Ryan Hopkins Hired as Assistant Men's Soccer Coach
Feb. 14, 2018
CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. – Ryan Hopkins has been hired as an assistant coach for the Virginia men’s soccer program, as announced Wednesday (Feb. 14) by head coach George Gelnovatch.
Hopkins comes to Charlottesville after spending five seasons as an assistant coach at Summit League power-Denver.
“We’re thrilled to welcome Ryan to UVA,” Gelnovatch said. “He has a wealth of experience and comes from a reputable academic and athletic program in Denver. I’m certain he will be a great fit four our players.”
For the past five seasons, Hopkins has helped shape Denver into one of the top soccer programs in the country. The Pioneers advanced to the program’s first College Cup in 2016 after finishing the regular season undefeated at 15-0-3. The Denver coaching staff was tabbed as the 2016 NSCAA Coaching Staff of the Year.
“I’m super excited to be a part of one of the premier soccer programs in all of college soccer,” Hopkins said. “The academics, athletics and tradition here at Virginia are unrivaled. I’m going to do whatever it takes to develop quality student-athletes and achieve our goal of winning national championships. I’m extremely grateful to George, and the entire staff, Matt (Chulis) and A.J. (Barnold) during this process.”
Hopkins arrived at Denver prior to the 2013 season after serving as an assistant at Wisconsin, four seasons at Cal Poly and four seasons at Concordia University (Irvine, Calif.).
During his tenure at Denver, he helped the Pioneers capture four-straight Summit League regular season and tournament championships, advancing to the NCAA Tournament four out of the five seasons on staff. Denver went undefeated in the regular season in back-to-back years in 2015 and 2016 (28-0-6). From 2013-2017, the Pioneers boasted an overall record of 69-19-13.
In 2016 and 2017, College Soccer News included Hopkins in its Top 12 Assistant Coaches in College Soccer list. He was previously named the 2015 NSCAA West Region Assistant Coach of the Year.
In his five seasons, Denver produced an unprecedented amount of talent including three first round MLS SuperDraft selections. In the 2017 SuperDraft, Reagan Dunk (Real Salt Lake) and Sam Hamilton (Colorado Rapids) went 13th and 15th overall, respectively. Hopkins, an All-American goalkeeper at Concordia, helped cultivate three Summit League Goalkeepers of the Year and three Summit League Defenders of the Year.
Prior to Denver he helped Cal-Poly recruit two, College Soccer News top-30 recruiting classes, including the No. 12 overall class in in 2012. His coaching career began at his alma mater, Concordia where he won a pair of Golden State Athletic Conference Championships. Concordia annually one of the top NAIA teams in the nation, spent five weeks as the top team in the country in 2017.
Success on the field also translated in the classroom for Hopkins and the Pioneers. In his final two seasons, Denver posted the top team GPA in all of NCAA Division I Soccer. Serving as the program’s academic liaison, Denver was a five-time NSCAA Team Academic Award winner.
A four-year starter in goal for Concordia (2000-04), Hopkins was twice named as an NAIA All-American and helped lead the program to its first appearance in the NAIA National Championship tournament in 2003. Hopkins departed Concordia as the program’s career leader in victories, ranked second in goals-against average and shutouts and fourth in saves. In 2010, Hopkins was inducted into the Concordia Athletics Hall of Fame.
Hopkins graduated from Concordia in 2004 with a bachelor’s degree in political science and obtained a master’s degree in athletic administration in 2008. Hopkins also holds a USSF A license and a USSF National Goalkeeping License.