Rutgers women’s soccer adds Jonah Silk as Director of Operations
PISCATAWAY, N.J. (Via Rutgers University) – Rutgers women’s soccer announced Wednesday the addition of Jonah Silk to its coaching staff as volunteer director of soccer operations.
A men’s soccer alumnus of Drew University, Silk has coached at the scholastic and club level for the past six years, most recently for nationally renowned Player Development Academy (PDA) in Zarepath, New Jersey.
“We are very excited to welcome Jonah Silk to our staff. His experience and passion for the game make him a great fit for our program as we continue to compete for championships,” said head coach Mike O’Neill. “I want to thank Rich Alberto for his hard work and dedication to Rutgers over the past three years. Rich is Rutgers through and through and will always be a part of the Rutgers women’s soccer family. We wish him the best in his future endeavors.”
“As a son of someone who attended a Big Ten university, I’ve grown up admiring Big Ten athletics,” Silk said. “I’ve wanted to play and then coach at such a high level of talent, commitment and work rate. The Rutgers women’s soccer staff has already served as role models for me in my young coaching career. Joining Rutgers is a dream come true and an obvious step for me. There is an element of family on this staff that makes it more than just a team playing a game, and soccer has always been more than a game for me; it teaches life lessons and an identity. I know that feeling is shared with this group of players and coaches. I’m thrilled with the opportunity to be part of one of the best soccer programs in the country.”
A USSF “E” licensed coach with a National Soccer Coaches Association of America (NSCAA) certificate, Silk’s journey began in 2011 as an assistant coach at the Oak Knoll Scholl of the Holy Child in Summit, New Jersey. Following the school’s first New Jersey Non-Public Group B Girls State title in 2011, Silk was promoted to head coach and sustained the success of the program. From 2012-2015, Silk guided Oak Knoll to a Union County Mountain Division Championship and an appearance in the Non-Public A North State championship, earning the title of Union County Coach of the Year in 2014 by NJ.com.
On the club circuit Silk has gained years of experience at PDA and the Wolves Soccer Academy LLC. As president and director of program development at Wolves Soccer Academy for three years, Silk founded a soccer training and recruitment service and created a curriculum for training across multiple ages and abilities, in addition to many other contributions.
Silk returned to his coaching roots with PDA over the last three years, serving as the head coach of PDA U-10 Wolves and the U-12 Zizou, an assistant on the U-17 NPL Blues, and as PDA’s international coordinator.
As a player at Drew University from 2007-10, Silk helped the team to a 27-2-1 home record, national ranking and NCAA Division III Tournament berth. Drew won the Landmark Conference and captured an ECAC Metro Championship in 2009, as Silk paced the squad in points that season and scored the game-winning goal in both clinching matches. Silk ventured overseas in 2011 and trialed professionally in Northern Sweden with Falu FK and Kvarnsveden FC in the Swedish 2nd Division, and IK Brage in the Swedish 1st Division.
Silk graduated from Drew University in 2010 with a Bachelor of Arts in political science.
