Tim Barrera Position: Head Coach (9th season) Alma Mater: Virginia Tech, 1986

With the transition to both a new facility (Jackson Sports Complex) and a new conference (Big Sky) now complete, the 2007 season should be a more consistent one for University of Northern Colorado head coach Tim Barrera.

Barrera, the winningest coach in program history, starts his ninth season with the team in 2007, which is also the program's second in the Big Sky Conference. Barrera, who led the Bears to back-to-back NCAA Tournaments at the Division II level, helped the Bears through the reclassification process, which the athletic department completed prior to the 2007 school year.

In the three years of the transition, the Bears took some lumps against top Division I competition with a roster that featured mainly freshmen and sophomores as the program continued to build for a potential NCAA Tournament berth this season (the first year they are eligible for NCAA postseason). In 2003, the first full Division I schedule for the program since 1989 (the program competed as a D-I from 1985-89), the Bears jumped right into the fire, playing 11 of their 16 matches against Division I teams and compiling a 6-9-1 record, the first losing season for the program in 10 years, as the team played only two home matches. During that long season Northern Colorado did defeat Valparaiso 2-1 (Sept. 5), marking the program's first victory over a Division I opponent since topping Creighton 4-0 on Oct. 16, 1989.

In 2004, the team played all 18 of its regular season matches against Division I teams in finishing with a 3-13-2 mark. Of those 18 opponents, seven were ranked in the top-100 of the power rankings according to SoccerRatings.com while 15 of the 18 ranked in the top-200 of the rankings (out of 306 total teams). The Bears strength of schedule commanded a power ranking of 1455, which was higher and more difficult than any team from the Big Sky Conference. The team's final victory of the season, a 2-1 overtime win over rival North Dakota State to win the Best Western Regency Northern Colorado Classic, was Barrera's 125th victory as a college head coach.

In 2005, the program did well against another tough schedule, as the Bears finished the year 7-9-2, including winning four of its final six games of the season. Along the way then freshman Jessica Zimmerman garnered Division I Independent Offensive Player of the Year honors after scoring nine goals, adding nine assists and tallying 27 total points in her rookie campaign.

The 2006 season was a season of firsts as the Bears became official members of the Big Sky conference, while also moving their home games to the newly renovated Jackson Soccer Stadium. The Bears had a respectable season going 6-12 and 2-5 in the first year in a new conference. Barrera picked up the 75th win of his Northern Colorado coaching career in the 1-0 win over Air Force Academy (Sept. 5). Then junior Marika Johnson led the Bears offense with seven goals and 16 points and was a second-team All-Big Sky selection.

Overall, Barrera has compiled a 78-63-6 (.551) record in his first eight seasons as Northern Colorado's head coach. In that time, he led the team to a pair of North Central Conference Championships (1999 and 2001) and a pair of Division II NCAA Tournament berths (2001 and 2002). His Bears squads have also won six NSCAA Team Academic awards and four NSCAA Team Ethics awards, set or tied 15 school records and won 13 or more games four times.

Barrera led the 2001 squad to the program's first NCAA Tournament victory with a 2-1 win over Winona State in the first round of the NCAA Central Regional in Winona, Minn. (Nov. 7). Northern Colorado, the 2001 NCC co-champions, then lost a 1-0 match at Truman State in the Sweet 16 and finished the season ranked No. 15 nationally. It was also during 2001 that Barrera won his 100th career match, doing so in a 3-2 victory over NCC rival Nebraska-Omaha (Oct. 13).

In 2002, UNC was the only school to qualify for the national tournament and win the NSCAA Team Academic and Team Ethics silver awards. That same year, the Bears played host to a NCAA Tournament game for the first time in school history, losing a hard-fought 1-0 match to Truman State and finishing the year with a No. 23 national ranking. With the final victory of that season, a 4-1 win over North Dakota (Oct. 26), Barrera recorded his 56th victory as Bears head coach to become the winningest coach in program history (passing the 55 wins by Dana Kusjanovic from 1994-98).

In his first year (1999) at the helm of the Bears' program, Barrera guided the team to the North Central Conference Championship, a 15-3 overall record, No. 19 national ranking and a first place ranking in the Great Plains regional poll. He was named NCC Coach of the Year for his efforts.

In total, Barrera has coached 13 all-region and 43 all-conference selections at Northern Colorado. Nineteen times his athletes have been named academic all-conference and seven athletes have garnered CoSIDA Academic All-District honors. Barrera helped Mandy Nilsen become a two-time All-American (1999 and 2001) at Northern Colorado. In 2001, she was the only Division II athlete to make the National Soccer Coaches Association of America (NSCAA)/Adidas All-American Scholar first-team and she graduated from Northern Colorado that year holding virtually every Bears scoring record.

Overall, in 14 years as a head coach Barrera has compiled a record of 138-107-9 (.563).

Before joining the Northern Colorado staff, Barrera served as head coach at Elmira College in Elmira, N.Y. In five years at the school, he led the Soaring Eagles to five consecutive winning seasons, posting a 58-31-3 (.647) record overall. During Barrera's tenure, Elmira earned its first NCAA and Eastern Collegiate Athletic Conference (ECAC) postseason appearances (1997 and 1998). In the process, Barrera produced six NSCAA Regional All-American performers and six NSCAA All-Academic Scholars, while his squads received team academic and ethics awards from the NSCAA in 1997 and 1998. While at Elmira, Barrera was also active in the governance of collegiate women's soccer, as he served as the chairman of the New York State Women's Collegiate Athletics Association (NYSWCAA) Soccer Committee. He was also a member of the New York Regional Ranking Committee.

Prior to arriving at Elmira, Barrera spent one year (1993) as head women's coach at Wilkes University in Wilkes-Barre, Pa., one year as director of player development at the Northeast Attack Soccer Club (in Wilkes-Barre) and one year as a student assistant coach at Virginia Tech. He holds a B License from the United States Soccer Federation (USSF) and a premier diploma from the NSCAA.

Barrera earned a bachelor's degree from Virginia Tech in 1986. While at Virginia Tech, he was a four-year starter (1981-84) and graduated as the program's all-time leading scorer (19 goals); entering 2006 season he ranked in a tie for 10th all-time. He was named to the Virginia All-State team as a senior (1984) and was also honored as the team's most valuable player after helping the Hokies to an 8-8-2 record under legendary coach Jerry Cheynet (238 career wins). Barrera received his master's degree from Elmira in 1998.

Barrera was born in Ithaca, N.Y., but raised in Freehold, N.J., the same hometown as New Jersey's most famous musical resident, Bruce Springsteen.

Barrera, who serves as the director of all Northern Colorado soccer camps, enjoys running marathons in his spare time. He also works with the Northern Colorado Soccer Club and is a member of the Colorado State Youth Soccer Association (CSYSA) State Olympic Development Program staff, serving as the 1991 age group head coach in 2007.