University of Vermont Athletics

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CAREER HONORS
2016 NCAA Tournament Second Round
2015 America East Tournament Champions
2012 America East Coaching Staff of the Year
2012 America East Regular Season Champions
2007 America East Tournament Champions
2007 NCAA Tournament Second Round

Jesse Cormier, a 1995 graduate of the University of Vermont, wrapped up his 13th season and made even more remarkable history as the head coach of his alma mater in 2016.

The Catamounts set new precedents under Cormier this past season. After winning 14 games, which was the second-most in a single season, UVM hosted an NCAA Tournament for only the second time in program history, Cormier finished the season in a tie with 114 career victories on the all-time wins list. 

With their impressive 4-1 win over Rider in the first round of the NCAA Tournament, the Cats were victorious in the postseason on their home turf for the first time since 1989 in front of a record crowd. The 2016 squad scored a program record 42 goals and had the top classmate scoring tandem in Bernard Yeboah and Brian Wright in program history, who tallied a combined 25 goals and 15 assists.
 
The 2016 team also achieved its highest RPI and national ranking (16th) since 1989 and was recognized as one of the regional dominant powers. UVM was ranked No. 1 for many weeks in the New England region. A total of five Catamounts earned NSCAA All-American, NSCAA All-East Region, ECAC All-Star, America East All-Conference, All-Rookie, and All-Academic honors at the end of the season.
 
Vermont qualified for the America East playoffs as the No. 3 seed and made the conference tournament for the 12th time in 13 seasons under Cormier.
 
In 2015 and for the second straight year, the Catamounts were a ranked team in the NSCAA Northeast Region Poll during most of the 2014 season. UVM posted wins at James Madison and versus St. Francis Brooklyn, a pair of NCAA teams, to win two in-season tournaments to start the year. Vermont advanced to the America East Semifinals with a 2-1 win at No. 4 Albany in the quarterfinal round.??Vermont was ranked in the NSCAA Northeast Region Poll throughout much of the 2013 season and freshman Brian Wright became just the fourth player in program history to earn America East Rookie of the Year honors.??In 2012, Cormier and his staff were selected as the America East Coaching Staff of the Year after guiding the Catamounts to the program's first conference regular season championship since 1989.? ?Cormier and his colleagues became just the second UVM coaching staff to earn the honor in the history of the program.  Under Cormier's direction, the Catamounts have earned a berth to the America East Tournament eighth times in his nine seasons. ? 
 
In addition to leading UVM to its first regular season title in 23 years during the 2012 season, Cormier also guided Vermont to an unbeaten mark (5-0-2) in America East action.  UVM was just the second team to achieve the feat since 1997.
 
Cormier also led the Catamounts to back-to-back trips to the America East Championship game in 2006 and 2007 and captured the America East title in 2007.  With the victory, the Catamounts earned the school's eighth appearance in the NCAA Men's Soccer Tournament. In 2011, the Catamounts posted a record of 9-7-1 and finished tied for second in the America East standings with a 4-2-1 league mark.  UVM started 2011 with a 5-1 mark and went 6-3 at home.  Vermont earned a trip to the America East playoffs and hosted Albany at Centennial Field. The 2010 campaign was highlighted by a victory over No. 13 Stanford at Centennial Field in the team's season opener.  It marked the second straight year UVM upended a ranked opponent on its home field (No. 18 UMBC, 2009).  UVM also returned to the America East Playoffs after posting a 2-0 shutout victory over Hartford in the regular season finale.
Cormier, who was named Vermont’s seventh head men’s soccer coach on February 12, 2004, led the Catamounts to a remarkable midseason turnaround in 2007. Playing one of the toughest non-conference schedules in the region, Vermont started the campaign 4-9-0 and rebounded to finish second in the league standings, win the conference title and advance to the second round of the NCAAs in 2007. UVM finished the 2007 season with the 40th best RPI in the nation.
 
Cormier's teams have finished in the top four of the regular season standing, advanced to the America East Tournament and hosted a playoff game five times in his tenure,. The Catamounts also have been strong in the classroom earning a NSCAA Team Academic Award several times.
 
The conference title came a year after Cormier guided the Catamounts to the America East Championship title game for the first time since 2002. The second-seeded Catamounts topped New Hampshire, 1-0, in the semifinals at Centennial Field. UVM went 9-7-4 overall and had a 5-1-2 mark in conference games, one of the Cats best-ever records in league play.
 
In 2005, Cormier led the Catamounts to an 11-5-3 overall record and a fourth place finish in the America East. Vermont was ranked in the NSCAA National Poll six out of nine weeks during the regular season and went 2-0-1 against ranked opponents.
 
In his first season at Vermont, Cormier led the Catamounts to a 9-5-5 overall record. UVM, picked to finish last in the 2004 America East Preseason Coaches’ Poll, came in fourth in the regular season standings. One of the nation’s most improved teams, the Catamounts ranked seventh in the final 2004 NSCAA New England Region Poll.
 
An outstanding recruiter, Vermont’s group of newcomers for 2006 ranked 36th in the nation in the College Soccer News Top 40 Recruiting Classes. Under Cormier's direction, the Catamounts have had six members on the America East All-Rookie Team with two, T.J. Gore in 2006 and Lee Stephane Kouadio in 2005 earn America East All-Conference First-Team honors. Kouadio also was the America East Rookie of the Year and Offensive Player of the Year in 2005.
 
Cormier has emphasized off-field citizenship and academics at Vermont and his teams have excelled in the classroom. In 2007, defender Connor Tobin was named the 2007 America East Men's Soccer Scholar-Athlete. In 2006, Corey Bronner '07 was selected as a ESPN The Magazine Men's Soccer Academic All-American.
 
A former standout with the Catamounts, Cormier is the first UVM alum to be named the team’s head coach. He returned to Vermont after serving as an assistant coach and associate head coach at Oregon State. During his time in Corvallis, Ore. he helped lead the Beavers to the most successful three-year run in school history and was promoted to associate head coach in 2003. Prior to his tenure at Oregon State, Cormier was an assistant coach at West Virginia (2000) and Bradley (1997-99).
 
During Cormier’s coaching career, he spent seven seasons at three of the nation’s top rated soccer conferences, the Pac-10, Missouri Valley and the Big East. His national experience is valuable in the highly competitive America East.
 
At Oregon State Cormier helped transform the program into a national power with outstanding coaching and recruiting. In 2002, OSU made its first-ever NCAA College Cup appearance. As Oregon State’s recruiting coordinator, Cormier’s final two classes were recognized among the nation’s best by CollegeSoccerNews.com. The national website also cited Cormier as one of the outstanding assistant coaches in the country.
 
In 2003, the Beavers had the most successful season in school history. OSU hosted a first-round match in the NCAA College Cup. The Beavers earned a No. 2 ranking in the NSCAA Far West Region and the team’s offense was ranked 10th nationally in goals per game. OSU finished second to UCLA, the 2002 NCAA Champion, in the Pac-10 standings and defeated five nationally-ranked opponents while setting 11 individual or team records.
 
Cormier is heavily involved in all levels of youth soccer in Vermont. He and his staff host coaching clinics in the spring and he is the director of the Vermont Soccer Camp.
 
A native of Hoosick Falls, N.Y., Cormier earned his master’s degree in leadership and human services at Bradley in 1999. He holds a NSCAA Advanced National Diploma and a USSF “B” Coaching License.
Cormier had a solid playing career at Vermont (1991-94). He ranks sixth in career points (59) and is tied for sixth all-time in goals (24). A regular for coach Ron McEachen from the start of his career, he earned a spot on the America East All-Championship Team as a sophomore in 1992, leadng Vermont to the conference title game. He led the team in scoring as a senior (9-3--21) and following the season he earned All-New England honors and was selected as the team’s most valuable player. Cormier received his bachelor’s degree in history from Vermont.
 
Following graduation, Cormier went on to play professionally in the United States and overseas before beginning his coaching career.
 
Cormier and his wife, Amy, reside in Shelburne and have three children, a son Kai, and daughters Parrish and Jazaher.