A former player and assistant coach with the program, Emedin Sabic enters his seventh year as head coach at Cal U in 2019.
Sabic has posted a 37-56-9 record while the head coach of the Vulcans after spending six seasons as an assistant coach with the Cal U soccer programs. He was an assistant coach with women’s program from 2007-09 before joining the men’s coaching staff in 2010. Sabic was also a four-year player for the Vulcans from 2003-06 under longtime head coach Dennis Laskey, who ranks second in PSAC history with 258 career wins.
Sabic guided the program to the first 10-win season of his career in 2016, as Cal U made a third-straight appearance in the PSAC Tournament. The Vulcans finished with a 10-6-1 record and goalkeeper Lucas Exner became the program's first-ever PSAC Defensive Athlete of the Year. Exner finished the year ranked among the top 15 nationally in total saves and save percentage, while being one of two All-PSAC selections.
In 2015, Sabic led the Vulcans to a 9-7-1 overall mark and a consecutive appearance in the PSAC Tournament. Cal U registered a three-win improvement from the previous year and Exner became the program’s first PSAC Freshman of the Year in nearly a decade. The Vulcans also led the league and set a program record with six All-PSAC selections, including first-team defender Lubos Kubik, who led the league with 10 assists.
Sabic guided Cal U to a 7-10-1 record during his first year as head coach in 2013 and missed qualifying for the league tournament due to a tiebreaker. Jeffrey Kyei was named a Daktronics Third-Team All-American after leading the team in goals, assists and points.
In addition, Sabic was instrumental in Cal U reaching the post-season as both a player and an assistant coach. As a player, he twice helped the Vulcans advance to the finals of the PSAC Tournament and helped the program qualify for the NCAA Tournament for the first time in 2004. Sabic was later an assistant on two teams (women’s 2009, men’s 2011) that qualified for the NCAA Tournament.
Sabic registered double-digit goals and assists while playing over 80 career games with 50-plus starts during his college career. As a freshman in 2003, Cal U reached the finals of the league tournament before the program earned the top seed in PSAC Tournament the following year. In 2005, the Vulcans tied the school record with 14 wins and again advanced to the conference finals as the top seed in the tournament.
As an assistant coach, Sabic played a pivotal role in the transformation of the women’s soccer program. Following a four-win campaign in 2007, the Vulcans won a combined 31 games in the next two seasons and qualified for the post-season for the first time in program history. In 2009, Cal U advanced to the quarterfinals of the NCAA Tournament after allowing only one goal in its opening three tournament games.
Sabic was an assistant coach with the men’s program in 2011 when the Vulcans qualified for the NCAA Tournament and registered their first-ever win in the tournament. That season, Sabic also had the unique distinction of coaching his younger brother, Edin, who received All-PSAC Second-Team status.
Originally from Bosnia, Sabic moved to Germany in 1991 and played club soccer in Europe until his family moved to the United States in 1999. He attended Cathedral Prep in Erie, Pennsylvania, and helped lead the Ramblers to a state championship in 2001. He was a three-time, first-team all-metro and first-team all-district selection while playing at Prep.
Sabic earned his undergraduate degree in business administration from Cal U in 2007 and completed his master’s degree in 2008. He and his wife Micheline reside in Bethel Park, Pennsylvania.
He currently holds a “B” license from the United States Soccer Federation (USSF).
