A Wolfpack Welcome
Marc Hubbard is the new head coach for NC State men’s soccer.
By Jack Daly ’01
There was a level of comfort for Marc Hubbard in New Hampshire. In 16 seasons in the Granite State, he had 232 wins at both the University of New Hampshire and Southern New Hampshire while earning a slew of individual honors. Beyond his track record of success, his wife, five kids and two dogs were all accustomed to their routines.
Yet when NC State came calling after the 2023 season, Hubbard leapt at the opportunity. “It was time to stretch,” he says. NC State magazine caught up with the Wolfpack’s new men’s soccer coach over the summer heading into his first season at NC State.
What appealed to you about the NC State job once the Wolfpack contacted you? One, there are a bunch of pros in the department — people who have been doing it for a while and are very good at their jobs. There are resources that I can lean on to grow in my career, professionally, but also support me in the right way.
What lessons from New Hampshire are directly transferable to NC State? I have a unique perspective — being able to pinch every penny and being able to maximize what you do have and get the most of out of your situation is a mentality that I’ve had from the very beginning of my coaching career. Being able to carry that same mentality but also being able to take advantage of the resources and general support is something that’s going to enhance my ability to be more successful.
Is the NIL something you’ve experienced at UNH? No, it was something that the school, philosophy-wise, very much stayed away from. Fundraising was the focus — I raised over $4.5 million at UNH when I was there. I’m not afraid to do that — you have to transfer some of those skills over to the NIL world and allocate things a bit differently.
What would make for a successful first season? Being in the NCAA Tournament needs to be a necessary thing every year.
