TAMPA, Fla. — USF women's soccer head coach Denise Schilte-Brown is one of the most successful coaches in the Bulls athletic department. She's guided her teams to three American Athletic Conference regular season titles and three tournament crowns. She's also led them to eight NCAA tournament appearances. But the upcoming 2023 season- which will be her 17th at USF- will be her last.
Schilte-Brown accepted the head coaching position for Tampa's newest professional team. The USL Super League is scheduled to begin play in August of 2024. Tampa Bay was awarded one of the inaugural franchises, and Schilte-Brown was named head coach on July 15.
"It's incredible," she beamed when describing her new opportunity. "Fundamentally, what every coach wants to do is build. We want to build programs. We want to win. We want to continue to grow. And to be on the ground floor of this, with a new stadium… we’re gonna name the team. It’s gonna be the first players ever to take the pitch. It’s really an honor."
Team president Christina Unkel said there couldn't have been a better fit for this particular franchise.
"Seeing the types of players and dynamics and how they overcome adversity and how they’ve won and how they’ve lost. Her philosophy on the field. We’re definitely blessed," Unkel said via video chat. "Everything’s aligning, and it’s an incredible feeling."
The Tampa Bay team, which is still waiting on a name, pulls a chair right next to an area that includes several successful professional teams. Schilte-Brown said she can't wait to be part of the same sports community.
"Can you imagine being in the same sentence as the Lightning, and the Rowdies, and the Bucs? So it’s going to be pretty amazing," she said.
"We all support one another. It’s not about territorial fights," Unkel added. "Knowing that they also give back to the community, and it’s a relationship. It’s going to be incredible to deal with that group."
Schilte-Brown said she's still very excited to have one more run with the Bulls in 2023. She said both USF and the USL Super League made the upcoming transition easy, so she can focus on the task at hand.
"I have a phenomenal boss here," Denise said when referring to USF Vice President for Athletics Michael Kelly. "He believes in me and trusts me, and I want to honor that trust and support that he’s given me and make this the best season we’ve ever had at USF."
"We are saddened by Denise's departure from the USF program but also excited for her tremendous opportunity to coach the first women's professional soccer team in the Bay area," Kelly said in a statement last week. "We thank Denise for her tremendous service to the University of South Florida and look forward with great optimism to her final season at the helm. She will be greatly missed, but we are also excited to see her flourish in the professional ranks right here in Tampa Bay."
USF opens the 2023 schedule when they host Jacksonville for an exhibition game on Saturday, Aug. 5.
