CHICAGO — Marking a historic day in Chicago State University athletics history, the men's soccer program will compete today for the first time since the late 1980s.
Under the direction of head coach
Trevor Banks, the Cougars will take on in-state rival Northern Illinois today at 2:00 p.m. CT in DeKalb. To follow today's game,
click here.
To prepare for the upcoming season, dive into our men's soccer coverage, including...
- An inside look at Chicago State's speedy duo joining men's soccer from the track and field squad. Click here.
- A retrospective on Chicago State's men's soccer history from an alum. Click here.
- A deep dive on building the program. Click here.
- A glance at the Cougars' inaugural Division I recruiting class. Click here.
- A 2021 season preview with head coach Trevor Banks (below):
Banks, Chicago State's first head men's soccer coach in three decades, was hired on July 20, 2020.
"Coach Banks emerged as the choice to lead the restart of our men's soccer program because of his talent as a recruiter and his passion for leading within a championship culture," Charles said. "Trevor embodies the 'hard work' attitude that we will use to continually build and strive towards creating and sustaining nationally-competitive athletic programs in #OurChampionshipEra."
Banks, a United States Soccer Federation (USSF) "A-Senior" licensed coach, joined Chicago State from Brown University where he was the associate head coach (2017-20) and assistant coach (2016). During his time at Brown, Banks was part of all aspects of the program and helped develop multiple award winners on and off the field, including three players selected to the United Soccer Coaches All-East Region Team, 19 All-Ivy selections, one named to the All-New England Freshman team, multiple Academic All-Ivy selections and one United Soccer Coaches Scholar All-America honoree.
In addition to his duties with the Bears, Banks was also the technical director and coach of the 2002 National Premier League team with Bruno United FC (a nonprofit youth soccer club based in Providence, RI, started by the Brown men's soccer program in 2002). In 2019, Banks and his 2002 Bruno team won the US Club Soccer Rhode Island State Championship and went on to make a run to the national finals of the US Club Soccer National Cup that same year.
Prior to his stint at Brown, Banks spent one season as an assistant coach at Villanova University (2015-16), where he helped with all aspects of the program, including recruiting. With Banks assistance in the recruiting efforts, Villanova brought in the first two (2016, 2017) top-20 ranked classes in program history. Additionally, he coached two players named to All-Big East teams, one named to the All-Big East Freshman team and one player named to the United Soccer Coaches All-Region Team as well as multiple All-Big East academic award recipients.
Banks began his coaching career at William Woods University (2009-10) which made its first appearance in the conference semifinals, losing to eventual champion Park University.
Following his stint at William Woods, Banks spent one season working with the defensive core at Barry University (2011) and helped the team post a GAA of 0.90. During that time, Barry ended the season ranked 13
th in the nation with a record of 12-3-6 (3-2-3 Conference), making an appearance in the conference finals and a run to the NCAA Division II Sweet 16.
Banks spent three years at the Merchant Marine Academy (2012-14) and helped coach the Mariners to a record of 24-23-3 (13-9 Conference), a goals against average (GAA) of .87, 17 shutouts and two appearances in the Landmark Conference playoffs. During that time, he also worked with the Long Island Rough Riders of the USL 2 (2012-14). With the Rough Riders, Banks was in charge of the goalkeeping corps, where, in 2014, Banks mentored goalkeeper Joe Martin to a GAA of .74 and six shutouts.
A native of Carencro, Louisiana, Banks played collegiate soccer at Kentucky Wesleyan College (2006-09) where he earned a degree in communications then continued his education, earning a master's degree in Athletic Administration from William Woods University (2010).
