Former TU soccer coach has thrived at Saint Francis

By Charles Whiting
Baltimore Watchdog Staff Writer

Frank Olszewski made a habit of winning as the head coach of Towson University men’s soccer, 326 wins to be exact. Nine years after the program was disbanded, Olszewski’s still got it.

Olszewski, 64, is at Saint Francis University in Loretto, Pennsylvania, 191 miles from Towson. He is the head coach for NCAA Division I men’s soccer program Saint Francis Red Flash.

Olszewski is in his fourth year as head coach of the Red Flash, but COVID-19 has allowed him to coach only two seasons worth of games. His arrival in 2018 made an instant impact.

“The year before I got here, they hadn’t made the conference playoffs,” Olszewski said. “We finished second, one point out of first, my first year and then we finished at the top of the league my second year.”

Olszewski has led the Red Flash to a 12-3-2 conference record over the past two seasons.

Even with the success he’s had post-Towson, nothing can take away the 30 years he spent as a Tiger.

A Baltimore native, Olszewski landed his first ever coaching gig in 1978 at Towson while he was working on his graduate studies at the university. His former high school soccer coach, Richard Bartos, was Towson’s head coach at the time and asked Olszewski to join his coaching staff as an assistant coach.

Bartos died from acute leukemia at the age of 35. Olszewski took over as the head coach in 1982 when he was 26-years-old.

“It was under unfortunate circumstances,” Olszewski said. “He was my high school coach, so we had a long history together. He was a mentor in a lot of different ways.”

The guidance he received from Bartos at a young age would end up paying off as he would go on to have a long 30-year coaching career at Towson.

Coaching is more than just about wins for Olszewski. He said genuinely cares for every player he coaches.

“I enjoy every aspect of coaching,” Olszewski said. “Working with the players from the beginning, pushing them, putting an arm around them, and getting them comfortable with being uncomfortable, because that’s what happens in the game and in life.”

Soccer was one of the premier sports at Towson while he was coaching there.

“It was a pretty loyal and hearty following,” Olszewski said. “We’d play local rivalry games and get like 1,500 fans that came out to the game.”

That “loyal and hearty following” would fully support the team when things began to turn sour for the men’s soccer program.

In 2012 on a Tuesday morning at 6 a.m., Olszewski received a phone call telling him to come to the university for a special announcement.

“It was totally out of the blue, totally blind sighted,” Olszewski said. “I thought that it wasn’t going to be good because I’ve never had a phone call like that.”

The president of Towson announced to the team that the Towson men’s soccer program was going to be dismantled.

Olszewski and his players had a moment of anger and being upset after hearing the news. But he quickly turned his focus to the game that was slated for the following day.

“You’re angry at everything,” Olszewski said, “but you compartmentalize it because you’ve got other things that are more pressing and more prioritizing.”

When the Tigers faced off against the Delaware Blue Hens, the players covered up the Tigers graphic on the back of their jerseys with duct tape and replaced it with the word family written in Sharpie.

“The game was up at Delaware and I still remember going around and picking up the duct tape off of the field because the tape fell off from the players sweating and I didn’t want to keep the litter out there,” Olszewski said.

The Tigers won that game against the Blue Hens 3-2.

“How they won that, I don’t even know,” Olszewski said. “They were playing on pure emotion. It was almost surreal in a way because you’re still kind of stunned from the announcement.”

Reality set in for the Tigers afterwards. They tried all that they could to save the program.

The school took part in town hall meetings. Fans were waving posters at Towson games, even MLS team DC United had fans that were holding banners at DC United games in support of Towson men’s soccer.

The case to save the men’s soccer program carried over into the spring semester and got so political that it went all the way to the state legislature. Martin O’Malley, former governor of Maryland, did find money that could have saved the soccer program. It was ultimately given to save Towson University’s baseball team, which was also at risk of being dismantled.

The program was cut due to finances and the school wanting to move the men’s soccer budget to other programs.

“My initial reaction was hurt and frustration,” said Billy Chiles, former Towson men’s soccer goalkeeper and assistant coach, and current assistant coach for George Mason men’s soccer. “But not solely for me. But for all of the players, parents and alumni. Having played at Towson and coached there I can honestly say some of my most memorable experiences were playing for Coach O and being a Tiger.”

Olszewski finished his run as head coach for the Tigers with a record of 326-216-61. He led the Tigers to seven conference championships and was a four-time League Coach of the Year.

“He’s remained successful coaching for so long because of his passion and love for soccer,” said former Towson men’s soccer midfielder and current varsity soccer head coach at Archbishop Curley. “He really is a student of the game in that he’s always analyzing matches, players, other coaches, etc. to keep up with the ongoing changes in the sport. The players liked playing for him. He also allowed us to have fun and many times was a part of it.”

After the team was disbanded, Olszewski said that he doesn’t have any hard feelings toward anyone in particular.

“It wasn’t like the department wanted the program to go,” Olszewski said. “I didn’t have enough time for hating or anger. That wasn’t going to help anything. It was a matter of let’s pick up the pieces, say our goodbyes and move on.”

After Towson, Olszewski joined Davis & Elkins College as head coach of the Senators men’s soccer program for the 2016 and 2017 seasons. He turned the program into a strong Division II team, finishing with an overall record of 24-7-7. He was named the 2016 G-MAC Coach of the Year and led the Senators to the NCAA Tournament in 2017.

When the position opened at Saint Francis, Olszewski jumped at the opportunity to coach a Division I soccer program once again. He’s now enjoying the feeling of community that the small campus brings.

“I can go for a walk after practice and I’m running into the president of the school and we’re having a conversation,” Olszewski said.

It never crossed Olszewski’s mind to stop coaching after Towson disbanded its men’s soccer program. He now ranks 14th among Division I active coaches in number of wins, 35th all-time.

“I’ve always lived by you give everything you can every day,” Olszewski said. “In everything you’re doing you give everything you can, whatever’s on the plate that day, and then you go to sleep with no regrets. It’s hard work, but if you’re enjoying it, it’s not work.”