Men's Soccer
- Title:
- Assistant Coach
Former UCLA All-American Leonard Griffin enters his second season as UCLA's assistant coach in 2015. Last year, Griffin helped the Bruins tally a 14-5-5 overall record and a 6-2-2 conference record. His on-field work with the players was an integral part of team reaching the College Cup final a season ago.
Griffin actively contributes to various aspects of the soccer program including recruiting, camp development, fundraising, team academics and day-to-day field training.
Prior to joining the UCLA staff, Griffin spent one season as an assistant coach at California and three seasons as an assistant at Saint Mary's.
Griffin joined the California men's soccer staff as an assistant in May of 2013, helping the Golden Bears to an appearance in the NCAA Quarterfinals. He spent the previous three seasons as an assistant coach at Saint Mary's under head coach and fellow UCLA alum Adam Cooper, helping the Gaels reach the NCAA Quarterfinals in 2011. Additionally, he spent three seasons as an assistant coach at Cal State San Bernardino prior to coaching at Saint Mary's.
Griffin was a four-year standout at UCLA from 2000-2003, leading the Bruins to their fourth NCAA title in program history in 2002 and earning All-America honors in 2003. In his collegiate career, Griffin played in 89 matches, scoring two goals and recording seven assists (11 points). He played under current head coach Jorge Salcedo in from 2001-2003 when Salcedo was an assistant coach for the Bruins.
Following his UCLA career, Griffin was drafted in the second round of the 2004 MLS Draft by the Chicago Fire. He spent six seasons in MLS, playing with Chicago (2004-06), the Columbus Crew (2007-08) and the Los Angeles Galaxy (2009). Griffin has also played professionally with the Los Angeles Blues, a USL professional team, as well as the Portland Timbers when they were a part of the USL.
