WHAT'S AHEAD: The Drake men's soccer team opens the regular season by hosting the Drake Classic Tournament Aug. 30-31 at the Cownie Soccer Complex, playing host to Wisconsin-Milwaukee at 7:30 p.m. Saturday and Southern Illinois-Edwardsville at 7:30 p.m. on Sunday.

SCOUTING THE OPPONENTS: Wisconsin-Milwaukee will open its 2008 slate against the Bulldogs. The Panthers posted a 5-13-4 record, but finished second in the Horizon League, with a 5-2-1 worksheet in 2007. Milwaukee returns six starters from last year's squad, however it lost two all-league performers to graduation. The Panthers are led by third-year head coach Jon Coleman (13-22-5).
    Southern Illinois-Edwardsville returns ten starters from last year's squad which posted an 11-4-3 record as an independent school. The Cougars are led by first year head coach Kevin Kalish, a 1999 graduate of Saint Louis University.
    Missouri State returns seven starters from a year ago, when the Bears posted a 6-10-4 Missouri Valley Conference record, which was good enough for a sixth-place finish. John Leamy returns for his 17th season at the helm of the Missouri State men's soccer program. During his tenure he has amassed a 168-115-26 record.

TOURNAMENT SCHEDULE: Saturday at 5 p.m. SIU-Edwardsville will face Missouri State, after which Drake will play Wisconsin-Milwaukee. On Sunday, Wisconsin-Milwaukee will face Missouri State at 5 p.m. and Drake will battle SIU-Edwardsville at 7:30 p.m.

MVC PRESEASON COACHES POLL: Drake received a fourth-place ranking in the Missouri Valley Conference Preseason Coaches' Poll, registering 19 points.
Perennial MVC and national powerhouse Creighton earned the top spot in the poll, receiving five of a possible six first-place votes and 35 total points.
    Evansville was tabbed to finish second, with 27 points. Bradley came in third with 20 points. Eastern Illinois ranked fifth (14 points), while Missouri State was tabbed sixth (11 total points), while receiving the final first-place vote.

HEAD COACH SEAN HOLMES: Sean Holmes was named head coach at Drake in 1998. Holmes is in his 11th season at the helm of the Drake men's soccer program. Under Holmes, the Bulldogs have posted a 74-90-21 record and have built a legacy of excellence on Drake's campus and in the Missouri Valley Conference. Holmes is dedicated to the ideal of developing the whole student-athlete.
    In 2007, the Bulldogs posted a 9-6-4 record, knocking off highly touted opponent Wisconsin, 3-1, and forcing then-ranked No. 8 Creighton to a double overtime 1-1 tie.
Holmes led Drake to a 6-7-6 record in 2006, advancing to the semifinals of the State Farm Missouri Valley Conference championship, which ended in a tie with eventual runner-up Bradley. Drake lost, 5-3, in penalty kicks but showed the grit and determination that Holmes had instilled in his players.
    Holmes led the Bulldogs to a school-record three victories over top 25 ranked teams in 2005, including Drake's first win over then No. 16 Creighton to end a 22-year drought against the Bluejays.
That victory sparked a four-game winning streak to the end of the season that saw Drake win its first MVC Tournament game since 1997 with a 1-0 victory against Missouri State in the quarterfinal round. Those wins vaulted Drake to a 9-9-2 mark, giving the Bulldogs a winning percentage of .500 or better in three of the previous four seasons after a six-year stint of losing seasons.
    Drake's progress also has been noticed at the next level with three players being drafted by the Major League Soccer in the last three years. Matt Nickell was selected by the DC United in 2004, while Corey Farabi and Chris Hamburger were both drafted by the Kansas City Wizards in 2005.
    The National Soccer Coaches Association of America also has noticed Drake's progress, ranking the Bulldogs No. 22 nationally in the NSCAA/adidas poll the week of Oct. 27, 2003, for the first time in the team's 18-year history. Holmes then led Drake to a No. 25 ranking the opening week of the 2004 season.
    Drake posted a 10-6-3 record in 2003, which were the most victories since a school record 11-win season in 1993. The 10 wins marked the most for a Holmes-coached team, with the previous high at nine in 2002.
    In 2002, Drake finished fourth in the MVC regular season standings to host the quarterfinal round of the MVC Tournament for the first time in school history. It also marked the highest conference finish in Holmes' career at Drake, rising from 10th place the previous season. It also was the first of four post-season berths as the Bulldogs finished fifth in the MVC in 20 3 and 2004, before finishing fourth in 2005.
    Holmes came to Drake after serving as the top assistant at conference-rival Evansville from 1995-98. During his tenure at Evansville, the Aces compiled a 47-30-6 record, winning the 1996 MVC championship. The team, which he helped build, garnered an NCAA Tournament berth and a top 20 ranking.
    Holmes, 41, was born in Switzerland and grew up in Ottawa, Ontario. An all-Ontario sweeper at Carleton University from 1983-87, Holmes was a 1983 Lisgar Co legiate Graduate and a CIAU Men's Soccer Finalist in 1984. Holmes also won the Jack Vogen Award as the school's outstanding senior student-athlete in 1987. He played professionally for the Ottawa Pioneers of the Canadian Soccer League in 1987, and began his coaching career with the University of Kansas soccer club in 1988.
    Holmes was head coach at Baker University in Baldwin City, Kan., from 1989-93, compiling a 78-26-2 record, leading the 1991, 1992 and 1993 teams to NAIA District 10 championships. Holmes also served as director of the Olympic Development Program in Kansas for two years.
    Holmes was named NAIA Midwest Coach of the Year in 1992, and NAIA District 10 Coach of the Year in 1992 and 1993. He was the Heart of America Athletic Conference Coach of the Year in 1990 and 1991.
    Holmes holds a USSF ?A' level coaching license and is a member of the Region II staff for the Olympic Development Program. He serves as a staff coach for the Iowa Soccer Association, and also served as age group coach for both the 1978 and 1984 Region II teams. He was an assistant coach at the 1994 U.S. Olympic Sports Festival in St. Louis, Mo.
    When Holmes discusses academics with his student-athletes, he does so from a unique perspective. He earned a master's degree in political science from the University of Kansas and began work towards his Ph.D. before being sidetracked by college soccer. At Baker, he taught both political science and critical thinking. During his time at Evansville, he taught world cultures, and every semester gave the capstone lecture to sophomores on “The Clash of Civilizations.” Holmes has taught an introductory course in world history at Drake.
    Holmes and his wife, Dr. Carrie Holmes, reside in Des Moines with their three sons, Matthew (10), Samuel (7) and Andrew (3).