YALE ATHLETICS

Charlotte 49ers soccer alumnus Charles Rodriguez, who won a pair of national titles as an assistant coach at Stanford in addition to stops at Yale and Xavier, has been hired by his alma mater in the same capacity.

Charlotte 49ers men's soccer hired alumnus Charles Rodriguez as assistant coach.

Rodriguez, who captained the Charlotte team that advanced to the 2011 College Cup final, was the first player in school history to earn United Soccer Coaches First Team All-America. Afterward, he joined the coaching ranks at Yale, Xavier and Stanford.

"We are delighted to welcome Charles back home,” 49ers coach Kevin Langan said in a statement. “He is one of the brightest young coaches in the country, a deep thinker about soccer and someone who possesses a very curious mind. Our players are going to benefit greatly from his coaching expertise."

At Yale, Rodriguez helped the Bulldogs to a school-record 13 wins in 2019 along with their first Ivy League title and NCAA tournament berth since 2005.

In three years at Stanford under his former collegiate head coach, Jeremy Gunn, the Cardinal won a pair of national titles in 2016 and 2017, and Rodriguez’s back four didn’t concede a goal in consecutive tournaments. Stanford tallied 42 shutouts in 67 matches during his time on staff.

“He captained our program to the College Cup final as a player, has won two national championships as a coach and we look forward to him bringing his winning mindset to our student-athletes,” Langan said.

Rodriguez, a Franklin, Tennessee, native, started his coaching career with a three-year stint at Xavier, where the 2015 Musketeers squad set school marks for wins (15), shutouts (11) and team goals against average (0.84). That squad advanced to the NCAA Round of 16 for the first time.

Rodriguez is the second former Charlotte player hired to the staff during the spring, joining Shane Carew in a similar capacity. Charlotte has earned 10 NCAA tournament berths in 11 seasons.

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