The soccer tradition dates back to 1869, when the school hosted Princeton in what went down in history as the first football game. It wasn’t exactly football, of course. In fact, it had a lot more in common with soccer. But it wasn’t exactly soccer, either. Whatever that first game was, Rutgers notched a 6–4 victory. The game known as association football—soccer, for short—soon gained popularity on campus and was played as an organized club activity for decades before it was officially designated as a varsity sport in 1938.
Rutgers’ first coach was George Dochat, a physical education instructor who joined the faculty in 1936. He led the varsity for more than three decades, fashioning a 141-118-21 record. The school played as an independent during his tenure with nearby schools like Princeton, Bucknell, Lehigh and Lafayette typically on the schedule. Starting in the mid-1950s, the Scarlet Knights fielded a formidable team. Their first All-American Art Brinkman (left), captain the 1955 squad to a 9–2 record. Dochat’s best team was the 1961 squad, which went 10-0-1. Three of his best players were All-Americans Herb Schmidt, Mike Shaw and Richard Schiesswohl. All were members of the 1966 team.
The program sagged after Dochat’s retirement, but rose again in the 1980s under Bob Reasso as a member of the Atlantic 10 Conference. The 1983 team, led by Dave Masur, was undefeated, earning its first bid to the NCAA Tournament since the early 1960s. Later in the decade, Bobby Joe Esposito and Peter Vermes starred for the Scarlet Knights. In 1989, Alexi Lalas, Glenn Carbonara and Steve Rammel helped Rutgers reach the Final Four for the first time. The 1990 club went one better, securing a spot in the championship game, losing a heartbreaker to UCLA on penalty kicks. In 1991, Lalas won the Hermann Award as the nation’s top player and Rutgers put together a 13-game winning streak. The Scarlet Knights were ranked #1 for the first time in program history and finished the year at #4.
Later in the 1990s, Pedro Lopes (right) and Alan Branigan were standout players for the team, which reached its third Final Four in 1994. In 1995, Rutgers joined the Big East and, led by Billy Walsh and John Conway, won the conference title in 1997. In 2001, Reasso collected his 300th victory in thrilling style, when the Scarlet Knights upended defending NCAA champion UConn in the second round of the national tournament. His stars that season included a pair of All-Americnas, Guy Abrahamson and Dennis Ludwig. Reasso retired following the 2009 campaign with a record of 351-183-71 and 13 NCAA Tournament appearances in 29 years.
Heralded St. Louis University coach Dan Donigan—who grew up in Hamilton Township—took over the coach reigns in New Brunswick and led Rutgers back to the Sweet 16 in 2012. In 2014, the Scarlet Knights joined the Big Ten and unveiled one of its most dynamic players, Jason Wright. The following season, Wright was named Big Ten Offensive Player of the Year.
In 2019, Jim McElderry became just the seventh coach in school history. In 2022, he led the Scarlet Knights to the Big Ten Tournament championship with a 3–1 victory over Indiana in the title game. MD Myers was named conference Offensive Player of the Year.