BOONE, N.C. – Appalachian State University men's soccer head coach Matt Nelson announced the promotion of assistant coach Jeff Bilyk to associate head coach on Monday.
"Jeff brings a wealth of experience and knowledge of the game to our program," said Nelson. "He connects exceptionally well with our players and our recruits and I believe that he is one of the best assistant coaches in the country."
Bilyk, an assistant on Nelson's staff since 2012, has proven to be an integral part of building a tradition of success at Appalachian State. With Bilyk on Nelson's staff, the Mountaineers have produced 12 all-Southern Conference and all-Sun Belt honorees.
The men's soccer program made the Southern Conference tournament his first two years on staff, including reaching the SoCon semifinal in 2012 - falling in penalties to Wofford.
Last year, the program's first in the Sun Belt Conference, the Mountaineers made it to the semifinal match, but fell to Hartwick.
Prior to coming to Appalachian in 2012 Bilyk served as an assistant at former Southern Conference-rival Davidson and was the Director of Coaching for North Meck Soccer Club in Cornelius, N.C.
Bilyk worked with the North Meck Soccer Club as a youth soccer coach for three years before taking over as director of coaching in 2010.
Bilyk began his coaching career in 2001 as a youth coach in Florida and Virginia, and from 2007-09, he served as assistant at Davidson. While with the Wildcats, he coached four all-conference selections, including the 2009 SoCon Player of the Year, Charlie Reiter.
Bilyk played collegiately at Clemson. The Bayport, N.Y. native played four seasons with the Tigers and earned all-ACC, all-South region and all-ACC Tournament honors after captaining his squad to an Atlantic Coast Conference championship during his senior year.
Bilyk went on to play for several teams in Major League Soccer (MLS) and United Soccer Leagues (USL), including the Miami Fusion, Milwaukee Rampage, Virginia Beach Mariners and Charlotte Eagles. In 2001, his Fusion team captured the MLS Supporters' Shield as regular-season champions, while his '02 Rampage squad were the USL A-League playoff champions.
