Simon Elfrink
Sports Editor
On Thursday, Dec. 3, Racer soccer Head Coach Matt Lodge announced the hiring of Paul Cox as an assistant coach.
Lodge was excited to add Cox to the coaching staff, saying Cox’s plethora of coaching and playing experience will be a huge boost for Murray State’s soccer team.
“This is a huge hire for Murray State and our soccer program,” Lodge said. “Paul not only brings in college head coaching experience, but he is also a proven winner.”
Cox arrives at Murray after three seasons with Briar Cliff University in Sioux City, Iowa, where he served as the head coach for the Chargers. Briar Cliff and the Chargers made it to the Great Plains Athletic Conference Tournament in Cox’s first year, the team’s first appearance in the tournament since 2014. In the 2019 season, the Chargers went 11-8 with a 7-5 conference record and made a good run at a conference championship before losing in the semifinals.
“Within three short years, he built a championship powerhouse in the GPAC,” Lodge said. “His passion and knowledge for soccer are second to none, and I’m extremely excited to work alongside him. We have a championship mindset here at Murray State, and Paul will fit in perfectly.”
Cox went on to end his time at Briar Cliff on a high note, guiding his team to a 10-1-2 overall record and a conference championship title. The Chargers’ overall record over the three seasons Cox led the team was 30-18-4, with a 25-10-1 record in conference play.
The Andover, England, native graduated from Midland University in Fremont, Nebraska. There, Cox earned a bachelor’s degree in business administration in management and marketing. Soon after, Cox achieved a master’s degree in leadership and teaching in learning. As a player for Midland, Cox was named All-GPAC three of his four years there. Cox totaled 13 career points at Midland on five goals and three assists. Cox also scored the game-winning goal to send Midland to the NAIA National Soccer Championships in 2009, the team’s first appearance in program history.
Cox remained at Midland until early 2018, serving as an assistant coach for both the men and women’s soccer teams and was also an academic advisor and human performance professor.
“I would like to thank Kevin Saal, Matt Kelly, Coach Lodge and the rest of the search committee for this opportunity,” Cox said. “I am very excited to get to Murray and start working with Coach Lodge, Coach Racheal Foxley and the rest of the team. After my first conversation with Matt, I knew this was a project I wanted to be involved with and I look forward to adding to this already-successful team and can’t wait to start preseason in January.”
