the program's fifth South Atlantic Conference Tournament Championship.
Tusculum College, located in Greeneville, Tenn., is affiliated
with the Presbyterian Church, USA and is a NCAA Division II member
of the South Atlantic Conference. Tusculum, the oldest college in
the State of Tennessee, sponsors 16 intercollegiate sports,
including women's lacrosse, which will be competing in its first
season this spring.
Tusculum, the 28th oldest college in the nation, is a liberal arts
institution committed to providing a liberal arts education in a
Judeo-Christian and civic arts environment, with pathways for
career preparation, personal development and civic engagement.
Approximately twenty-one hundred students are enrolled on the main
campus in Greeneville and three off-site locations in East
Tennessee. The academic programs for both traditional-aged students
and working adults served through the Graduate and Professional
Studies program are delivered using focused calendars.
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