Leon "Bud" Lewis (born January 29, 1953) is an American former professional

soccer Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a team sport played between two teams of 11 players who primarily use their feet to propel the ball around a rectangular field called a pitch. The objective of the game is ...

player and coach. Known for his versatility on the field as a midfielder and

forward Forward is a relative direction, the opposite of backward. Forward may also refer to: People * Forward (surname) Sports * Forward (association football) * Forward (basketball), including: ** Point forward ** Power forward (basketball) ** Sm ...

, Lewis represented the Cincinnati Comets in the American Soccer League and the

Buffalo Blazers Buffalo Blazers was a soccer team in Buffalo, New York. They competed in the National Soccer League in 1976–1978 and 1980. They were one of only four American teams ( Detroit Besa, Detroit Canadians, and Detroit Vardar) to have competed in th ...

in the Canadian National Soccer League in the mid-1970s. After retiring as a player, he served as the head coach for the men's soccer team at Wilmington College between 1975 and 2017.

Playing career

Early career

High school

Lewis, a native of

Penfield, New York Penfield is a town in Monroe County, New York, United States. The population was 36,242 at the 2010 census. The town was incorporated in 1810 by the proprietor Daniel Penfield, who purchased the town lands in 1795 and moved to the area in 1809 ...

, began his competitive soccer career at

Penfield High School Penfield High School (PHS) is a public high school in Penfield, New York, United States. It offers a comprehensive curriculum for students in grades 9–12. History Penfield Seminary The predecessor of Penfield High School was the Penfield Semi ...

in 1967. He was a standout player for the school's soccer team and helped lead them to a New York State Section V championship in 1970. As a result of his outstanding performance on the field, Lewis was named a National High School All-American following his

senior Senior (shortened as Sr.) means "the elder" in Latin and is often used as a suffix for the elder of two or more people in the same family with the same given name, usually a parent or grandparent. It may also refer to: * Senior (name), a surname ...

season.

College

In 1971, Lewis won an athletic scholarship to attend Bowling Green State University in Bowling Green, Ohio. A four-year letter winner with the Bowling Green Falcons men's soccer team, he was named an

NSCAA The United Soccer Coaches (formerly known as the National Soccer Coaches Association of America (NSCAA)) is an organization of American soccer coaches founded in 1941. It is the largest soccer coaches organization in the world, with more than 30 ...

All-American in 1974. He also served as the team captain during the same season, alongside defender Steve Cabalka. Lewis' contributions to the Bowling Green Falcons soccer team were recognized in 2000 when he was inducted into the Bowling Green State University Athletic Hall of Fame.

Professional career

Following a successful collegiate career, Lewis signed his first professional contract with the American Soccer League side the Cincinnati Comets for the 1975 ASL season. After only one season with the Comets, he joined the

of the Canadian National Soccer League in 1976. In 1977, he was part of the Blazers team that played a

friendly Friendly may refer to: Places * Friendly, West Yorkshire, a settlement in Calderdale, West Yorkshire, England * Friendly, Maryland, an unincorporated community in the United States * Friendly, Eugene, Oregon, a neighborhood in the United States * ...

against the Serie A team Lazio at the

War Memorial Stadium War Memorial Stadium may refer to: * Ada War Memorial Stadium, in Ada, Ohio, also known as ''War Memorial Stadium'' * War Memorial Stadium (Arkansas), Little Rock, Arkansas * War Memorial Stadium (Austin, Texas) (former official name 1924–1947), ...

in Buffalo, New York. Lewis started as a

in a 1–6 loss.

Coaching career

While still actively playing professional soccer, Lewis took on the role of part-time coach for the Wilmington College men's soccer team in 1975. In 1977, he became the full-time head coach for the team, known as the Fightin' Quakers. Lewis' tenure as head coach was highly successful, leading the team to multiple NAIA District 22,

Association of Mideast Colleges The Association of Mideast Colleges was a short-lived NCAA Division III conference composed of member schools located in the Midwestern United States. The league existed from 1991 to 1996. If the chart uses more than one bar color, add a legend by ...

, Heartland Collegiate Athletic Conference, and Ohio Athletic Conference titles during the years. In 2004, Lewis was awarded the Bill Jeffrey Award for reaching more than 400 victories and for his services to the NSCAA’s All-America program. He retired from coaching after the 2017 NCAA season, having served as head coach at Wilmington College for 43 consecutive seasons and racking up 506 victories in 843 games. In 2021, Lewis was inducted into the Wilmington College Athletic Hall of Fame in recognition of his coaching achievements.

Coaching statistics

Honors

Player

Penfield High School * New York State Section V Boys' Soccer: 1970 Bowling Green State University * Mid-American Conference (MAC): 1973 Individual * National High School All-American: 1970 *

All-American: 1974 * NSCAA All-Region (

Midwest The Midwestern United States, also referred to as the Midwest or the American Midwest, is one of four Census Bureau Region, census regions of the United States Census Bureau (also known as "Region 2"). It occupies the northern central part of ...

): 1974 *NSCAA All-Ohio: 1974 *OCSA All-Mid-American Conference (MAC): 1974 * Bowling Green State University Athletic Hall of Fame: 2000

Coach

Wilmington College * NAIA District 22: 1979, 1981, 1983, 1985, 1989 * Association of Mideast Colleges (AMC): 1991, 1992, 1993, 1994, 1995 * Heartland Collegiate Athletic Conference (HCAC): 1998, 1999 * Ohio Athletic Conference (OAC) Regular-Season Champion: 2000, 2004 * Ohio Athletic Conference (OAC) Tournament Champion: 2004 Individual * NAIA District 22 Coach of the Year: 8 times * NSCAA Mideast Coach of the Year: 6 times * Ohio Coach of the Year: 3 times * Association of Mideast Colleges (AMC) Coach of the Year: 3 times * Ohio Athletic Conference (OAC) Coach of the Year: 2004, 2017 * Bill Jeffrey Award: 2004 * Wilmington College Athletic Hall of Fame: 2021

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Lewis, Bud Living people 1953 births American men's soccer players Men's association football forwards Cincinnati Comets players Bowling Green Falcons men's soccer players Ohio State University alumni People from Penfield, New York Sportspeople from Monroe County, New York Canadian National Soccer League players American Soccer League (1933–1983) players Soccer coaches in the United States American soccer coaches College men's soccer coaches in the United States