Tony Minatta has always been quick to move up in the ranks.

From the business world to the Marines, he was promoted to higher ranking positions quicker than he could settle down.

Two years after being hired as an ISU assistant soccer coach, he may have outdone himself after being promoted to head coach on Dec. 5. In the coming weeks, he will be interviewing possible candidates for a second assistant coaching job after being on the other end of the interview just a short time ago.

“I can’t believe that — it’s kind of a meteoric rise in the college coaching world, but for me personally, it has happened in previous positions,” Minatta said. “I’m surprised that it happened this quick, but it’s something I’ve worked hard for.”

Minatta waited about a month to hear the verdict on his application to become the head coach of the Cyclones, and the former Marine was prepared to hear either answer. After coaching the team on an interim basis in the team’s first Big 12 Championship appearance since 2007, he walked into his office in the Jacobson Athletic Building and started to pack his stuff.

But this wasn’t him throwing in the towel, it’s just how he works. His Marine background has him organized and prepared for anything, and packing up and getting organized was the first thing he wanted to do, whether it was leaving for good or heading into the head coach’s office.

Minatta was at the airport with fellow assistant Jason Wichman ready to take off for a recruiting trip to Raleigh, N.C., when he received the email announcing his hiring. After a quick tweet expressing his excitement, he was off on his first recruiting trip as head coach to watch players from nearly 300 teams in a showcase tournament.

Smells Like Team Spirit

As the team returned home from a disappointing 1-0 loss to Baylor in a cold Big 12 tournament game, there were plenty of unanswered questions waiting to be answered. The biggest question on the players’ minds was, “Who is going to be our coach?”

As the players talked amongst each other, there was no hiding who they wanted: Tony Minatta. After all, they hadn’t reached a Big 12 tournament until Minatta had been hired onto the recent coaching staff and many players had developed strong relationships with the assistant.

“I know some of our freshmen went in and talked to [associate athletics director] Calli Sanders and just wanted to emphasize how they felt [about Minatta],” said junior forward Hayley Womack. “We each had our end-of-the-season meeting with Tony as well and it was nice that he was able to communicate with us well through the whole process.”

Minatta’s relationship with players plays a key role in not only team unity, but in recruiting. Six current players played under Minatta in club or Olympic Development League soccer in Colorado. His connections through coaching a large pool of players in Fort Collins, Colo., will serve as a recruiting tool that many schools don’t have.

Some current players have known Minatta for four or more years despite only playing for Iowa State one or two years. That bond has made for a smoother transition into being a head coach, and the players couldn’t be happier.

“When we got the text to look at and open our emails, I’m pretty sure my phone blew up about 50 times because everyone was so excited and we were so overwhelmed with joy,” Womack said. “It was an answer to all of our uncertainty.”

Marine Mentality

When any team moves forward with a new head coach, changes are to be expected, but there won’t be drastic new formations or position changes that could slow down progress. Instead, Minatta plans to overhaul how practices and training are run.

“It’s going to be very structured, organized and consistent with what we are doing in training,” Minatta said. “We are going to have a specific starting point and end point. … It wasn’t as planned out [in years past] and that’s not my style.”

His style is that of a drill sergeant’s, planning everything out intricately so there is no lapse in focus or progress. With a Navy Achievement Medal for outstanding leadership during overseas deployment in 1996, there is little doubt he’s willing to take on the challenge. 

In the short time Minatta was able to lead the team last season, Womack said the change was noticeable.

“Ever since he came in as the assistant coach, you started to see little changes,” Womack said. “We were able to get the Big 12s with him as an assistant coach, so now that he’s going to be in complete control of everything, I feel that now there is going to be an even bigger step than just the first round of the Big 12s.”