Dean Duerst has not come a long way. That’s not to say the winningest coach in UW women’s soccer history hasn’t accomplished a lot, because he has. By posting his 109th career win this past Tuesday against in-state rival Marquette, Duerst surpassed former coach Greg Ryan and added another milestone to an already illustrious career. But as impressive as that is, you might find it surprising that Duerst has been in Madison for not only those 109 wins, but for countless others.
It could be said that Dean Duerst is a bit of a “throw-back,” considering that in today’s trend of frequent coaching changes, he has spent his entire career in one place. How many other people can say they coach big-time athletics no more than ten minutes from where they graduated high school, five minutes from where they graduated college, and an hour away from where they played professionally? Only one name comes to mind.
After donning the cap and gown of Madison Memorial High School, Dean Duerst came to the University of Wisconsin and starred on its men’s soccer team in 1982-1983, earning All-American honors. He briefly left Mad-town to play two years of professional soccer for the Milwaukee Wave, but soon heeded the call of home and returned to Madison, where he learned the ropes as a Badger assistant to former women’s soccer coach Greg Ryan. For seven years, Ryan served as a mentor to his eventual replacement, teaching Duerst how to make the transition from player to coach.
“I learned a lot early on from Greg,” Duerst said. “He taught me to create the team that I wanted. To make sure that my philosophy fit my team.”
Once Duerst took over the head coaching reins in 1994, he never looked back. In ten years, he has produced one Big Ten title, three runner-up finishes, and six NCAA tournament appearances. Coming off a strong finish last year and playing the role of host for this year’s Big Ten tournament could lead to a few more accolades for the women’s squad. Senior mid-fielder Jenny Kundert agrees with the “bright Badger future.”
“He’ll be here until he gets 1,000 [wins],” predicted Kundert. “He’ll be 70 before he’s done here.”
Coach Duerst is a little more modest in his own prediction.
“I don’t know about 1,000,” laughed Duerst. “I might be able to notch that many if you include every single game I’ve been a part of — coaching and playing. I’m still pretty young, but I’d be better off shooting for 150 and building from there. 300 would be something to shoot for, but I’m going to take it one goal and one game at a time.”
By focusing solely on his remarkable stats, it’s easy to paint a picture of Duerst as a coach driven to notch the next win or climb the record books, but what is often overlooked is his lighter side. Throughout his coaching career he has been known to do some unorthodox things, all in the name of developing team unity and making his players more at ease with both their coach and each other.
“He’s a great coach, but a crazy guy,” commented Kundert. “He imitates those Saturday Night Live cheerleaders before our games. I guess you could say he does a really good job of keeping us loose.”
When asked about his pre-game ritual, Duerst grinned and replied, “You’d have to ask the players.”
After all those years as a Badger, one has to admire a guy who still has some of that Madison Memorial High School “Spartan Pride” left.
