After assisting in the continued development of the soccer programs at Pfeiffer, Appalachian State and South Carolina, Bryan Cunningham maintains that same trend in his second season at the University of Central Florida.

Cunningham first joined the UCF men's soccer program as assistant coach and recruiting coordinator in May 2005 after serving in a similar position at South Carolina for three years. Cunningham's first recruiting class at UCF featured 19 players, including 13 freshmen, and was ranked in the top 30 nationally by College Soccer News and first in the south region by StudentSports.com. By the end of 2006, three of those players garnered All-Conference USA honors.

Following the resignation of Brent Erwin in January 2007, Cunningham was appointed interim head coach before being formally named to the position a month later.

In his first season at the helm, Cunningham helped the offense score 24 goals, the most tallies since 2002. The Knights also claimed the New Mexico Invitational and the UCF Fall Classic titles en route to a 4-12-2 record. In the classroom, a total of 15 Knights earned spots on the C-USA Commissioner's Honor Roll, and those returning for 2008 hold an average grade-point average over a 3.0.

Three players from 2007 went on to start professional careers as James Georgeff suited up for Major League Soccer's Houston Dynamo, Brian Pope joined the United Soccer League's Harrisburg City Islanders and Matt Luzanaris traveled to Austria to compete for FC Magna.

Meanwhile, Ryan Roushandel snatched up numerous postseason awards. The Atlanta native earned All-C-USA Second Team and C-USA All-Academic Team honors, and was a member of the NSCAA All-South Region Third Team. To cap it off, Roushandel was selected as the UCF Male Scholar Athlete of the Year.

Over the summer of 2008, Cunningham was invited to Euro 2008 as a guest of the Swedish FA, Malmo FF and the Northern Ireland Schoolboys. At the event, he served as a research panelist for Sweden vs. Greece and Croatia vs. Germany.

For the upcoming season, Cunningham's first recruiting class includes 22 newcomers from five different states as well Germany. Meanwhile, they bring an average GPA of 3.2 and an average SAT score of 1060 to the Orlando campus.

As a member of the South Carolina staff, Cunningham recruited several highly-touted student-athletes into the program. Among his recruits were Mike Sambursky, a 2007 draftee of Major League Soccer (MLS) Champion Houston Dynamo; Makan Hislop, captain of the U-20 Trinidad and Tobago National Team; and Brad Guzan, an All-America and No. 2 pick in the 2005 MLS Super Draft.

On the field, Cunningham helped guide the Gamecocks to a combined 21-14-3 mark and an NCAA Tournament berth in his final season. Both seasons USC was ranked as high as seventh in the national polls.

In 2003-04, Cunningham saw the team post the highest GPA on record as 10 players earned Southeastern Conference All-Academic Team recognition. The 2004 and 2005 recruiting classes averaged a 3.2 or better GPA and an SAT score of over 1200.

Prior to his stint at USC, Cunningham was an assistant coach at Appalachian State for five years under the tutelage of Southern Conference Coach of Year award winners T.J. Kostecky and Aidan Heaney. At ASU, he worked with eight All-South Region honorees, a Southern Conference Player of the Year, 13 All-Southern Conference selections and a College Soccer News Freshman All-American. ASU also boasted an Academic All-American and 18 players on the league's All-Academic Team.

In addition to his coaching experience at the collegiate level, he was also active in the North Carolina and South Carolina Olympic Development Programs.

On the international level, Cunningham presently serves as an advisor for the Northern Ireland U-18 Schoolboys and managers Bob Ramsey and Andy McMorran. He is going to complete his UEFA-B license during the summer of 2009.

An avid believer in having his program give back to the community, Cunningham has been active promoting youth soccer in the Seminole and Orange County school systems, as well as at three area Christian schools and the YMCA. For the past two seasons, he has been the guiding force in the UCF men's soccer team's involvement in the annual Youth Sports Festival.

A native of Philadelphia, Cunningham was a four-year letterwinner and three-time captain for the Pfeiffer University soccer team. The Falcons won two Carolinas-Virginia Athletic Conference Championships and earned a berth in the NCAA Division II Tournament. He was also a four-time Scholar-Athlete and Dean's List honoree, while appearing in the Who's Who among American College Students.

Cunningham, who holds a bachelor's degree in communications, resides in Orlando with his wife Amy, daughter Elyn Elizabeth (four) and son Alexander Michael (one).