Josh Faga
Joshua Vincent Faga (born August 22, 1990) is a former American professional soccer player who played as a defender for the Rochester Rhinos in the USL Pro and for the Rochester Lancers (2011–15) in the Major Arena Soccer League. He is currently the assistant coach for men's soccer at Marshall University.
Faga with Marshall University in 2019 | |||
Personal information | |||
---|---|---|---|
Place of birth | Lexington, Kentucky, United States | ||
Playing position(s) | Midfielder | ||
Club information | |||
Current team | Marshall University (assistant coach) | ||
Senior career* | |||
Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
2012 - 2014 | Rochester Rhinos | 20 | (0) |
2012 - 2014 | Rochester Lancers | 32 | (2) |
Teams managed | |||
2014-2019 | Duquesne University (assistant coach) | ||
2019- | Marshall University (assistant coach) | ||
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only |
Playing career
College
Born in Lexington, Kentucky, Faga began his collegiate career at St. John's University where he played for the St. John's Red Storm men's soccer team.[1] After two years at St. John's, Faga transferred to Marist College where he played for the Marist Red Foxes men's soccer team.[2] While with Marist Faga was part of the All-MAAC Second Team in 2010 and 2012.[2]
Rochester Rhinos
In December 2012 Faga attended a workout session with the Rochester Rhinos in the USL Pro and after the workout he was invited to the InfoSport's 13th annual Pro Soccer Combine in Florida.[2] After the camp Faga signed a professional deal with the Rhinos on March 25, 2013.[2] Faga then made his professional debut for the club on May 28, 2013 in the third round of the 2013 US Open Cup against the New England Revolution.[3]
Rochester Lancers
In September 2013, Faga signed with the Rochester Lancers in the MASL. Faga went on to appear in 18 games during his first campaign with the club as a defender.
Career statistics
- As of May 28, 2014
Club | Season | League | US Open Cup | Other | CONCACAF | Total | |||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
Rochester Lancers | 2012 | 15 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 15 | 0 |
Rochester Rhinos | 2012 | 5 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 10 | 0 |
Rochester Rhinos | 2013 | 5 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 10 | 0 |
Rochester Lancers | 2013 | 15 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 15 | 0 |
Rochester Lancers | 2014 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 |
Career total | 42 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 8 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 52 | 0 |
Coaching career
Marshall University
In August 2019, Faga was named the assistant men's soccer coach at Marshall University.[4] During the 2019 NCAA College Soccer season, Faga helped lead the Thundering Herd to the 2019 Conference USA Men's Soccer Tournament Championship and Regular Season Championship.[5] 2019 also saw Marshall reach the 2019 NCAA Division I Men's Soccer Tournament "Sweet 16" as the #11 seed eventually losing to Washington University.[6]
Duquesne University
In August 2014, Faga was named the assistant men's soccer coach at Duquesne University.[7] Since 2014, Faga has served in the role of assistant coach and training coordinator which tasks him with organizing the team periodization, opponent analysis, video analysis, tactical developments, and various roles in the execution of training.[8] Faga has helped the Duquesne Dukes reach the Atlantic 10 Conference Championships on 3 separate occasions: 2014, 2015, & 2016.[8]
Podcast
Just Kickin' It Podcast
Since 2015, Faga has hosted the very popular coaching education podcast, The Just Kickin' It Podcast.[8] To date, the show has over 150 episodes featuring some of the top coaches from around the world including Rene Meulensteen, Anson Dorrance, and Raymond Verheijen.
Books
- The Real Giants of Soccer Coaching. Meyer and Meyer Sports. 2018. ISBN 978-1782551300[9]
In 2018, Faga wrote his first book titled, "The Real Giants of Soccer Coaching: Insights and Wisdom from the Game's Greatest Coaches" which is a collection of the curated thoughts of nearly 30 top soccer coaches around the globe collected during interviews spanning a 3-year time period. The book was ranked as high as the Top 20 "Coaching" books on Amazon.[9]
References
- "Josh Faga". St. John's Red Storm. Retrieved May 28, 2013.
- "Josh Faga Signs Professional Contract With Rochester Rhinos". Marist Red Foxes. Retrieved May 28, 2013.
- "Rochester Rhinos – New England Revolution". Major League Soccer. Archived from the original on August 28, 2014. Retrieved May 28, 2013.
- "Josh Faga Named Assistant Men's Soccer". Herd Zone. Retrieved August 20, 2019.
- "Marshall Wins First Ever C-USA Championship". Conference USA. Retrieved December 17, 2019.
- "Marshall men's soccer closes out historical season in NCAA Sweet 16". Marshall Parthenon. Retrieved December 3, 2019.
- "Josh Faga Named Assistant Men's Soccer Coach". Duquesne University Athletics. Retrieved January 31, 2019.
- "Josh Faga - Men's Soccer Coach". Duquesne University Athletics. Retrieved January 31, 2019.
- Josh, Faga (March 22, 2018). The real giants of soccer coaching : insights and wisdom from the game's greatest coaches. Maidenhead. ISBN 978-1782551300. OCLC 1004919795.