Dan Birkey
Encyclopedia
Daniel Birkey is an American soccer coach, and played collegiately and professionally. He is the head men's soccer coach at Concordia University, Portland.
, and moved to Sumner, Washington
, during high school. He was a state championship basketball
player there, but discovered and fell in love with soccer in 1971 when saw an acquaintance juggling a soccer ball with his feet. He played club and high school soccer in Tacoma under German coach Yontz Miller. Birkey later traveled through Central America
playing and learning the game.
The son of conservative parents, Birkey was asked to choose from among a small handful of Christian colleges after high school. Of those choices, only Multnomah University in Portland had a men's soccer program at that time and Birkey found the choice obvious. He attended there one year, received All-Region status and in 1977 was recruited to Warner Pacific College
under Ethiopian coach Abraham Demissie and Dr.Brian W. Bergemann. While captaining the Warner team, Birkey set several school records and was sixth in the nation in scoring. Birkey also was a top goal scorer and All-Star player for the Horse Brass Soccer Club where he played under British manager Clive Charles
in the Oregon First Division.
In 1979, Birkey graduated as a West Coast All-Star and left for South America
the following summer. While there, he taught physical education and coached soccer at Christiansen Academy
in Rubio, Venezuela
, and played several seasons as a striker for Zulia FC and then the prestigious Deportivo Táchira soccer club. As an American international, Birkey stood out on and off the pitch in Venezuela
, earning him the nickname "El Torito Blanco" among local soccer fans for his relentless work ethic and tenacious style of play.
, he was invited to coach with him at the club level. It was Birkey's professional relationship with Charles that set the model for much of his coaching philosophy. In 1985 he began coaching at the collegiate level at Portland Community College
while working in Sports Medicine
. After earning his master's degree
in Kinesiology
from Portland State in 1986, he began coaching at Concordia University, Portland, in 1988. Since that time, he has become most widely known for the prolific success of Concordia men's soccer.
In 1992, he led the Concordia Cavaliers to a National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics
(NAIA) District Championship and into the finals of the NCCAA national tournament that same year. The Concordia soccer team has become a Cascade Conference power with NAIA regional tournament appearances in thirteen of the past sixteen years, and a top-twenty national ranking in fourteen of those years. Their highest ranking is fifth nationally. He directed Concordia to regional championships and NAIA national tournament berths in 1999, 2005, 2007, 2008 and 2010. In 2000, Birkey was named to the Cascade Conference Coaches Hall of Fame after receiving numerous district, conference, and regional Coach of the Year awards. Birkey has amassed over 300 Wins and a .667 winning percentage at Concordia. He has earned seventeen championships during that time, including ten of the last thirteen Cascade Collegiate Conference championships. In 2007, Birkey led the Cavs to their tenth-straight regional tournament appearance after capturing the conference regular season title. Under his guidance the CU men's soccer program have been crowned CCC Champions in 1998, 1999, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008 and 2010.
He served as interim athletic director
at Concordia in the mid-1990s and continues now as a professor in the Health & Physical Education Department teaching Kinesiology
and Coaching Science courses. He was hired in 1996 as the head coach for the Cascade Surge
, a professional team in the USISL. Birkey directs the highly successful Concordia Soccer Camps attracting over 700 young soccer players each summer. He also served six years as the conference chairman for men’s soccer and was the regional chair for men’s soccer from 2001-04.
Birkey has continued to develop in his coaching education by numerous appointments and visitations in the professional ranks. He has coached in Costa Rica
, Trinidad
, Antigua
, and held recent staff visitations in the English Premiership with Portsmouth Football Club.
Biography and Playing Career
Birkey spent much of his youth in northern CaliforniaCalifornia
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
, and moved to Sumner, Washington
Sumner, Washington
Sumner is a city in northern Pierce County, Washington, United States. The population was 9,451 at the 2010 census. Nearby cities include Puyallup to the west, Auburn to the north, and Enumclaw to the east.-History:...
, during high school. He was a state championship basketball
Basketball
Basketball is a team sport in which two teams of five players try to score points by throwing or "shooting" a ball through the top of a basketball hoop while following a set of rules...
player there, but discovered and fell in love with soccer in 1971 when saw an acquaintance juggling a soccer ball with his feet. He played club and high school soccer in Tacoma under German coach Yontz Miller. Birkey later traveled through Central America
Central America
Central America is the central geographic region of the Americas. It is the southernmost, isthmian portion of the North American continent, which connects with South America on the southeast. When considered part of the unified continental model, it is considered a subcontinent...
playing and learning the game.
The son of conservative parents, Birkey was asked to choose from among a small handful of Christian colleges after high school. Of those choices, only Multnomah University in Portland had a men's soccer program at that time and Birkey found the choice obvious. He attended there one year, received All-Region status and in 1977 was recruited to Warner Pacific College
Warner Pacific College
Warner Pacific College is an urban, Christian liberal arts college located in Southeast Portland, Oregon, United States. Founded in 1937, the college is accredited by the Northwest Commission on Colleges and Universities...
under Ethiopian coach Abraham Demissie and Dr.Brian W. Bergemann. While captaining the Warner team, Birkey set several school records and was sixth in the nation in scoring. Birkey also was a top goal scorer and All-Star player for the Horse Brass Soccer Club where he played under British manager Clive Charles
Clive Charles
Clive Charles was a football player, coach and television announcer. Charles began his career with West Ham United and finished it in the Major Indoor Soccer League. He later coached at the high school, collegiate and international levels in the United States.-Player:Charles was born in London,...
in the Oregon First Division.
In 1979, Birkey graduated as a West Coast All-Star and left for South America
South America
South America is a continent situated in the Western Hemisphere, mostly in the Southern Hemisphere, with a relatively small portion in the Northern Hemisphere. The continent is also considered a subcontinent of the Americas. It is bordered on the west by the Pacific Ocean and on the north and east...
the following summer. While there, he taught physical education and coached soccer at Christiansen Academy
Christiansen Academy
Christiansen Academy was a celebrated private boarding school in Rubio, Táchira, Venezuela. The school opened in 1952 as a preparatory school for missionary kids and international students. The school taught its rigorous coursework in both English and Spanish...
in Rubio, Venezuela
Rubio, Venezuela
Rubio is a town in the Venezuelan Andean state of Táchira. Founded in 1794 by Gervasio Rubio, this town is the shire town of the Junín Municipality and, according to the 2001 Venezuelan census, the municipality has a population of 68,869....
, and played several seasons as a striker for Zulia FC and then the prestigious Deportivo Táchira soccer club. As an American international, Birkey stood out on and off the pitch in Venezuela
Venezuela
Venezuela , officially called the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela , is a tropical country on the northern coast of South America. It borders Colombia to the west, Guyana to the east, and Brazil to the south...
, earning him the nickname "El Torito Blanco" among local soccer fans for his relentless work ethic and tenacious style of play.
Coaching career
After returning to Oregon from South America, Birkey became limited as a player due to an on-going knee problem and thus began his coaching career at Columbia High School. Having played under Clive CharlesClive Charles
Clive Charles was a football player, coach and television announcer. Charles began his career with West Ham United and finished it in the Major Indoor Soccer League. He later coached at the high school, collegiate and international levels in the United States.-Player:Charles was born in London,...
, he was invited to coach with him at the club level. It was Birkey's professional relationship with Charles that set the model for much of his coaching philosophy. In 1985 he began coaching at the collegiate level at Portland Community College
Portland Community College
Portland Community College is Oregon's largest community college, located in Portland, United States. It serves over one million residents in the five county area of Multnomah, Washington, Yamhill, Clackamas, and Columbia...
while working in Sports Medicine
Sports medicine
Sports medicine is a branch of medicine that deals with physical fitness, treatment and prevention of injuries related to sports and exercise...
. After earning his master's degree
Master's degree
A master's is an academic degree granted to individuals who have undergone study demonstrating a mastery or high-order overview of a specific field of study or area of professional practice...
in Kinesiology
Kinesiology
Kinesiology, also known as human kinetics is the scientific study of human movement. Kinesiology addresses physiological, mechanical, and psychological mechanisms. Applications of kinesiology to human health include: biomechanics and orthopedics, rehabilitation, such as physical and occupational...
from Portland State in 1986, he began coaching at Concordia University, Portland, in 1988. Since that time, he has become most widely known for the prolific success of Concordia men's soccer.
In 1992, he led the Concordia Cavaliers to a National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics
National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics
The National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics is an athletic association that organizes college and university-level athletic programs. Membership in the NAIA consists of smaller colleges and universities across the United States. The NAIA allows colleges and universities outside the USA...
(NAIA) District Championship and into the finals of the NCCAA national tournament that same year. The Concordia soccer team has become a Cascade Conference power with NAIA regional tournament appearances in thirteen of the past sixteen years, and a top-twenty national ranking in fourteen of those years. Their highest ranking is fifth nationally. He directed Concordia to regional championships and NAIA national tournament berths in 1999, 2005, 2007, 2008 and 2010. In 2000, Birkey was named to the Cascade Conference Coaches Hall of Fame after receiving numerous district, conference, and regional Coach of the Year awards. Birkey has amassed over 300 Wins and a .667 winning percentage at Concordia. He has earned seventeen championships during that time, including ten of the last thirteen Cascade Collegiate Conference championships. In 2007, Birkey led the Cavs to their tenth-straight regional tournament appearance after capturing the conference regular season title. Under his guidance the CU men's soccer program have been crowned CCC Champions in 1998, 1999, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008 and 2010.
He served as interim athletic director
Athletic director
An athletic director is an administrator at many American colleges and universities, as well as in larger high schools and middle schools, who oversees the work of coaches and related staff involved in intercollegiate or interscholastic athletic programs...
at Concordia in the mid-1990s and continues now as a professor in the Health & Physical Education Department teaching Kinesiology
Kinesiology
Kinesiology, also known as human kinetics is the scientific study of human movement. Kinesiology addresses physiological, mechanical, and psychological mechanisms. Applications of kinesiology to human health include: biomechanics and orthopedics, rehabilitation, such as physical and occupational...
and Coaching Science courses. He was hired in 1996 as the head coach for the Cascade Surge
Cascade Surge
Cascade Surge was an American soccer team based in Salem, Oregon, United States. Founded in 1995, the team played in the USL Premier Development League , the fourth tier of the American Soccer Pyramid, until 2009, when the franchise folded and the team left the league.The team played its home games...
, a professional team in the USISL. Birkey directs the highly successful Concordia Soccer Camps attracting over 700 young soccer players each summer. He also served six years as the conference chairman for men’s soccer and was the regional chair for men’s soccer from 2001-04.
Birkey has continued to develop in his coaching education by numerous appointments and visitations in the professional ranks. He has coached in Costa Rica
Costa Rica
Costa Rica , officially the Republic of Costa Rica is a multilingual, multiethnic and multicultural country in Central America, bordered by Nicaragua to the north, Panama to the southeast, the Pacific Ocean to the west and the Caribbean Sea to the east....
, Trinidad
Trinidad
Trinidad is the larger and more populous of the two major islands and numerous landforms which make up the island nation of Trinidad and Tobago. It is the southernmost island in the Caribbean and lies just off the northeastern coast of Venezuela. With an area of it is also the fifth largest in...
, Antigua
Antigua
Antigua , also known as Waladli, is an island in the West Indies, in the Leeward Islands in the Caribbean region, the main island of the country of Antigua and Barbuda. Antigua means "ancient" in Spanish and was named by Christopher Columbus after an icon in Seville Cathedral, Santa Maria de la...
, and held recent staff visitations in the English Premiership with Portsmouth Football Club.
External links
- http://athletics.cu-portland.edu/msoccer/headcoach.cfm
- http://athletics.cu-portland.edu/msoccer/