Michael Erush (born January 24, 1983) is a former professional soccer player who is currently the head coach of the men's team at California State University-Los Angeles. He was inducted into the Birmingham Community Charter High School Athletic Hall of Fame, and the

Loyola Marymount University Loyola Marymount University (LMU) is a private Jesuit and Marymount research university in Los Angeles, California. LMU enrolls over 10,000 undergraduate and graduate students, making it the largest Catholic university on the west coast of the ...

Athletics Hall of Fame. Erush won a silver medal with Team USA at the

2005 Maccabiah Games The 17th Maccabiah Games (), held in Israel, were an incarnation of the 'Jewish Olympics.' They attracted the largest attendance of any Maccabiah Games, including more than 900 representatives from the United States, almost 500 from Australia, and ...

in Israel. In

Major League Soccer Major League Soccer (MLS) is a professional Association football, soccer league in North America and the highest level of the United States soccer league system. It comprises 30 teams, with 27 in the United States and 3 in Canada, and is sanc ...

, he played for the

Colorado Rapids The Colorado Rapids are an American professional Association football, soccer club based in the Denver metropolitan area. The Rapids compete in Major League Soccer (MLS) as a member of the Western Conference (MLS), Western Conference. Founded in ...

(2004),

Chivas USA Chivas USA (pronounced ''CHEE-vahs'') was an American professional Association football, soccer club based in the Greater Los Angeles area. The club competed in Major League Soccer (MLS) as a member of the Western Conference (MLS), Western Conf ...

(2005), and

Miami FC Miami FC is an American professional association football, soccer team based in Miami, Florida that competes in the USL Championship, the second tier of the American soccer pyramid. The club began play in the North American Soccer League (201 ...

(2006). Erush played internationally with

Hapoel Ashkelon F.C. Hapoel Ashkelon F.C. (, ''Moadon Kaduregel Hapoel Ashkelon'') was an Israeli football club based in Ashkelon. It was reestablished in 2024 as "Ironi Ashkelon". History After being founded in 1955, Hapoel Ashkelon spent their first few decades in ...

in Israel, Lombard-Papa TFC in Hungary, and Olimpia Bălţi in

Moldova Moldova, officially the Republic of Moldova, is a Landlocked country, landlocked country in Eastern Europe, with an area of and population of 2.42 million. Moldova is bordered by Romania to the west and Ukraine to the north, east, and south. ...

. He was formerly a coach of the

Loyola Marymount Lions The Loyola Marymount Lions are the athletic teams that represent Loyola Marymount University, a Association of Jesuit Colleges and Universities, Jesuit institution in Los Angeles, California. The school competes in NCAA Division I and the West Co ...

soccer team.

Early life and personal

Erush is the son of Russian immigrants; his father is Lazar Erush. He was born in

North Hollywood, California North Hollywood is a neighborhood and district in the San Fernando Valley of Los Angeles, California. The neighborhood contains the NoHo Arts District, El Portal Theater, several art galleries, and the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences. Th ...

, and raised in

Van Nuys, California Van Nuys ( ) is a neighborhood in the central San Fernando Valley region of Los Angeles, California. Home to Van Nuys Airport and the Van Nuys City Hall, Valley Municipal Building, it is the most populous neighborhood in the San Fernando Valley ...

, and

Sherman Oaks, California Sherman Oaks (founded in 1927) is a neighborhood of the city of Los Angeles, California within the San Fernando Valley region. The neighborhood includes a portion of the Santa Monica Mountains, which gives Sherman Oaks a lower population density ...

. He attended

North Hollywood High School North Hollywood High School (NHHS) is a public high school in the North Hollywood neighborhood of Los Angeles, California, United States. It is in the San Fernando Valley and enrolls approximately 2,500 students. Several neighborhoods, including m ...

as well as

Birmingham High School Birmingham Community Charter High School (formerly Birmingham High School) is a charter high school in the neighborhood/district of Lake Balboa in the San Fernando Valley section of Los Angeles, California, United States. It was founded in 1953 ...

. He earned a bachelor's degree from

, College of Business Administration (Business Management; '03), and an M.A. in Guidance and Counseling from Loyola Marymount University ('10). On May 2, 2015, Erush proposed to Ally Siegel. The couple got married on July 16, 2016. They live in

Studio City, California Studio City is a neighborhood in Los Angeles, California, United States, in the southeast San Fernando Valley, just west of the Cahuenga Pass. It is named after the studio lot that was established in the area by film producer Mack Sennett in 1 ...

, with their two daughters.

Playing career

Youth career

As a youth player, Erush played for the United States U-14, U-16, and U-18 National teams, and was team captain of the U-14 and U-16 teams from 1996 through 2000, and was part of the

USMNT The United States men's national soccer team (USMNT), officially recognized as USA by FIFA, represents the United States in men's international soccer. The team is governed by the United States Soccer Federation, which is a member of FIFA sinc ...

pool in 2001, but was never called up to the senior roster. Erush was honored as the 1999 ''

Los Angeles Times The ''Los Angeles Times'' is an American Newspaper#Daily, daily newspaper that began publishing in Los Angeles, California, in 1881. Based in the Greater Los Angeles city of El Segundo, California, El Segundo since 2018, it is the List of new ...

'' and ''

Los Angeles Daily News The ''Los Angeles Daily News'' is the second-largest-circulating paid daily newspaper of Los Angeles, California, after the unrelated ''Los Angeles Times'', and the flagship newspaper of the Southern California News Group, a branch of Colorado ...

'' All-Region Player of the Year, and was a 2000 NSCAA High School All-America selection from Birmingham Community Charter High School ('00). He was team captain as a junior and senior, three-time All-Northwest Conference, and two-time All-

Valley A valley is an elongated low area often running between hills or mountains and typically containing a river or stream running from one end to the other. Most valleys are formed by erosion of the land surface by rivers or streams over ...

and All- West Valley League, as well as

All-America The All-America designation is an annual honor bestowed on outstanding athletes in the United States who are considered to be among the best athletes in their respective sport. Individuals receiving this distinction are typically added to an Al ...

honorable mention as a senior. He was inducted into the Birmingham Community Charter Athletic Hall of Fame.

College

Erush was a

Lions men's soccer standout, a four-time All-

West Coast Conference The West Coast Conference (WCC) — known as the California Basketball Association from 1952 to 1956 and then as the West Coast Athletic Conference until 1989 — is a collegiate athletic conference affiliated with NCAA Division I consisting o ...

(WCC) selection (2000, 2001, 2002), was named First Team in 2003, and served as team captain during his junior and senior seasons. He was named First Team

National Soccer Coaches Association of America The United Soccer Coaches (formerly known as the National Soccer Coaches Association of America (NSCAA)) is an organization of United States, American soccer Coach (sport), coaches founded in 1941. It is the largest soccer coaches organization i ...

All Far West Selection in 2002, and was named First Team

by the ''

Jewish Sports Review ''Jewish Sports Review'' (JSR) was a bi-monthly magazine that operated from 1997 to 2022. Its editors were Ephraim Moxson and Shel Wallman. The magazine identified Jewish athletes, including professionals, college players, athletes in internati ...

'' in 2003. During his last three years, he helped the Lions advance to the

NCAA The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) is a nonprofit organization that regulates College athletics in the United States, student athletics among about 1,100 schools in the United States, and Simon Fraser University, 1 in Canada. ...

Tournament, and in 2003 finished in a first-round bye and national seeding (#13) in the postseason. He was inducted into the Loyola Marymount Athletics Hall of Fame in 2017.

Professional

Erush played in

for the

(2004),

(2005), and

(2006). He played internationally for

in Israel, Lombard-Papa TFC in Hungary, and Olimpia Bălţi in

International

In 2005 Erush competed on Team USA in the

in Israel, where the team went on to win a silver medal.

Coaching

In January 2007 Erush was hired as an assistant coach to

Paul Krumpe Paul Krumpe (born March 4, 1963 in Torrance, California) is an American former soccer defender and current coach. He spent two seasons in the Major Indoor Soccer League, two in the Western Soccer Alliance and two in the American Professional ...

with the men's

soccer team at

. In 2014, he was promoted to associate head coach, and remained in that position through 2018. Erush, having played with the amateur Hollywood United team in Los Angeles for several years, was hired as the first-ever head coach of the Hollywood United Hitmen in the

USL Premier Development League USL League Two (USL2), formerly the Premier Development League (PDL), is a semi-professional soccer league sponsored by United Soccer Leagues in the United States, forming part of the United States soccer league system. The league will featu ...

in 2009. He moved to become head coach of the

Orange County Blue Star Orange County Blue Star was an amateur American soccer team based in Irvine, California. Founded in 1997, the team played in the USL Premier Development League (PDL), the fourth tier of the American Soccer Pyramid, in the Southwest Division of th ...

in 2010. That year he also headed up the USA team that competed at the Maccabiah Australia International Games, winning the silver medal. From 2009 to 2014 Erush also coached the South Bay Force and the Fram Soccer Club. From 2011 to 2015, Erush was a

United States Soccer Federation The United States Soccer Federation (USSF), commonly referred to as U.S. Soccer, is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization and the official governing body of soccer in the United States. It is a full member of FIFA and governs American soccer ...

Southern California Scout, and evaluated, developed, and scouted youth players for the U.S. national teams. In 2014, he joined the

L.A. Galaxy The Los Angeles Galaxy are an American professional soccer club based in the Greater Los Angeles area. The club competes in Major League Soccer (MLS) as a member of the Western Conference. The Galaxy began play in 1996 as one of the league's t ...

Academy Youth Staff. In December 2015, Erush served as the soccer Head Coach for the Maccabiah Pan Am games in

Santiago, Chile Santiago (, ; ), also known as Santiago de Chile (), is the capital and largest city of Chile and one of the largest cities in the Americas. It is located in the country's central valley and is the center of the Santiago Metropolitan Regi ...

. He served as Head Coach for soccer for Team USA for the

2017 Maccabiah Games The 2017 Maccabiah Games (), also referred to as the 20th Maccabiah Games (), were the 20th edition of the Maccabiah Games. They took place from 4 to 17 July 2017, in Israel. The Maccabiah Games are open to Jewish athletes from around the world ...

in Israel. Since 2018 Erush has been the head coach of the

Cal State Los Angeles Golden Eagles The Cal State Los Angeles Golden Eagles (also Cal State LA Golden Eagles) are the athletic teams that represent California State University, Los Angeles in NCAA Division II intercollegiate sports. The Golden Eagles compete as members of the Cali ...

men's team at California State University-Los Angeles. The coaching staff that he was part of was named the 2021 Coaching Staff of the Year by the

United Soccer Coaches The United Soccer Coaches (formerly known as the National Soccer Coaches Association of America (NSCAA)) is an organization of American soccer coaches founded in 1941. It is the largest soccer coaches organization in the world, with more than ...

References

External links

Coaching profile from LMU
{{DEFAULTSORT:Erush, Michael 1983 births Living people American people of Russian-Jewish descent American men's soccer players Men's association football defenders Birmingham High School alumni Cal State Los Angeles Golden Eagles men's soccer California State University, Los Angeles faculty Competitors at the 2005 Maccabiah Games FC Bălți players Hapoel Ashkelon F.C. players Jewish American soccer players Jewish American sports coaches Pápai FC footballers Loyola Marymount Lions men's soccer coaches Loyola Marymount Lions men's soccer players Maccabiah Games medalists in football Maccabiah Games silver medalists for the United States People from North Hollywood, Los Angeles People from Sherman Oaks, Los Angeles People from Studio City, Los Angeles People from Van Nuys, Los Angeles Soccer players from Los Angeles USL First Division players USL League Two players Orange County Blue Star players Colorado Rapids players Chivas USA players Fort Lauderdale Strikers (2006–2016) players Hollywood United F.C. players 21st-century American Jews Jews from California USL League Two coaches