John Bluem – Ohio State Buckeyes

This fall, the Ohio State Athletics Hall of Fame inducted 15 new members, including former men’s soccer coach John Bluem.

Bluem is the most accomplished men’s soccer coach in Ohio State history. In 21 seasons in Columbus, Bluem guided the Buckeyes to 206 wins and five Big Ten championships. During his tenure, Ohio State appeared in the NCAA Tournament 10 times and advanced to the College Cup finals in 2007.

In 27 seasons as a college head coach, his teams won 292matches and advanced to the NCAA tournament 14 times. The Big Ten Conference named Bluem its coach of the year four times, giving him a total of seven conference coach of the year accolades. He won the honor three times while at Fresno State (1991-96).

Not only were Bluem’s teams successful on the pitch, they were equally as productive in the classroom and community. During his tenure, four Buckeyes were named All-Americans, two earned Senior CLASS Awards, six were Big Ten Distinguished Scholars, 31 earned First Team All-Big Ten honors, 191 were Academic All-Big Ten honorees and 17 were Major League Soccer Draft Picks.

Bluem attended Hartwick College in New York. While there the team made three trips to the NCAA Championships, advancing to the final four in 1974. The Hartwick Hall of Famer (Class of 2002) was drafted by the Tampa Bay Rowdies, who won the 1975 Soccer Bowl.