Loyola University Chicago Athletics

Steve Bode enters his fourth season as head coach of the men's soccer program at Loyola University Chicago in 2025.

The Ramblers kicked off the 2024 season by making history, competing in the first Jesuit Invitational since 2005. The tournament’s revival allowed Loyola Chicago to honor its past while ushering in a new era of Jesuit competition. The Maroon and Gold then earned a 4-2 victory over Wright State in the home opener and went on to win four of its final five regular-season matches. At season’s end, Luka Ivancic and Hugo Urdiales earned spots on the All-Rookie Team, while Julian Cisneros was named to the All-Conference Second Team. Six Ramblers garnered College Sports Communicators Academic All-District honors for the second time in three years, a program record. 

In the offseason, Grant Bailey became the fifth Rambler selected in the MLS SuperDraft, picked 86th overall by D.C. United. Likewise, Cisneros and Marc Torrellas signed professional contracts with FC Naples in USL League One. Additionally, the team took a 10-day trip to Italy over spring break, where they bonded, immersed themselves in culture, and defeated two Serie D teams.

Bode guided the Ramblers to an 8-2-5 overall record and a 4-1-3 mark in A-10 play in 2023. Behind multiple sellout crowds, Loyola Chicago was 4-2-2 in matches played at Hoyne Field, including a win over No. 25 Saint Louis. More impressively though and for the first time since 2000, Loyola ended the season undefeated in road contests, going 4-0-3 outside of Rogers Park. The Ramblers earned the No. 3 seed in the Atlantic 10 Tournament and the right to host the first round after beating Fordham, 1-0. LUC's 15 league points were an improvement from 2022 when the team ended with 12. Loyola Chicago out-shot its opponents, 242-127, and won the shot battle in all but two matchups. 

The Ramblers ended the year with four A-10 Player of the Week nods and led the league in scoring margin, points per game, goals per game, assists per game and goals against average. Aidan Crawford was named the A-10 Goalkeeper of the Year and to the All-Conference First Team along with his teammate, Torrellas. Oscar Dueso logged Second Team accolades while Petar Janjic, Noel Hansson, and Crawford were tabbed to the All-Rookie Team. Four student-athletes landed on the College Sports Communicators Academic All-District Team, including Marc Torrellas, who earned First Team Academic All-American accolades through the organization. Additionally, Torrellas logged a United Soccer Coaches All-Southeast Region First Team plaudit while Aidan Crawford and Cisneros were tabbed to the Third Team.

In just his first season at the helm (2022), Bode piloted the team to A10 Tournament runner-up status after an impressive 9-2-7 overall record and a 3-2-3 mark in league action. Along with being undefeated at home, Loyola had an unbeaten streak of eight games from Oct. 5 – Nov. 9. Bode’s tenure commenced with a bang as the team notched its third 2-0 start to a season in the last four years after beating No. 25 Bowling Green State University at home. The recorded attendance of 1,163 fans was the highest ever in the history of Loyola Soccer Park, in addition to the most students in attendance with 983.

With an emphasis of hard work and determination both on and off the pitch, Bode mentored six College Sports Communicators Academic All-District honorees as well as a pair of Academic All-Americans® in Billy Hency (First Team) and Simon Jillson (Second Team). Additionally, Hency and Torrellas were both named Scholar All-Americans and All-Southeast Region performers by United Soccer Coaches (USC) upon conclusion of the 2022 campaign. After being named the A-10 Midfielder of the Year, Hency was selected by Chicago Fire FC in the third round (67th overall) of the 2022 Major League Soccer SuperDraft to put an exclamation point on Bode’s first season as head coach. 

Bode came back to Loyola after spending two seasons as an assistant coach for the women's soccer program at Marquette University. During his time with the Golden Eagles, he helped the team rebuild confidence and performance following the canceled COVID season in 2020. His squads went 15-12 overall and 9-9 in Big East play, with four players receiving All-Big East accolades.
 
Prior to his time in Milwaukee, Bode spent the 2019 season as an assistant coach at Loyola. While he was in Rogers Park, he was an instrumental part of the team's success as they won the 2019 Missouri Valley Conference Championship and earned the program's fifth bid to the NCAA Tournament. He also has experience with the men's soccer programs at both Brown University and Marquette University, working at each institution as an assistant coach. 
 
Along with his collegiate career, Bode has coached at the professional level. He served as the head coach for the Chicago FC United in the United Soccer Leagues, where he led the team to a Central Conference championship and a top-four finish in the league. During that time, he had several players move up to the MLS ranks. Bode is also a staff coach for the United States Soccer Federation Youth National Team. 
 
Prior to his coaching career, Bode played for the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, serving as team captain for three seasons and twice earning Most Valuable Player honors. He earned multiple All-Horizon League honors, and also garnered CoSIDA Academic All-America Third Team honors. Following his illustrious career, he was drafted by the Chicago Fire in 2008, where he played a season on their reserve team. 
 
He received his bachelor's degree in psychology from Wisconsin-Milwaukee in 2007 and his master's degree in educational policy and leadership from Marquette in 2011.