Mark Berson

Mark Berson (born March 16, 1953) is an American retired soccer coach. He spent 43 seasons as head men's soccer coach at the University of South Carolina. He started his coaching career at The Citadel in 1976.

Mark Berson
Biographical details
Born (1953-03-16) March 16, 1953
Hartford, Connecticut
Playing career
1971–1974North Carolina Tar Heels
Coaching career (HC unless noted)
1977The Citadel Bulldogs
1978–2020South Carolina Gamecocks
Head coaching record
Overall451–188–62
Accomplishments and honors
Championships
Conference USA Regular Season Championship (2011)
Conference USA Tournament Championship (2010)
Conference USA Tournament Championship (2005)
Metro Regular Season Championship (1993)
Awards
National Soccer Coaches Association Coach of the Year (1984, 1985, 1988, 1995)
South Carolina Youth Soccer Association's Hall of Fame (1992)
Independent Coach of the Year (1998)
Conference USA Coach of the Year 2011

Collegiate career

Berson graduated from Summit High School in Summit, New Jersey in 1971 and enrolled at the University of North Carolina.[1] On the Tar Heel soccer team, he played midfielder his freshman year and goalie the final three years. Berson graduated in 1975 with a degree in journalism and later earned a master's of education degree in sport administration in 1977 from Ohio University.

Coaching career

Berson took a position as an assistant coach on The Citadel's men's soccer program in 1976. A year later, he became the head coach and guided the Bulldogs to their best record ever with an 11–5 mark. In 1978, Berson accepted the head coaching position at the University of South Carolina. He led the Gamecocks to a 13–3–1 record in the program's first season and in the second season they obtained a spot in the NCAA Men's Soccer Championship. The program achieved a high level success under his guidance and his teams won three conference championships in only seven years of being in a conference. The program has made a total of 22 appearances in the NCAA Men's Soccer Championship, all under his direction. Berson coached three players who appeared in the World Cup (Clint Mathis, Josh Wolff and Brad Guzan) for Team USA, spanning a total of 21 years.


When he retired after the 2021 season, he had the most wins of any active coach in NCAA Division I with 522 career victories.

Personal life

Berson is married and has two children, Erin and Luke, who both went to the University of South Carolina.

Head coaching record

Season College Won Lost Tied Notes
1977 The Citadel 11 5 0
1978 South Carolina 13 3 1
1979 South Carolina 14 5 0 NCAA Appearance
1980 South Carolina 12 5 2
1981 South Carolina 16 4 1
1982 South Carolina 12 5 2
1983 South Carolina 8 11 2
1984 South Carolina 14 4 2
1985 South Carolina 20 3 1 NCAA Appearance
1986 South Carolina 17 5 0 NCAA Appearance
1987 South Carolina 16 2 3 NCAA Appearance
1988 South Carolina 14 4 4 NCAA Appearance
1989 South Carolina 17 3 2 NCAA Appearance
1990 South Carolina 14 5 2 NCAA Appearance
1991 South Carolina 14 5 0 NCAA Appearance
1992 South Carolina 13 5 3 NCAA Appearance
1993 South Carolina 16 4 4 Metro Champions; NCAA Appearance
1994 South Carolina 16 4 0 NCAA Appearance
1995 South Carolina 16 4 0
1996 South Carolina 8 9 2
1997 South Carolina 16 3 1 NCAA Appearance
1998 South Carolina 16 5 0 NCAA Appearance
1999 South Carolina 10 7 2
2000 South Carolina 12 4 3 NCAA Appearance
2001 South Carolina 12 5 2 NCAA Appearance
2002 South Carolina 11 8 1 NCAA Appearance
2003 South Carolina 9 7 2
2004 South Carolina 12 7 1 NCAA Appearance
2005 South Carolina 12 7 2 Conference USA Tournament Champions; NCAA Appearance
2006 South Carolina 11 5 1
2007 South Carolina 11 6 2
2008 South Carolina 10 6 5
2009 South Carolina 7 8 5
2010 South Carolina 13 8 2 Conference USA Tournament Champions; NCAA Appearance
2011 South Carolina 9 7 2 Conference USA Regular Season Champions; NCAA Appearance
2012 South Carolina 5 11 2
2013 South Carolina 7 7 5
2014 South Carolina 10 10 0
2015 South Carolina 11 8 2 NCAA Appearance
2016 South Carolina 11 8 1 NCAA Appearance
2017 South Carolina 6 9 2
2018 South Carolina 7 10 0
2019 South Carolina 7 9 2
2020 South Carolina 8 7 1
2021 South Carolina 5 9 2
Overall 522 266 76 22 NCAA Appearances

References

  1. Mark Berson profile, CSTV. Accessed November 5, 2007. "A 1971 graduate of Summit (N.J.) High School, Berson attended the University of North Carolina and received his Bachelor of Arts degree in journalism in 1975."
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