Entering his fifth season at the helm of the Wake Forest men's soccer program in 2019, head coach Bobby Muuss has guided the Demon Deacons to the four-straight NCAA Round of 16 berths and the 2016 NCAA College Cup, finishing as the national runners-up.
Wake Forest has amassed a 73-11-7 record in Muuss' three seasons, more wins than any other program in NCAA Division I in that span.
Muuss became the first coach in league history to be named the ACC Coach of the Year in four-straight seasons, doubling his predecessor Jay Vidovich (2008-09) and former U.S. Men's National Team coach Bruce Arena (1988-89) as the only others to win that award in consecutive seasons.
Muuss led the Demon Deacons to back-to-back ACC Championships in 2016 and 2017, just the second and third tournament trophies in program history, as well as four-straight ACC Atlantic Division crowns.
Previously an assistant coach at Wake Forest from 2001-07, Muuss returned to the Demon Deacons as the program's fourth head coach on Jan. 8, 2015. Muuss spent the previous eight years serving as head coach at University of Denver from 2007-14.
His teams have posted a top-10 defense nationally three times at Wake Forest, recording a total of 46 shutouts while allowing just 57 goals in 96 games. The Deacs have also been potent offensively, including leading the nation with 58 goals scored in 2017 and ranking second with 52 goals in 2018.
The 2018 Demon Deacons finished with an 18-3-0 overall record, claiming the top overall seed in the NCAA Tournament. Wake Forest opened the year with 11-straight wins and beat six top-25 opponents en route to a fourth-straight ACC Atlantic Division crown. The Deacs claimed ACC Coach of the Year, ACC Offensive Player of the Year (Omir Fernandez) and ACC Midfielder of the Year (Bruno Lapa) honors.
In 2017, Muuss guided the Deacs to a 19-2-2 overall record and a 7-0-1 mark in the ACC. By winning the ACC Championship for the second-straight year, Wake Forest became the first team in the league to finish the ACC regular season and Championship undefeated since 1999. The Deacs were rewarded with ACC Offensive Player of the Year (Jon Bakero) and Defensive Player of the Year (Kevin Politz) honors, as each was also named an All-American, while the coaching staff was named the Region Staff of the Year for the second-straight season.
His 2016 Demon Deacons finished the year with a 19-3-3 overall record and claimed the program's first ACC Tournament title since 1989, just the second in program history.
He coached three first team NSCAA All-Americans in 2016 - Jacori Hayes, Ian Harkes and Alec Ferrell - marking the first time in team history three Deacs have earned the honor in the same season. Harkes also claimed the MAC Hermann Trophy - the top individual award in college soccer - becoming just the second Deacon all-time to accomplish that feat.
Hayes was named the Men's Soccer Senior CLASS Award winner, becoming the second in program history, while Harkes was the first player in conference history named the ACC Midfielder of the Year, ACC Tournament MVP and NCAA College Cup Most Outstanding Offensive Player in program history. Hayes and Ferrell were selected in the MLS SuperDraft, while Harkes signed a homegrown deal with D.C. United.
In Muuss's first season at Wake Forest, he engineered one of the most successful seasons the program has seen in guiding the Demon Deacons to a 17-3-2 record to go with a regular-season ACC championship and a run to the Elite Eight of the NCAA Championship as the tournament's No. 1 overall seed. At season's end, Muuss was named the ACC's Coach of the Year, becoming the fourth coach in conference history to earn the honor in his first season with the team.
During the 2015 season, Muuss helped Jack Harrison become the first player in ACC men's soccer history to earn conference Offensive Player of the Year and Freshman of the Year in the same season. Harrison scored a team-high eight goals and 11 assists for 27 points on his way to being named a NSCAA First Team All-American and MAC Hermann Trophy Semifinalist.
At the end of the 2015 season, both Harrison and Gamble were selected in the 2016 MLS SuperDraft. Harrison became Wake Forest's first men's soccer player taken No. 1 overall by the Chicago Fire while Gamble was picked 30th overall by the New England Revolution.
In his eight seasons at Denver, Muuss compiled an overall record of 74-56-25 with a 39-20-10 mark in Summit League play. He was named Summit League Coach of the Year in 2013 after guiding the Pioneers to a 13-3-4 record and a perfect 6-0-0 mark in conference play. Under his leadership, Denver won Summit League titles in 2013 and 2014 and captured the league tournament title both seasons, earning back-to-back bids to the NCAA Tournament for the first time in school history.
In his final two seasons at Denver, Muuss won 17-straight games. He coached Zach Bolden to a four-round selection in the 2014 MLS SuperDraft, where he was selected by the Chicago Fire. It marked the fifth Pioneer to be taken in the last six drafts. During his tenure with the Pioneers, Muuss had three players earn CoSIDA Academic All-American honors.
Before Denver, Muuss spent six seasons at Wake Forest as an assistant coach and recruiting coordinator under Vidovich. He helped land top-20 recruiting classes in each of his six years. During that time, Wake Forest made the NCAA Tournament each season, including twice as the nation's top-ranked team.
Muuss worked closely with Deacon goalie Brian Edwards, who set school records with 13 shutouts in 2006 and 31 in his career. He also coached standout players such as Michael Parkhurst, Sam Cronin, James Riley and Stephen Keel.
Prior to his stint at Wake Forest, Muuss was a volunteer assistant at Connecticut. While there, the Huskies won the 2000 national championship, three BIG EAST regular season titles and made two appearances in the NCAA Tournament.
A native of East Islip, New York, Muuss transferred to UConn from Southern Connecticut State and earned his undergraduate degree in the spring of 1999 in communication science. While at Southern, Muuss was a member of the 1995 Division II National Championship team.
Muuss and his wife, Melodie, reside in Winston-Salem with their three children, Camryn, Blayklee and Ryland.