Eastern Oregon University Athletics

Head Coach | 6th Season | 33-38-15 (.471)
Jessy Watson enters the 2025 season in his tenth year overall with the Eastern Oregon University men’s soccer program and sixth as head coach. He first joined the Mountaineers in 2015 as the assistant coach when the program began, and was named the program’s fourth head coach in February 2020.

As an assistant coach (2015-2019), Watson helped guide EOU to a 46-37-9 overall record and a 36-28-5 mark in Cascade Collegiate Conference play. During that time, the Mounties achieved several program firsts, including an 11-4-4 season (8-2-3 CCC) in 2018 and the program’s inaugural NAIA National Tournament appearance in 2019 after reaching the CCC Tournament Championship match for the first time.

As head coach (2020-present), Watson has only continued to elevate the program, as Eastern Oregon men’s soccer has steadily grown into a competitive and respected team within the Cascade Collegiate Conference.

2024: Achieved the best record in program history at 11-3-4 (.675), captured the program’s first CCC Tournament Championship, and advanced to the NAIA National Tournament.

2023: Finished 11th overall with a 3-9-5 record (.275), 3-7-3 in CCC.

2022: Posted a 9-8-2 record (.509), 6-6-1 in CCC. Earned a bid to the conference tournament as the seventh seed.

2021: Finished ninth in the conference, narrowly missing the postseason with a 6-10-0 overall record (.375), 6-7-0 in CCC play.

2020: Led the Mountaineers to a 4-7-0 record (.364), 3-5-0 in CCC East Division (season played in Spring 2021). Earned his first win as head coach on February 28 in a 2-0 victory over Northwest University.

Before coaching at EOU, Watson served in the U.S. Marine Corps, where he played for the All-Marine soccer team and was selected for the All-Armed Forces Team in 1993. He coached his unit team to the Okinawa All-Island Championship in 1992 and later played in the Southern California Premier League in 1995 before returning to Oregon.

Watson holds multiple training credentials from the United Soccer Coaches Association: National Diploma (2006), Advanced National Diploma (2006), Premier Diploma (2008), Futsal Level I (2016), and Technical Development Topics Diploma (2017).

A native of La Grande, Oregon, Watson is married to Heather Watson, who serves as an Adjunct Professor of Theatre Dance. The couple have four daughters.

Coaching Philosophy: “Our goal is to play a style of soccer that is effective, entertaining and, most of all, enjoyed by the players… I invest heavily in the young men in our program and their success is crucial to our future legacy. I am always looking to push and get the most out of our players, challenging them to be better each day.” - Jessy Watson