In the world of competitive soccer, the spotlight is always on the players of the team, but behind all great teams is a competitive, strategic and passionate coach who leads the way. For the West High boys’ soccer team, it’s Brad Stiles. 

Growing up, Stiles was an avid soccer player, where he started playing U11 club. He continued his soccer career through college, where he played Division three soccer at Coe College in Cedar Rapids. In college, he began his coaching career.

While playing on the Kohawk soccer team as a senior, Stiles coached the girls’ junior varsity soccer team at Cedar Rapids Washington. After college and coaching in Cedar Rapids, in 2000, Stiles coached the boys’ freshman/sophomore team here at West High, as well as becoming a study hall teacher. 

“As a study hall teacher, it gave me a lot of time to hone my craft by reading and watching to make my mark on the program,” Stiles remarked.

Just that next spring, Stiles was named the boys’ varsity head coach. As the new coach, Stiles had a job to do in setting the standard for West boys’ soccer. 

In the years before Stiles, the soccer team had been to the state tournament just twice. The first time they made it, they placed third in the 1997 season. The second time came in Stiles’s first year at West, where they won the state title in the 2000 season under Matt Wilkerson. 

Being named a head coach the year after a team wins a state championship is no easy task for a coach. For Stiles, his goal as the new coach was to continue the traditions set by the previous year’s team: winning. 

As the new head coach of the Trojans, Stiles would turn the team into an annual powerhouse, becoming one of the most dominant coaches in Iowa soccer history. 

In just his third year as head coach, Stiles led the Trojans to the state championship. Stiles and the players went on to beat a very good Sioux City North team by a score of 3-0, shutting the Stars out. This game would be the first of many state title games for Coach Stiles.

The very next year, the Trojans found themselves in the same game. This time against the Bulldogs of Bettendorf. The Trojans would fall just short of taking home hardware that year but would be back the following season for vengeance. 

In 2005, the West boys and Stiles were in the exact same spot as the previous year: the state title game with the season on the line, going against Bettendorf. This time, the Trojans would come up victorious, beating the Bulldogs in a tight game 1-0.

It would be a couple of years after that state title win for the boys soccer team to come back home with a win. But just like that had in years prior, Stiles and the players would come up victorious again in 2009, taking down Ames in a 3-2 shootout. 

The next season was no different. Stiles had brought the team right back to where they had been so many times before. This time, though, it would be against crosstown rival City High. In Stiles’ fourth state title win, the Trojans took down the Little Hawks 3-1.

In 2012, the start of something miraculous would begin. The stretch of seasons from 2012 to 2014 would be nothing less than 3 straight title wins. The Trojans were at their peak, winning three back-to-back championships and giving Stiles his fifth, sixth and seventh state title wins. 

Most recently, Stiles won his eighth state championship in 2017. Leading the way, Stiles and the players overcame Dowling Catholic, beating them 1-0 and tying him for the most state title games won in Iowa history with Regina Catholic’s Rick Larew. 

Stiles remains the head coach at West. He has led the team to the state tournament 22 out of 23 seasons, 14 of which were in the state title match. Stiles was also recently named one of the top coaches of the century by KGAN.

Stiles hasn’t just created a soccer powerhouse at West; he has also created a culture on the team that is unlike any other—a culture built on passion, dedication and leadership led by none other than himself. 

His impact goes beyond the times he’s been in the state tournament or the number of titles he has under his belt. He has transformed the program and put Iowa City West boys soccer on the map, making them one of the most respected programs in the state.