Tag: Becky Burleigh

Gators soccer legend Becky Burleigh named Orlando Pride interim head coach

Former Florida coach Becky Burleigh hasn’t roamed the sideline for the final team. She was appointed interim head coach of the Pride Sunday.

Former Florida coach Becky Burleigh hasn’t hung up her whistle for the last time yet. She retired after the Gators women’s soccer team finished their 2021 campaign, but the Orlando Pride appointed Burleigh as the interim head coach Sunday. She takes over for former coach Marc Skinner who left to lead the Manchester United women’s team.

“I’m excited to become a member of the Orlando Pride franchise,” Burleigh said, according to a release. “My hope is to create a seamless transition plan to build on the growth and strides that Marc and the team have made so far this season. Change, despite being difficult, always brings an opportunity for growth. I’m eager to work in partnership with the existing staff and players to make that happen.”

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She was the first coach in Gators women’s soccer history and roamed the sidelines at Florida for the last 26 years where she recorded a 513-160-46 career record, including a national championship in 1998.

Burleigh has also coached some of the biggest names in women’s soccer like Abby Wambach and Heather Mitts and current Pride players Erika Tymrak and Meggie Dougherty Howard.

She will join the team for training this week before the Pride’s matchup Saturday versus the North Carolina Courage.

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Legendary Gators soccer coach to retire after over a quarter century on sidelines

Becky Burleigh announced on Saturday that she is stepping down from her position after 26 seasons at the helm of Florida’s soccer program.

Florida Gators soccer coach Becky Burleigh announced on Saturday that she is stepping down from her position at the conclusion of this season after 26 wildly successful years at the helm of the program.

Burleigh began with a clean slate in Gainesville, starting from scratch and guiding her girls to a national championship in just four seasons. The team earned a veritable plethora of Southeastern Conference titles under her tutelage — 14 regular-season and 12 tournament — and she is only one of two women in NCAA history to accumulate 500 or more victories.

Here is a list of her career accomplishments courtesy of Chris Harry at FloridaGators.com:

  • A record of 427-136-38 with the Gators, for a winning percentage of .742. Throw in her four seasons at Berry and Burleigh’s 509 wins rank second-most among active Division-I coaches. She is one of only two women in NCAA history to reach 500 career victories.
  • 14 Southeastern Conference regular-season championships (the last in 2015) and another 12 SEC Tournament titles (most recently in 2016).
  • 22 NCAA Tournament appearances, including 15 straight from 2003-17, two Final Fours and that remarkable 1998 national crown.
  • 37 All Americans and another 174 SEC Honor Roll selections.
  • Her 26 seasons are the second-most among active Florida coaches, behind volleyball coach Mary Wise‘s 30 seasons, and make Burleigh the fourth-longest serving coach in UF athletics history.