Joe Morrone
Joseph John "Joe" Morrone was a head men's collegiate soccer coach. He is the father of former American soccer midfielder Joe Morrone, Jr.. He is best known to have coached soccer at Connecticut from 1969 to 1996. He is credited with transforming a struggling UConn soccer program into one of the nation's best. He won the 1981 NCAA Division I Men's Soccer Championship at UConn. From 1981 to 1983, his teams reached the Final Four three times. His teams reached the NCAA tournament 16 out of the past 18 years he coached there.
Despite this success, from 1989 to 1996, his teams failed to reach the NCAA tournament, and he was asked to step down. He was replaced by another coaching legend, Ray Reid. UConn's soccer stadium, Morrone Stadium, is named after him. His career coaching record stands at 422-199-64. Morrone died on September 16, 2015 at the age of 79 from pancreatic cancer.
