By Kirk San Roman
In the 49-year history of Titan men's soccer at the Division 1 level, many would argue that Mike Ammann was the most impactful goalkeeper in the Cal State Fullerton annals, helping to lead the squad to the Final Four of the NCAA Men's Soccer Tournament in 1993. That year, Ammann also received All-American honors, and was named as one of 11 MVP's by Soccer America magazine
A 6'3" local product from the city of Orange, and a 1989 graduate of Mater Dei High School, Mike was a punter and kicker in high school, and played for the prestigious North Huntington Beach soccer club.
Mike's older brother, Bob, had previously minded the net for the Titans from 1983 through 1986, and served as an assistant coach to Al Mistri. Bob ultimately became head coach for eight seasons. One would think that that would have greatly influenced Mike's decision to attend Cal State Fullerton, and it did. But there was more to the story.
Said Ammann: "Coach Mistri told me early on in my high school days that he would welcome me at Fullerton and it was on my list for sure. I was playing for NHB and we had one of the better club teams, with several players being recruited to big schools. UCLA (was the) dominant program at that time, and (Bruin head coach) Sigi (Schmid) was talking to me, and I absolutely wanted to go there.
"I'm pretty sure that I was a backup plan for (Schmid) until Brad Friedel committed there. (Author's note: Friedel would go on to star with the U.S. National Team and play in the 2002 World Cup).
Ammann continued, "I can't argue with the choice they made, even though I didn't like it at the time. The big issue I had was that I had verbally committed to UCLA, and it was pretty late in the process for me to find another school. I called Coach Mistri, and he told me he needed time to try and find scholarship money at that late stage, but he would get back to me. True to his word, as always, he called me back and offered me a scholarship.
"Later, I was offered a walk-on spot as a punter at UCLA (after attending a) clinic. I really didn't have my heart into football like I did for soccer, but I was definitely exploring all options."
Coach Mistri remembered, "It was a difficult recruiting process. Mike wanted to go to UCLA originally, but I persisted. When things didn't work out with UCLA, I presented him with a plan for him to redshirt during his first year, as I already had a goalkeeper (Jay Nettekoven)."
Mike related a funny kicking story involving Titan Hall of Famer, Phil Nevin: "On one of my first days on campus I met Phil Nevin. Phil was playing football and baseball at CSUF at the time, and we had a funny chat about when we were in high school, and always looking in the paper to see who had the longest field goal each week. We both had 53-yarders during our senior years, and in my last playoff game I kicked a 54 -yarder which he wasn't too happy about," Ammann said with a chuckle. "We became friends right away from that point on."
Mike was asked to redshirt during the 1989 season. Holding back Ammann, and some other talented newcomers was not a popular decision with all of Mike's teammates: "Lance Kremer ('88-90) and I still laugh about how in training when we would play 7-on-7, he always wanted to pick the young players and redshirts. He wasn't happy that we had so much talent that wasn't playing in his senior year.
"I remember sitting down with Coach Mistri and him telling me that I was going to redshirt. He told me he was building something special and bringing in quality players. He said he would rather me play as a 22-year-old fifth-year senior, than an 18-year-old freshman. He told me to trust him, and I'm damn glad I did, as things turned out. My fifth year (1993) was a special one for sure. Our team was so close-knit, and most of the players are still my best friends, and their wives and my wife are all great friends as well. That '93 season was historic for the program, and definitely the one that helped me to extend my career."
Mike began to make an impact as early as 1990, starting in five matches. From 1991 to 1993, Ammann would be Fullerton's primary keeper.
1993, as mentioned, was the red letter year for the Titan men's soccer program. Following regular season wins over local rivals and national powers, North Carolina, Washington, Fresno State, Cal, St. Mary's, UC Santa Barbara, UC Irvine, and UCLA, the Titans were selected to compete in the 32-team NCAA Men's Soccer Tournament.
Going on the road was not intimidating to the well-traveled Titans, and their victory streak began. Fresno State was dispatched 4-0, then the University of San Diego was overcome 3-2. Following a nail-biting 1-0 win over the University of San Francisco, the Titans journeyed to Richardson Stadium in Davidson, North Carolina for the NCAA men's soccer Final Four.
Unfortunately, the Fullerton juggernaut would end in the semifinal match with an 0-1 defeat at the hands of the South Carolina Gameco*cks.
Mike remembered: "When we won our first-ever NCAA game at Fresno State, we enjoyed ourselves in the hotel room, and were resting on the bus ride back to campus the next day. As we rolled into campus, Bob (assistant coach, Bob Ammann, who was also Mike's older brother) stood up and told us all to 'get changed and put our runners on.' The looks on all of our faces said it all. After several of us began throwing up the previous night's celebrations, he told us we 'needed to focus and be more professional.' If you ask any of the players, they would all say it was what brought us together and carried onto the field. I wouldn't change a thing about that year."
Mike would go on to play professionally for Charlton Athletic in the English Football League's first division. Ammann would return to the U.S. for the MLS' inaugural season in 1996, and enjoyed stints with the Kansas City Wiz, NY/NJ MetroStars, and DC United. Mike was selected as an MLS All-Star in 2000.
Amman's career was cut short by injuries. Famously, in August, 2000, Mike was trampled by Tampa Bay Mutiny forward, Mamadou Diallo while trying to retrieve a loose ball in the penalty box. Ammann was hospitalized with three broken ribs, a punctured lung, and facial bruises.
MetroStars teammate, Mike Petke, dubbed it as the "Crime of the Century" when Diallo failed to receive a suspension or a red card for the brutal hit.
Ammann would retire from DC United in 2002 after a botched surgery left him with permanent nerve damage. The doctor, who had never performed the procedure before, was found guilty of malpractice.
Describing those incidents, Mike said: "They were a part of the game, part of my career, and now I live with them as part of my life. Each injury taught me things about myself, about my support system, my wife and my family, and gave me the understanding of what really matters in life."
When asked to list any players or coaches who had made a significant impact on his time at CSUF, Mike was effusive in his praise, answering, "Honestly, they all had an impact on my time at Fullerton. The older players that took me under their wing like Lance Kremer, Steve George, and Rick Biedler, to Paul McDonnell, Eddie Soto, Kenny Hesse, Mark Vaught, Ricky Rodriguez, and Demian Brown (current Titan women's soccer head coach), the list goes on and on. We were family and we did everything together, on and off the field."
Per coach Mistri, "Mike had a huge, huge impact on our program. He was a hard worker and a strong leader. His stats speak for themselves. But the biggest difference that Mike made was that he was able to convince his friends to come to Fullerton as well. What that group did was phenomenal. We had a great time."
Mike has been married to the former Gina Arciero for 29 years. They live in Lake Norman, North Carolina, which he describes as "Just outside of Charlotte." Together, they have three grown children, Arie (27), Nico (24), and daughter, Dylann (22). Arie, and his wife Maddie are expecting Mike and Gina's first grandchild. Per Mike, "By the time you post this, Luca will have joined our family as a future goalkeeper."
When asked to update us on his current career, Mike responded, "After my playing career finished, I was hired by Hitachi Data Systems. I have remained in the IT space, and I also have a goalkeeping academy. I started 247GK in 2010 (when) my oldest son started playing as a goalkeeper. I took a few years off and have just relaunched it with both of my sons, Arie and Nico. We focus on a virtual platform of coaching, mentoring, and analyzing. Our aim is to help increase soccer IQ's for players, coaches, and parents.www.247Goalkeeper.comwill be live very soon.
Honors
- B.A., Communications, Advertising – Cal State Fullerton – 1994
- Soccer America MVP – 1993
- NCAA All-American - 1993
- NCAA Men's Soccer Tournament "Final Four" – 1993
- 15th Anniversary All-MPSF Soccer Team – Second Team
- All-Big West Second Team – 1991
- MPSF individual honors in 1993 and 1992 are incomplete
CSUF Soccer Records and Stats
- #2 – Career Shutouts – 19
- #2 – Season Shutouts – 9 – 1993
- #3 – Season Goals Against Average – 0.909 – 1993
- #8 – Season Shutouts – 5 – 1992, 1991
- Games Started – 59
- CSUF Team Record (1990 – 1993) – 46-31-3
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