Coaches

HEAD COACH CHARLIE INVERSO

A name synonymous with winning soccer in Mercer County, Charlie Inverso was named the new head coach of the Rider University men’s soccer team in January of 2011.  In 2015 he was named the NSCAA Northeast Region Coach of the Year and Inverso has led the Broncs to three NCAA Tournament appearances in four years (2015, 2016, 2018). Inverso's Broncs have made it to four-straight MAAC Championship Games (2015-18). Following a 44-year drought, players on Inverso's rosters earned All-America honors in back to back years (Christian Flath - 2016, Jose Aguinaga - 2017).

In his first season at Rider the Broncs competed in the 2011 Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference Championship Tournament and picked up their first postseason win since 2004.

In his second season he produced a MAAC All-Rookie team selection and eight All-Academic Team members.

In 2013 the program produced its first All-Conference player since 2009, its first First Team All-Conference selection since 1999, and Rider’s first male Academic All-American since 1995.

It was 2015, however, when Inverso made his mark on the Rider program. The Broncs won 14 games, the most in 18 years and the second-most ever. The 14th win was in the MAAC Championship Game, sending the Broncs to the NCAA Championship Tournament.

The Broncs made it consecutive MAAC Tournament Championships and NCAA Tournament appearances in 2016 with a 13-4-3 overall mark and a 7-1-2 MAAC record. En route to the title, Rider defeated MAAC Regular Season Champion Quinnipiac twice on its home field. Inverso guided Christian Flath to NSCAA Second Team All-America status. Flath became the Broncs' first All-American since 1972 and the fifth all-time, joining Ed Adams (1956), Frank Nerwinski (1959), John Wagner (1967) and Bobby Smith (1972).

The 2017 Broncs spent several weeks in the national rankings, climbing as high as No. 22 in the United Soccer Coaches National Poll. Rider went 12-5-2 (6-2-2 MAAC) and reached the MAAC Championship Game for the third-straight year. Jose Aguinaga became Rider's all-time assists leader (32) and joined Flath as a Second Team All-American. Elliott Otmani was also recognized as a First Team Scholar All-American. A league-high seven Broncs earned All-MAAC honors, including four first-team selections, while four Rider student-athletes earned All-Region recognition.

2018 was perhaps Inverso's most impressive coaching performance. A struggling Broncs squad needed wins in each of their last two regular season games just to qualify for the MAAC Championships and not only got them, but posted five-straight shutouts to win the MAAC Championship and earn an NCAA Tournament berth. Once there, the Broncs gave eventual National Runner-Up Akron all it could handle in defeat. Pablo DeCastro scored the equalizer in the 77th minute and nearly gave Rider the lead minutes later. But the Zips would take the victory and make a run to the National Championship Game. Elliott Otmani earned All-MAAC Championship Team honors for the fourth-straight year, taking MVP for the second time. He also joined Emmanuel Kouma, Sylvain Coco and Arthur Herpreck on the All-MAAC Second Team and was recognized on the Google Cloud Academic All-District 1 First Team. Otmani finished his career as one of three Broncs all-time to score 30 goals and compile 20 assists (Craig Wicken, Bobby Smith). Despite starting the season as a back-up, goalkeeper Pablo Gatinois tied the program single-season record with seven clean sheets. In addition to his work at Rider, Inverso was presented with one of the inaugural Advocacy Awards of Excellence, presented by the United Soccer Coaches at its 2019 Convention in Chicago for his work with Mooch Soccer.

The groundwork for the historic 2015 and 2016 seasons was set the previous season.

In 2014 the Rider men’s soccer team (9-7-2) enjoyed its best season in the prior 16 years. The Broncs were picked to finish eighth in the 11-team MAAC and finished third. Rider led the entire nation with 40 goals scored during the regular season.

“After a national search that attracted a quality pool of candidates it became increasingly apparent that the best fit for us was the guy who does not have to change addresses in accepting the job,” Rider Director of Athletics Don Harnum said when Inverso was hired.

Inverso came to Rider from Rutgers University, where he served as an assistant coach.

“I am really thankful to the search committee and Don Harnum for having the confidence in me to take over the Rider soccer program,” Inverso said when he was hired.

Inverso was the longtime head coach at Mercer County Community College (MCCC) where he compiled a 434-46-14 record en route to winning five national championships. MCCC won the National Junior College Athletic Association (NJCAA) Division I title in 1988, 91, 95, 96 and 2004. He took 18 squads to the national tournament, including a run of eight-straight seasons from 2001-08.

In April of 2013 Inverso was named to the Wall of Fame in The College of New Jersey Department of Health and Exercise Science.

“Charlie Inverso is a proven winner and has established a great reputation in the local, regional, and national soccer communities,” Harnum added. “I am confident his numerous successful coaching experiences and his extensive contacts in recruiting will be major benefits for the Rider men's soccer program.”

Four times Inverso was the National Junior College Athletic Association Coach of the Year and he was inducted into NJCAA Hall of Fame in 2006.

During his 24-year tenure at the helm of the MCCC program, Inverso’s former players have enjoyed impressive success. Nearly 170 of his former players have graduated from MCCC and gone on to play soccer at their transfer schools. Over 40 former players have become college or high school coaches and 16 former players have played professionally.

Prior to MCCC, Inverso was an assistant coach at Princeton University from 1980-85. He has served as goalkeeper coach for the Under-15 U.S. National soccer team. He is co-founder of Mooch Soccer, a program that brings soccer to inner city youths of Trenton.

As a player, Inverso was the goalkeeper of the 1974 Notre Dame High School (Lawrence, N.J.) Parochial ‘A’ state championship squad and went on to be a standout player and captain at Trenton State College (TCNJ), where he earned BS and MS degrees in Physical Education.

Inverso and his wife, Lynne, live in Robbinsville, N.J., with their daughter, Hailey, and son, C.J.

ASSISTANT COACH BRENDAN NASH

Brendan Nash joined the Rider University men's soccer coaching staff in Spring 2022. He'd previously spent 22 seasons as Head Coach at Bucknell.

Nash was appointed Bucknell's 13th head coach in 1999 after serving as the assistant coach for three seasons. In 22 seasons as head coach, Nash guided the Bison to 187 victories, the second-highest win total in team history. His teams captured Patriot League championships in 2006, 2009, 2010 and 2014.

Nash, whose 187 career wins are the second-highest total in program history behind only Hall-of-Famer Craig Reynolds, was very successful throughout his tenure at Bucknell. The squad has finished at least .500 in the competitive Patriot League in 12 of the last 17 seasons under his direction, and four times the team captured Patriot League championships, with NCAA Tournament first-round wins following two of those titles.

A three-time Patriot League Coach of the Year and two-time NSCAA Mid-Atlantic Coach of the Year, Nash helped Conor O'Brien become Bucknell's first All-American in 33 years as well as a finalist for the Hermann Trophy, given to the national player of the year. Five of his players -- O'Brien, Mayowa Alli, Chris Thorsheim, Mike Lansing and Michael Lookingland -- have gone on to play professional soccer after graduating from Bucknell, with O'Brien in 2013 playing for a UEFA Champions League-qualifying Superleague team in Denmark before moving on to a top-flight team in Austria. Alli, who won the Christy Mathewson Award as the top senior athlete in the Class of 2014, Lansing and Thorsheim also began their careers in Denmark. Lookingland, a 2018 Bucknell Athletics Hall of Fame inductee, was drafted by Real Salt Lake in the MLS and then carved out an all-star indoor career with the Baltimore Blast.

Along with on-field success, Nash's teams have excelled in the classroom. He has coached eight Academic All-Americans: 2001 graduate Ryan Weber, 2005 graduate Jonathan Hemmert, who earned the prestigious award twice, Chris Hennings in 2008, Patrick Selwood in 2009, and two-time honorees Joe Meyer (2012, 2013), and Jesse Klug (2014, 2015). Additionally, the Bison earned the NSCAA Team Academic Award every year since 1997.

A 1994 graduate of Trenton State College (now College of New Jersey) with a degree in communications, Nash was hired by Bucknell after acting as assistant coach at his alma mater for three seasons.

While playing for the Lions, Nash appeared in the NCAA Division III national championship in 1991. His senior year concluded by being named the recipient of the John Heslin Award (leadership, commitment and sportsmanship). During his last two seasons as an assistant for the Trenton State squad, Nash helped post a 34-6-5 record for the school, including a 19-2-2 mark in 1994. The Blue and Gold finished third in the nation in Division III that season. Prior to attending TSC, Nash was a member of the men's soccer team at Longwood College. As a sophomore, he was named First Team All-Conference as well as the Defensive Player of the Year in the conference.

Nash holds the USSF “B” license and the National Soccer Coaches Association of America Advanced National Diploma. He hails from Neptune, N.J., and attended high school at Christian Brothers Academy, which is renowned for its perennial soccer talent. In addition to his bachelor's degree, he received his master's degree from the College of New Jersey for Sports Administration in 1997.

Both of Nash's brothers, Jamie and Brian, coach soccer in New Jersey. Jamie is the head coach at Boonton High School, while Brian coaches the boys' junior varsity soccer team at Marlboro High School.

ASSISTANT COACH MARK PRATICO

Rider University Men’s Soccer Head Coach Charlie Inverso announced the hiring of Mark Pratico II ‘13 as an assistant coach for the 2017 season.

Pratico is a graduate of Notre Dame High School where he was an All-County player for the Irish. He also played at Mercer County CC and Rider University under Coaches Inverso and Larry Povia. He served for four years as the top assistant for Tigana Dalce at nationally-ranked Mercer County CC. He also has extensive experience and is a very well-known area youth development coach.

"Mark is a really intelligent guy who lives soccer 24 hours a day,” said Inverso. “He has an amazing work ethic and his communication skills are tremendous. He is going to be very successful coach and I can't tell you how lucky we are to have him."

While at Mercer, the Vikings won back-to-back Region XIX conference titles in 2014 and 2015. The Vikings finished the 2015 season unbeaten at 18-0-3 and finished ranked No. 8 in the NJCAA Division 1 poll. During his four years, the Vikings earned 16 All-Conference selections and one All-American.

Pratico also spent four years coaching at Mercer FC and currently works for PDA Hibernian. He completed his B.A. in Secondary Education/English and his M.A. in Organizational Leadership, both at Rider University. Pratico holds the NSCAA Premier and Advanced National Diplomas.

VOLUNTEER ASSISTANT ELVIR PRASOVIC

Elvir Prasovic was added to Coach Inverso’s coaching staff in July of 2014 with the main responsibility of preparing the Broncs goalkeepers and helping out with all facets of the program. Before arriving at Rider Coach Elvir served as an assistant coach at Bloomfield College where he helped the Bears earn a berth in the CACC playoffs.

Prior to entering the coaching ranks at the collegiate level, Elvir served as the head coach of New Brunswick High School in New Brunswick, NJ for five seasons.  At New Brunswick he compiled a record of 53-30-4 while leading the Zebras to the Middlesex County White Division Championship in 2009 and taking several of his teams deep into the Group III State Tournament. In 2009 Elvir was also voted Middlesex County Men’s Soccer Coach of the Year.

A graduate of Fairleigh Dickinson University, Coach Elvir was a four-year starter for the Knights in goal and served as a team captain in his senior season (2007). His playing stints after graduation included the Brooklyn Knights, Jersey Express and NJ Rangers of the Professional Development League (PDL). Since graduation Elvir has coached various youth team throughout the state of New Jersey and currently coaches at NJ Elite.

Elvir is a History teacher at New Brunswick High School and currently holds a US Soccer Federation C License, NSCAA National Diploma and the NSCAA National GK Diploma. Since Elvir’s arrival in 2014 the Rider Broncs have earned four-straight berths into the MAAC championships, winning the MAAC in 2015 and 2016 to earn a pair of NCAA Tournament berths. Rider reached its third-straight MAAC Championship Game in 2017.