Former Columbia Soccer Coach Lands New Job

One year after he was forced out by Columbia, Dieter Ficken was unveiled as the new head coach of the CW Post men's soccer team. After spending the past year coaching at the grassroots level, he will return to the bench next fall and his expectations for the program could not be higher.

"It'll take me about a year and a half to make them a national power," Ficken said. "Within three years, they'd like to move up to Division I. So that's an incentive for me."

CW Post, which competes in the East Coast Conference, finished last season with a 12-4-4 record and a trip to the first round of the NCAA Division II tournament.

Ficken is no stranger to the national stage. In his 27 seasons with the Lions from 1979 to 2006, he led them to the Division I NCAA tournament 11 times and the Final Four twice, while accumulating nine Ivy League titles.

"We are very fortunate to be able to bring in such a legendary coach who is established in college soccer," CW Post Athletic Director Bryan Collins said in a statement. "Dieter Ficken brings stability and tradition to our program."

Ficken began his coaching career at his alma mater, Long Island University, in 1974, where he served as an assistant and then head coach before coming to then-Ivy champions Columbia in 1979.

Over the next seven seasons, Ficken led the Lions to consecutive league titles as well as an appearance in the 1983 National Championship game against Indiana. Though the Hoosiers eventually prevailed 1-0 in double overtime, Columbia's 18-1 season was good enough to earn Ficken the National Coach of the Year award.

He also distinguished himself as a player. He started in midfield for the United States team at the 1968 Summer Olympics and was selected to the US squad for the 1974 World Cup, held in his native Germany.