Joseph John Morrone, Jr (October 20, 1935 – September 16, 2015) was an American head men's collegiate soccer coach. He is the father of former soccer midfielder Joseph "Joe" M. Morrone He coached soccer at the

University of Connecticut The University of Connecticut (UConn) is a public land-grant research university in Storrs, Connecticut, a village in the town of Mansfield. The primary 4,400-acre (17.8 km2) campus is in Storrs, approximately a half hour's drive from Hart ...

from 1969 to 1996 and is credited with transforming UConn's struggling soccer program into one of the nation's best. Morrone won the 1981 NCAA Division I Men's Soccer Championship at UConn. From 1981 to 1983, his teams reached the Final Four three times. His teams reached the NCAA tournament 16 out of the past 18 years he coached there. Despite this success, from 1989 to 1996, his teams failed to reach the NCAA tournament, and he was asked to step down. He was replaced by another coaching legend,

Ray Reid Raymond Michael "Ray" Reid (born May 8, 1960 in Brentwood, New York) is a retired American college soccer coach. He was head coach at the University of Connecticut Huskies men's soccer team for 24 years. He has led UConn to one NCAA Division I ...

. UConn's soccer stadium,

Morrone Stadium Morrone Stadium, officially known as Ray Reid Field at Joseph J. Morrone Stadium is the on-campus soccer stadium at University of Connecticut in Storrs, Connecticut. The 5,100-seat stadium was built in 1969. and has undergone many renovations si ...

, is named after him. His career coaching record stands at 422-199-64. Morrone died on September 16, 2015, at the age of 79 from pancreatic cancer.

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*http://www.nytimes.com/1997/01/26/nyregion/the-troubling-retirement-of-a-soccer-coach.html 1935 births 2015 deaths UConn Huskies men's soccer coaches Sportspeople from Worcester, Massachusetts UMass Minutemen ice hockey players UMass Minutemen lacrosse players UMass Minutemen soccer players Worcester State University alumni Men's association football players not categorized by position American soccer coaches American men's soccer players {{US-footy-bio-stub