MACOMB, Ill. - Last weekend, the longest tenured head coach at Western Illinois University reached a remarkable milestone; a milestone that topped all other coaches in the history of the Summit League. Fighting Leatherneck head coach Eric Johnson became the all-time winningest men's soccer coach in Summit League history.
Western Illinois Director of Athletics Dr. Tim Van Alstine talked about the rarity of such an accomplishment.
"To have one of our coaches accomplish something like this is remarkable," said Van Alstine. "When discussing the all-time winningest coach in Summit League history, you're talking about a lot of head coaches. That really puts his 118 wins at Western into perspective, and these 118 wins are not just about longevity, as many of these victories have resulted in conference championships and NCAA Tournament appearances. We have been, and continue to be, extremely privileged to have Dr. Johnson at the helm of our men's soccer program. He is a great ambassador for our department and our University."
Sunday, September 11, 2011, Western defeated the Dayton Flyers, 2-1. That victory marked Johnson's 118th win while coaching the Fighting Leathernecks.
Not only is Johnson the winningest coach in the Western Illinois men's soccer program during the Summit League era with 118 wins, and the owner of the most Summit League match victories with 43, but he has now earned more victories on the pitch than any other coach in Summit League history.
Throughout the 30 years of the Summit League's (formally the Mid-Continent Conference 1989-2007) existence, there have been a lot of great coaches who have come and gone. One being Western Illinois former men's soccer coach John MacKenzie who coached Western as a member of the Summit League his final 14 seasons, accumulating 116 wins.
The modest coach Johnson, who is in the midst of his 15th season coaching the Leathernecks, credits longevity rather than success for his 118 career wins at Western.
"I hadn't really thought about the record. It's nice, but it really doesn't mean anything," said coach Johnson. "We judge ourselves on how we finish each season. This season would mean a lot more if we could win one of the league titles, or both of them.
"I think it's because I have been here for so long, I've just outlasted all of those other guys," Johnson said with a smile.
The Denver, Colo., native earned his Bachelor of Arts degree in physical education from Calvin College in 1980 where he was an All-Michigan Intercollegiate Athletic Association selection for the Knights. Johnson then went on to earn his master's degree in physical education from Florida Atlantic University in 1985, and his doctorate in sports administration from the University of New Mexico in 1995.
Prior to coming to Western Illinois, Johnson spent five years coaching both men's and women's soccer, along with men's tennis at Loras College. While at Loras, he was named the 1996 Iowa Intercollegiate Athletic Conference 'Coach of the Year'.
Johnson was named head coach of the Fighting Leathernecks in 1997. Throughout his career at Western, he has earned league 'Coach of the Year' honors three times (1998, 2000 and 2006), led four teams to Summit League Tournament Championship titles (2004, 2005, 2006 and 2009), and seen his team receive a berth in the NCAA College Cup in four of the past seven seasons.
Historically, Johnson's teams have been strong at home, proving so early in his career when the Leathernecks generated a 16-match home unbeaten streak, which stretched over a two-year span from October 2002 to October  2004. The unbeaten streak still stands as the best of his career.
Three of Johnson's Summit League Tournament crowns came when the team earned back-to-back-to-back titles from 2004 to 2006. The final year of the three-peat, 2006, was the most successful year as the Leathernecks went 15-8 overall and 5-1 in league play, marking the best overall and conference records in Johnson's career.
Over his 14 years at Western, the established coach led three Leathernecks to 'Player of the Year' honors (Tony Markin, 2000; Matt Wieclaw, 2006; Stephen Paterson, 2006), and had two players named 'Newcomer of the Year' (Justin Langin, 2000; Martin Browne, 2006). He also helped guide three of his former players to the professional ranks. Oskar Gasecki and Nikola Katic were the two most recent to make the jump, with Kosuke Kimura being the first and most successful under Johnson. In 2010, Kimura helped lead the Colorado Rapids to their first-ever Major League Soccer title.
Coach Johnson and the soccer team (2-3-1) will look to add to his 118 career wins at Western Saturday as the Leathernecks play host to the DePaul Blue Demons at 1 p.m.
