They have the appearance of athletes – fit and strong as they stand along the sideline. It’s just not a look you expect of former athletes, especially not ones retired from the game.
The competitiveness remains – it’s just channeled differently. Years of learning and competing at a high level have provided the coaches a foundation with which to teach a promising Oregon soccer team.
The Oregon coaching staff leans toward the young side, and doesn’t hesitate to go beyond the sideline to the field if that’s what it takes to show what they teach. Whether it be head coach Tara Erickson, assistant coaches Mike Smith and Nicole Wilcox or volunteer coach Jen Hull, this staff has taken a hands-on approach.
At practice, one or multiple members of the coaching staff are always playing with the soccer team. Erickson, a former player at the University of Washington, holds her own, having given birth this year. Part on-field instruction, part necessity, the coaches’ participation also helps to meliorate the blow of three players having season-long injuries and being unable to play, Smith said.
Wilcox, a member of Erickson’s staff at Portland State, and Hull both had successful college careers. Their focus now is not playing, but teaching, though at first glance, Hull, an 2005 graduate, and Wilcox (’04) look as though they could still play competitively at the college level.
“They are great about relating to the players,” Erickson said. “They are younger, a little more connected to them in age and physical ability.”
Hull, a four-year starter at Seattle Pacific, has filled a volunteer position as goalkeepers coach. She has eased the transition of Jessie Chatfield, the promising freshman goalkeeper and Eugene native.
Like Hull, Wilcox played four years – two each with Iowa State and Washington State. After graduating, Wilcox joined Erickson while she was at Portland State. Erickson was hired by Oregon in January and Wilcox followed along, this time becoming an assistant coach after volunteering at PSU.
Both Wilcox and Hull look at their work not as taxing but as a chance to do something they enjoy and love, a chance to teach soccer to a younger generation. And having created a perennially successful program certainly hasn’t hurt their morale.
Before Erickson’s staff arrived at Oregon, the Ducks had gone 16-54-7 in eight years of Pacific-10 Conference play.
Hull works with goalkeepers after initial drills to open practice, working with Oregon’s three goalies along the sideline.
At the center of instruction, Hull gives tips and motivation. She treats everyone the same, not giving preferential treatment to anyone, whether it be the two-time starter Domenique Lainez, the standout newcomer Chatfield or the third-year Arizona transplant Emily Marrer.
Hull speaks highly of Lainez, who watches now behind Chatfield, the much heralded goalkeeper with six shutouts in her initial season. Lainez started two years in goal, logging 1,803 out of a possible 1,816 minutes in 2003 and starting 18 of 19 matches in 2004.
“It’s really tough,” Hull said. “With a goalkeeper, it’s not a position that you can get subbed in for and I respect (Lainez) immensely.”
Goalkeeping isn’t like being a forward or a midfielder; it is an intensely individual challenge, Hull said. It’s a position where mentally moving past a goal scored is crucial.
“It’s hard, because it’s a position that not a whole lot of people have the guts or the ability to do because it’s a lot of pressure,” Hull said. “It takes a special person to do that.”
A wrist injury to Lainez in the spring created an opportunity for Chatfield, whose performances have solidified her hold on the position and her promise of success. Chatfield gives Hull credit.
“It’s an absolute advantage,” Erickson said. “Jessie has not had a lot of goalkeeping training so right now everything Jen is doing with her is above and beyond.”
Said Chatfield, “One of the biggest things that (Hull) says to me every time before a game is, ‘Just relax, you know how to play.’”
Hull said the biggest thing is making sure Chatfield plays with confidence. Hull tries to make sure Chatfield’s in control and mentally prepared, she said.
Chatfield attended a local high school, so she is backed by the support of her family and friends.
Hull is also a Eugene native and this is – in a way – a homecoming for her. Hull decided to attend Seattle Pacific after high school and a campus visit. The school fit and she proceeded to assault their record books as she ranked first in career games played and broke every goalkeeping record during her four-year stay.
She guided Seattle Pacific to three consecutive Great Northwest Athletic Conference titles. The Falcons finished 19-1-2 and had a No. 1 national ranking as a senior in 2004. Consistently successful, Hull had the nation’s top goals-against average (0.30) as a junior.
When she graduated from Sheldon High School, Hull said she wanted to try something different and Seattle Pacific heavily pursued her. It was a place where she felt she could make the greatest impact.
Originally planning to work with a soccer camp for a summer job, the coaching staff became aware of her talents and they needed a goalkeepers coach.
“It’s … nice to come back to my roots,” Hull said.
Getting the position was one thing, getting used to no longer playing is something completely different, Hull said.
“It’s easy cause I know what it’s like to be a player and I know what they need,” Hull said. “But it’s difficult cause making the transition from a player to a coach there’s a lot of different aspects and responsibilities you have.”
Coaching is a position she’s grown to enjoy and plans to pursue full-time. Hull said she’d love to coach college, but right now she’s more interested in finding her way.
She wants to get her master’s degree at the University and become a high school teacher.
“It’s something people have and some people don’t and I want to build on that,” Hull said of the ability to reach students.
In the meantime, Oregon begins Pac-10 play this week with a trip to face Arizona and Arizona State on Thursday and Sunday, respectively, as Wilcox returns to the conference for the first time since 2003.
Erickson said Wilcox has helped with positioning, where to strike the ball and other areas. She’s provided advice on offense, having been a strong offensive talent herself in college.
“She knows those (Pac-10) teams from a player’s point of view … and has competed very … recently so I think she knows the mentality of what it takes to play a UCLA or a USC or a Stanford,” Erickson said.
Wilcox scored 13 goals and had 10 assists her senior year. The year prior, she totaled eight goals and eight assists. For her career in Pullman, Wash., Wilcox ranks among the top 10 in goals and points and season categories for assists and points.
To reach her current plateau at the Division I-A level, Wilcox coached with the Lake Oswego Soccer Club, Lake Oswego Academy and Youth Development Programs. Wilcox has earned her U.S. Soccer “C” coaching license.
Licenses are awarded by the U.S. Soccer Federation and are a product of courses taken and experience. Beginners start at level “E” and move up toward “A” status (where Smith is) – a level that takes years to reach.
“She has an incredible passion for the game,” Smith said, adding she believes Wilcox will attain that top level.
Smith said Wilcox has been helping with recruiting as well.
Wilcox, who’s normally a mainstay at games and practices, has been participating off-and-
on recently as she attends to a family matter. Smith said the team hopes to have her attend the Arizona trip, but right now family takes precedence.
Oregon will see the next challenge of its progress as a soccer program with Pac-10 Conference play.
“Nobody expected this team to go 8-1-1 at this point,” Smith said.
The success, in part, is due to th
e help of the two young ex-players. Right now, coaching is an experience that Wilcox and Hull are relishing and one the latter hopes she can continue to do.
“I would love to stick with coaching,” Hull said. “Especially getting this experience at the D1 level, I’m really excited and want to build on that.”

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