Geneva College Men’s Soccer – Coach Gary Dunda

On today’s episode, I speak with Coach Gary from the Geneva Men’s Program in Pennsylvania. We talk about his recruiting timeline as a D3 program. He describes how they are a school that puts students first. Lastly, we discuss how he has a staff of coaches that care. Learn more about Geneva College Men’s Soccer.

Matt: [00:00:00] Hi, everybody. Welcome to Discover College Soccer. Today, I’m lucky enough to be joined by Coach Gary from Geneva College in Pennsylvania. Welcome, Coach. 

Coach: It’s good to be here, Matt. 

Matt: Appreciate you coming on. Uh, you’re, you’re hopefully staying warm. I don’t know what, what the, what the weather’s like up there, North of Pittsburgh these days.

Uh, we’re talking here and the end of November. 

Coach: Um, it’s a touch chilly.

Matt: Yeah. Well, Hey, we, I woke up to 45 in Florida, so we call that like a winter, uh, here. We, we, yeah. So we’re, we’re up to 62 by now, so it’s all good. Um, But anyway, congrats on a great season. You know, like I said, we’re talking in November, you guys made it to the tournament.

So, so congrats on that, which means I’m sure you’re, you’re full on in recruiting mode, uh, now with all these showcases this time of year. So talk to me a little bit about your timeline. I’m guessing. Are you working hard on the class of 24 is how much are you looking at 25? It’s kind of, what’s your normal timeline?

Coach: Right. Well, so our basic idea and understanding of recruiting is that here in Geneva, um, and I found through my years is that I’m looking for the right person for our school, for our program, and to be, you know, part of our campus community. Um, and that’s really important. So I think that process and we might be a little longer than some others because we’re extremely thorough is we, we are, we’re looking probably at about a year.

So this is probably the [00:01:30] time where I am kind of wrapping up the current senior class, in this case, the 2024s, but we are diving deep into the junior class of 2025s by saying that we’re still, you know, speaking with 24s, but I wouldn’t say we’re the discovery phase of the 24s. We are very much. You know, rounding third and coming to home and putting the finishing touches on this recruiting class.

And it’ll be done, you know, I would hope. And as the past breeds out for us right around Christmas time. So when we’re, when we’re going to these showcases, these, these, these, uh, these tournaments, you know, at this time of the year, we are definitely looking at the junior class at 2025. Are we still keeping one eye on the 24th?

Sure. But it’s a process where we want to, it’s kind of almost done backwards in my opinion, where we, we get to know the young man as a player first, and then we get to know their academics. And then we get to kind of really figure out the character of the person. And for me, it’s done backwards, because for me, the most important thing is the character, the heart and the desire of the young man.

And then how is he done academically? And then where does he fit in from a soccer perspective? Um, but that’s, that’s, it’s really about a year, but I feel like almost at times it’s done backwards in my case, uh, rather than forwards, but it’s a good process. I still really enjoy the recruiting process. I enjoy meeting families and finding out the desires of what they believe is the [00:03:00] best interest for their son.

And most importantly, what the son believes is in the best interest and what he’s looking for in a four year experience. 

Matt: All right. I like it. Well, you mentioned tournament, so. Kind of what is normally on your must hit list over the next year? Where, where do you find yourself seeing the most players and really looking?

Coach: I got to tell you with the, I would think over the last five to six years is there is an event. somewhere every single weekend that you can go to. So what I have to do as a head coach, and I have to figure out, where am I going to find the greatest return on my investment of recruiting? You know, where does our school do well?

Where do we do well? And then how can we continue that process? But at the same time, keeping an eye open to trying to find, you know, a new avenue to find the right people for us. You know, so we’re situated here north of Pittsburgh. So we are doing things in central Pennsylvania. We are doing things in eastern Pennsylvania.

We are doing things in Maryland. We’re branching out into Ohio. So that’s, you know, those are the important things for us. And, you know, being a small liberal arts Christian school. We still, we find a very important event by going to the, the, uh, the Messiah Christian Id camp in, in June. Uh, which Coach McCarty does a great job of, you know, opening his campus to [00:04:30] like-minded schools like Messiah, like Geneva, but find a lot of young men that are good players players, but Messiah’s roster can, will only be so large.

So those are some things that, that we do. But I mean, we hit the Delcos, we hit the PA Classics, we hit Bethesda. Uh, my assistant coach this week will be down in Florida at the ECNL events. Um, we’ll branch out into Ohio in early spring, you know, so we try to canvas. And of course, around the Pittsburgh area, you know, there’s the, uh, the Riverhounds showcased, uh, next weekend.

So, yeah, so we, we, we try to really do a good job of that. And then we also host two to three, what we call our advanced, uh, ID camps through the year. Which I think are great because you find people, I think, are truly invested in your school and interested in getting them on campus and being able to train and then coach them is, is, is great to do as well.

Matt: Yeah, absolutely. And that was going to be my next question was camps. And so it seems to be the, you know, a big thing these days, right? That most guys are coming through a camp at some point. So, well, whether it’s a, I mean, you talked about character and, and the kind of your process, but you know, Let’s assume you’re at, uh, you know, this event this weekend or, or at an ID camp and you see a player kind of what, what stands out to you kind of what builds that player in terms of on the field, off the field stuff that really says, okay, yep, we want this person at Geneva.

Coach: Well, sure. I [00:06:00] mean, obviously, you know, uh, athleticism, pace, um, technical ability, the understanding of field awareness. All of those things are critically important as you try to build your future roster. But some of the things that I really kind of look at are the intangibles, the coach ability, like how is this player reacting if he didn’t get to start that day?

Or how is this player reacting if his team is losing, or how is this team, how does this young man react to a coach? You know, digging into him, you know, because the coaching that’s going to happen, you know, how does he react to, uh, a coach, you know, letting him know verbally, like, you know, Hey, we, we, we have a different expectation of your level of play that right now you’re meeting it.

I also think it’s really important to watch after the game, the interaction between the young man and his parents, you know, um, how is that happening? Um, is it, you know, uh, they’re, they’re kind of commiserating like, yes, it wasn’t your fault. It was everybody else’s fault. Is it something where, uh, mom and dad are really hard on the young man, um, and he’s able to understand it and understand that feedback.

Uh, but just the general relationship of how does he treat his parents? Um, I think those are all things that are really important as we talk about character. And the development of the young man from 18 to 22, my hope and desire is that there’s a platform there and a core value [00:07:30] system built that as a college coach and a college staff that we can build on, because there are so many young, talented players.

So for me, it’s not hard to find talented players. We really work hard on finding the right fit in someone that is coachable, someone that you can really kind of push in a loving manner. But there are times where like it’s, you know, it’s hard, like it’s hard, you know, when, when you come in and, you know, you’re a talented player, but maybe you’re not playing much, or, you know, someone’s playing the position that you desire, or, you know, practices have been maybe not going your way, you know, will they allow myself and my staff.

To consistently, um, criticize them and in the loving capacity, but also watch the improvement, you know, and we like to say correction is not criticism and how can they take that? Cause the best players, you know, in any sport, they are coachable. And those are things I think takes, takes okay. Players, the good players, good players, the great players and great players to elite players are the ones that are always coachable.

Matt: I love that. Absolutely. Couldn’t agree more. Um, Well, in terms of building your roster, I guess, first off, is there a roster size that you feel is ideal that you’re trying to hit each year? 

Coach: Yeah, we are right around that 30 to 32 mark. Um, I know some do a little less. I know some do a lot more, but we find it very comfortable.

[00:09:00] Three to four goalkeepers, 27 to 28 field players. That’s a really comfortable number for us. And I, and I also feel like that allows me to dive deeper into relationships with our guys as well off the field. Just not can we coach them and run a session on the field, but those relationships are important to me.

And I think important to the players. Absolutely. 

Matt: Well, and things these days have really changed with the transfer portal and a whole lot of influx of internationals, which I know isn’t as big at the D three level. But do does transfers, junior college players or international recruiting fit into your recruiting profile at all?

Coach: Right, um. I would say that I am not adamant about jumping into the transfer portal. Sure, um, we have, uh, we have guys that reach out to us, and a lot of times, um, we’ve had a handful of transfers over the years, but most times or not, I think, uh, a transfer for us reaches back out to me after going through the recruiting process, having a good relationship with them, and for whatever reason, they choose an institution that just didn’t fit them.

So we find the transfers in that capacity. We kind of get them after they’ve gone away and come back to us. That’s kind of where we find the most success, you know, in getting a transfer. It’s not a, you know, scouring the portal or things of that nature. Um, we do a much better job when they reach back out to us.

Okay. All right. 

Matt: Yeah. Well, let’s, let’s shift gears. Talk a little [00:10:30] bit more about the school. I’m sure there’s some folks not familiar with Geneva college. I mean, like I told you beforehand, I’ve actually been to beaver falls PA a couple of times. So, so I know right where you’re at. Um, you’ve been there for, for quite a few seasons now.

So you’ve, you’ve got some good perspective. Give us some things that are really kind of awesome about Geneva. Some things maybe we wouldn’t even know just by going through the website.

Coach: Right. So I just completed my 14th year and we are a small liberal arts Christian school, 1200 students. Um, that’s exactly where we want to be.

We don’t want to be smaller. We don’t want to be bigger. Um, so it really fits my personal values and my personal faith, um, extremely well. Um, but what I tell everybody is the greatest thing about Geneva is the care that Everyone here provides the student and the student athlete from our president to our faculty to our admission staff to our coaching staff, right down to the maintenance crew is we put the students first and we try to help them grow in their faith.

We try to help them grow academically. We try to help them grow in the maturity. And in our case, we try to help them grow and become the best soccer player that they can become. Um, we are a school of excellent academics. We have a wonderful mechanical engineering program, electrical engineering, right on down the market engineering.

We do extremely well with the sciences, math, business education. So I really feel comfortable [00:12:00] recruiting to Geneva because of the strength of the academics. Um, I love our athletic facilities here. I think we have two venues that are fantastic for college soccer. Um, Geneva allows me to train our guys, uh, in a capacity where I think we can continually improve.

Um, the campus is about 20 to 25 minutes north of Pittsburgh, depending how fast you drive. Um, so it’s easy accessible to the airport. It’s easy accessible to downtown. Um, you know, so we are in a really good spot and I. You know, I feel like I can, I can have success here because of the quality of institution that Geneva is.

Matt: Well, you mentioned the academic component and, you know, it is student athlete. And one of the hard parts for players sometimes is really maintaining the balance of the work in the classroom versus the work on the field. So, Specifically, how do your players really maintain success on both ends and kind of what support systems does a school offer to help them with that?

Coach: I think the first thing for success is, I believe all my guys are have enough and are smart and sharp, but it boils down to time management. And the first thing that I do with all of our first year players is we sit down and we look at their academic, um, classes. We look at the practice schedule. We look at the game schedule and we put them on a time management plan, Monday through Saturday.

Um, so we, we start by plugging in [00:13:30] the classes, the time in between, you know, and where and when they should be doing it, just not writing in study or just writing in class, but being specific. So let’s say they have an eight and nine and the next class isn’t until two. So what are they doing between? 10 a.

m. and 2 p. m. So that’s when we get specific, you know, we say, okay, you’re going to work on these subjects for this time period. And we’re going to be in this location, getting out of your room and really setting them up to have success if they can stick to the time management program. So that’s the first thing that I do with all of our first year players and some guys that may need some help with that, you know, sophomores, juniors.

Absolutely. Um, but we all have since I’ve been here is we’ve our lowest team GPA has been 3. 52 and our highest has been 3. 58. So I got about 30 guys doing pretty good work. So I don’t want to get in the way of guys that really have this down. I want to jump in and help guys that, you know, that can exceed the 3.

0 mark. So that’s what we do. And then we also, we run in tandem with our student success center, which is a great thing that we have here for all students, just not student athletes, but they do a great job in helping them with note taking, helping them with individual tutoring, tutoring, uh, reteaching class sessions, you know, uh, the writing workshop, all of those things are accessible.

It just takes the person willing to go there. So we take all the first year guys first week on [00:15:00] campus. We show them where it is. We introduce them to the staff. Be comfortable with this. So we try to get in front of the issues But sure as I say in your four years here, you’re going to have a hard class you’re going to struggle Absolutely, and that’s okay.

And i’m here to help you and facilitate that any way that we can We we’ve got it. We’ve got a pretty good system in place here Where as long as you’re willing to do the work and give the time, you know, it’s never it’s never a question Are they smart enough? It’s only a question. Is there a question of can I put my phone away for more than eight minutes?

And get good work done. I mean that’s That’s what it is. 

Matt: Absolutely. Well, you kind of mentioned a little bit there, but can you just, let’s, let’s rewind a month. You’re in the heart of the conference season. Kind of walk me through, what does a typical week look like for a player in terms of when is practice classes, games scheduled, that kind of thing.

Coach: So I’ll start a bit of a macro sense and kind of work backwards a little bit. So we try to play on Wednesdays and Saturdays. So, and I mean, the college season is so jam packed. I mean, 18 games in basically eight weeks. It’s just too many games. It just is. And this is probably a conversation for a different time on a different, um, or a different podcast, but it’s just way too many.

So, so we try, we train Mondays and Tuesdays. A lot of times that we try to be really smart with regeneration. So Thursdays, we’ll try to do a little bit of a later session. So, so we can recover from Wednesday’s game and then we [00:16:30] get prepared Friday for Saturday’s game. So we try to break the week down into two, three game pods.

Uh, yeah, two, three, two, three, uh, two pods of three, uh, three days each. So Monday, Tuesday, then we play Wednesday. That’s pod one. And then the second pod is Thursday, Friday, we play Saturday. So we try to really look at those in two separate categories, just not one. And we reassess after Wednesday’s match.

Okay. What do we need Thursday? What do we need Friday to get ready for Saturday? And we do that all again, you know, on Sunday, getting ready for Monday and Tuesday for Wednesday. So that’s what it is. But I mean, when I was a younger coach, you know, I always thought like we had to have great physical training sessions to be prepared.

As I’ve gotten a little older, a little wiser, and with more of the science of it, we have really scaled back on the time on the field. Um, so we, we will go, we talk about being short and sharp, like we’re going to go an hour 15, hour 20, and we’re going to really be sharp, sharp with that and be really good.

But we’re not doing the 90 minutes of two hour sessions anymore. We just, I don’t think the players can handle it. I don’t think it’s healthy for them. So we’ve kind of scaled back. We do a lot of mental, a lot of walkthrough, a lot of video time, but when we do step in and we need to train and train hard, our guys are really good about it.

Matt: Okay. Well, let’s, let’s talk a little bit more about the, you know, in season and the soccer side of things, um, besides the, the roster, uh. 28, 32 players. I’m sure you’ve got [00:18:00] a roster of coaches and other people from the athletic department that help. So just tell us a little bit about the coaching staff and other folks who help with the team throughout the season.

Coach: Yeah, we, we have, I’ve always been blessed with a really good core of assistant coaches. And I think, you know, one, they really care about people and that’s what attracts me to them. But two, they have a, an understanding of what Geneva is all about. and really buy into it. And a lot of my assistants have been former players.

I just love the program so much. I want to be, um, want to still be associated with it. But, uh, this year we added a guy that I’ve known, Dan Yates, you know, from the local area. He was fantastic, did a great job of jumping in and really bringing in You know, a fresh, fresh eyes and an outlook and really kind of sharpen us up in some areas.

And so he was great. We had give him a crack at a former player, former conference player of the year. He was with us, um, in a capacity. We had Luke Nolan that was finishing up, um, his assistant step with us. He’s been here for three years. So it was great. Um, so we have a really great staff that works extremely well together in tandem.

Um, there’s no ego in it. We’re all about how great can we be. Um, and we do a great job. I think of getting the guys prepared. We have a great training staff here with two excellent trainers that literally held us together through the end of the season conference tournament in the NCAA tournament, got our skies ready and our [00:19:30] training staff.

They’re just not about. From the neck down, they do such a great job of talking to the players and getting them in the right frame of mind and getting the right emotional capacity to train and play each day. So, um, it’s a really, it’s a group that we work really well in tandem and in sync. And again, for the betterment of the player.

Matt: Fantastic. Now I got to ask about you though, you’re the head man. So kind of give me a breakdown, your coaching style, the style of play you like to put in there. 

Coach: Right. So I think that what I’ve learned, I think you always have to keep evolving and if you, the day that you think that you’ve got this thing figured out is the day that you need to step away because that you’re closing doors to learning.

So, I want to be a continuous learner of the game, and as the game progresses, I want to be progressive as well at the same time. But the core for me is I always want to have my team dictate the style of play against our opponents. Um, and that’s what we always drive to. We want to be a team that, we want to be an attacking oriented team with, with a great sense of possession.

And the one thing that we’ve really worked hard on is the idea of understanding is how can we progress the game by going forward, just not lateral or back. So we work extremely hard on, on three areas of the game. What are we doing when we’re defending? What are we doing in the transition moment and what are we doing when we’re attacking [00:21:00] and it works back to front, but also works front to back so that and that transition moment is just not about getting the ball.

Can we go score? But it’s that. Hey, we’ve now lost the ball. How can we regain, you know, shape? And pressure and keep us intact. So we are not giving up transition goals and we’re not being out possessed. And we’re able to kind of, the word that we use is squeeze teams out of their possession and us getting the ball back.

So, so we really work hard on all three elements of the game. And we’ve really, I would say the last three to four years, that transition moment, both ways is critical. to success and the game winning goal in our came off a wonderful transition moment where we absorb pressure, get great shape, but when we won the ball within two passes, we were in the attacking third and the third pass got us in and scored the only goal of the match.

And I think that was due to the case that we have trained those moments throughout the year. Um, and not to say that we’re just transitional, but we want to be good in all three phases. And then when we have the ball, you know, definitely constantly can we attack behind the line? Are we attacking underneath the line?

How can we get our talented players? situations. And when we do that in unison, I think we’re a really good team. Awesome. 

Matt: Well, coach, we’ve talked about a lot of different things. Really appreciate your time. Got one last question for you. And that is [00:22:30] if there was one piece of advice, one nugget of information that you love every parent player family going through this process to know what would that be?

Coach: I think that’s a great question, and I think you have to find an institution that fits your son or daughter in all capacities. It just can’t be, we love the coach, and we love the team, but maybe the academics doesn’t fit, or maybe the school, the cultural school doesn’t fit. I think you’ve got to be diligent in your search, and you’ve got to find a school that fits academically, fits athletically, the culture of the campus.

Thank you very much. And then also the cost. I think you’ve got to factor those things together. Um, and when you find and you can check the boxes in all four categories, I think that is so important. I think if you can check those boxes, you’re going to have success in all phases of life, just not on the field or off the field.

That is the advice I give, you know, find out what’s important to you. But I think those are four critical avenues for everybody. And then when you go through your list of schools, Visit, ask good questions. And, and at the end of the day, where do you fit best? And I think if you do that, you’ll find the right school for you.

Matt: Awesome. Absolutely agree. Coach really appreciate the time again. Congrats this season. Good luck on wrapping up this recruiting [00:24:00] class and getting back to the tournament next year. And if you find yourself in the Bradenton Lakewood ranch area, make sure you give me a call so we can get together. All right.

We’ll do Matt. Thank you. Right. Thank you.