CHARLOTTE, N.C.— Former Montreat men's soccer head coach Jamath Shoffner made his debut on the coaching staff of a squad in the United States' top soccer division, Major League Soccer, as recently announced by Charlotte FC. Shoffner was named an interim assistant coach by the MLS club late last week and will remain on the coaching staff for the remainder of the 2022 season.
 
Shoffner joined interim head coach Christian Lattanzio, interim assistant coach Andy Quy and interim goalkeeping coach Brian Edwards on the first team coaching staff for the Charlotte club. Since Shoffner's hiring, Charlotte FC holds a 1-0 record, defeating the New York Red Bulls by a score of 2-0 on Saturday. The team currently sits in a playoff spot—tied for sixth in the eastern conference and 13^th overall in the MLS with 19 points (6-8-1).
 
Shoffner came to the Cavaliers in 2004, acting as an assistant coach for the year prior to his promotion to head coach of the program. The Greensboro, N.C. native spent a pair of seasons as head coach at Montreat, amassing a 22-13-3 overall record during his tenure. In 2006, Shoffner led the Cavs to a 15-4-1 record and their first-ever trip to the NAIA National Tournament. Due to his success in '06, he captured the Appalachian Athletic Conference (AAC) Coach of the Year honor.
 
While playing collegiately as a two-year team captain and four-year starter at the University of North Carolina-Charlotte in the late 1990s, Shoffner collected a trio of All-Conference USA awards as well as UNC-Charlotte Player of the Year recognition in 1999. Shoffner finished his collegiate career in the top 10 in assists in Charlotte history.
 
Following his career at Charlotte, Shoffner played professionally in Europe for three years, including time with Shelbourne Football Club and Borussia-Neunkirchen. Shoffner's journey also involved playing with the Carolina Dynamo and Virginia Beach Mariners. After his stint with Montreat from 2004-2006, he resumed his professional soccer career in Luxembourg with Avenir Beggen Football Club prior to three years with UN Kaerjeng Football Club where he started in the 2009 UEFA Cup and Europa League Qualifiers.

Shoffner returned to the coaching realm as head coach at Wayland Baptist University in 2011. He spent three seasons with the Pioneers, leading WBU to a 32-16-7 record throughout his time at the school. Over the three years, Shoffner saw his players amass five major Sooner Athletic Conference (SAC) awards, 11 All-SAC selections, a pair of NAIA Honorable Mention All-Americans and a CoSIDA Capital One Academic All-District Team placement.
 
After his collegiate coaching career, Shoffner started coaching in the Luxembourg national system, where he progressed through the ranks from the youth team to the senior national team. While with the senior team, Shoffner helped his club secure the country's highest FIFA Ranking at the time amidst the World Cup Qualifying Cycle.
 
He then returned to the United States to take part in coaching the U.S. youth national soccer teams, eventually guiding the U-20 squad to the quarterfinals of the 2019 U-20 World Cup.
 
Charlotte FC, which was founded in December 2019, began its inaugural season in the MLS in 2022. The team plays its home games at Bank of America Stadium, home of the Carolina Panthers, and continues its season with a match at the Columbus Crew on Saturday.
 
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