NCAA National Champions
1980 Pacific Soccer Conference Champions
Head Coach: Steve Negoesco
Overall Record: 23-0-2 PSC Record: 7-0-0
All-PSC Team: Roar Anderson, Nick Lambridis, Luis Magalhaes, Erik Nielson
Most Goals: Roar Anderson (16) Most Assists: Roar Anderson (11)
Most Points: Roar Anderson (43 – 16 goals, 11 assists) Goals Against Average: Andre Schweitzer (0.75)
USF Hall-of-Famers: Aram Kardzair, Erik Nielson, Dag Olavson, Steve Negoesco
When Fidelis Atuegbu blasted a shot just inside the right post to clinch the 1980 national championship it kept alive a family tradition. In 1976 it was another Atuegbu that had made magic, as older brother Andy helped bring down Indiana. The 1980 win marked the third time in five years USF had defeated Indiana for the national championship.
The 1980 Dons begin their march to the national title by capturing the Pacific Soccer Conference crown with a perfect 5-0-0 record. Entering post-season play with a 19-0-2 record and number one ranking in the nation, the Dons met powerful UCLA for the Far West championship and won 2-1. In the quarterfinals of the NCAA tournament, USF beat long-time foe St. Louis. Then it was on to Tampa and a meeting with number two ranked Alabama A&M, where the Dons came from behind to win with two goals in the second half.
In the finals, the Dons met Indiana and the Hoosiers dominated the first half with high-pressure defense and a fast-break attack taking a 2-0 lead at intermission. The Dons rallied to tie the game 3-3 by the end of regulation. In sudden-death overtime, Atuegbu nailed a 20-yarder to win the NCAA Championship for the Dons.
The force behind the team’s successful drive to the title was led by the powerful front line of Bjorn Tronstad, Luis Magalhaes and Dag Olavson. Offensive play revolved around midfielders Roar Anderson and Stan Musilek. Nick Lambridis, Erik Visser, Jan Elberse and Jo Bergsvand anchored the defensive backfield. Additional key players included goalies Aram Kardzair and Andre Schweitzer and sweeper Erik Nielson.
Did You Know? USF won the national championship over Indiana in overtime using a key substitution that brought in a fresh pair of legs. Coach Steve Negoeso subbed in Fidelis Atuegbu for the overtime. “I figured he would move forward and cause them a lot of problems,” Negoesco said after the game. In the 99th minute with most of the players suffering from exhaustion, Atuegbu boomed in a 20-yard shot for the 4-3 overtime victory. The championship belonged to the Green and Gold thanks to a fresh, strong right leg.
They Said It: “At halftime we set out to see if we could stop their short passing game and we did. My players said their midfielder Whitney was getting too much space and that Visser should take him. We moved Visser back into defense and put Alvarez at fullback. The move made us more aggressive,” USF coach Steve Negoeso discussing a key halftime adjustment that changed the momentum in the NCAA national semi-final game against No. 2 Alabama A&M. The Dons trailed 1-0 at halftime, but rallied for a 2-1 win after the lineup change by Negoesco. Many East Coast college soccer prognosticators felt Alabama A&M would handle USF and move on to play Indiana for the national championship.
