- 2017 BIG EAST Coaching Staff of the Year
- 2016 NSCAA Great Lakes Region Staff of the Year
- NCAA Tournament “Sweet 16” Appearance in 2017
- NCAA Tournament Appearances in 2019, 2017 and 2016
- 2016 BIG EAST Tournament Champions
- BIG EAST Regular Season Champions in 2017
The 2024 season will be Paul Snape's 14th season at the helm of the Butler men's soccer program. Hired in January of 2011, he is the sixth head coach in program history. With an overall record of 104-92-40, he has guided Butler's transition from the Horizon League to the Atlantic 10 and now in the BIG EAST Conference. With six teams reaching double-figure wins and 104 total victories, Snape has become the winningest coach in Butler program history.
In the postseason, Snape has led the Bulldogs to NCAA Tournament berths in three of the last eight seasons, with the most recent being 2019. In 2017, the Bulldogs advanced to round three, the third time in program history that the Bulldogs have reached the Round of 16 and the first time since 1995. Since joining the BIG EAST in 2013, Butler has qualified for the BIG EAST Tournament seven times, winning the BIG EAST Championship title in 2016.
In 13 seasons, Snape’s teams have posted 12 wins over opponents ranked in the top 25, including four victories over the 2022 and 2021 seasons. The full list includes: #14 Marshall (2022), #24 St. John’s (2021), #20 Providence (2021), #18 Lipscomb (2021), #5 Indiana (2019), #16 Western Michigan (2018), #22 VCU (2017), #24 Creighton (2016), #5 UC-Santa Barbara (2106), #25 Xavier (2015), #11 Providence (2014), and #7 Louisville (2013).
Numerous student-athletes have received individual recognition under Snape’s guidance. Eric Dick (2017-1st) and David Goldsmith (2016-2nd) were each named to All-America teams by the NSCAA/USC, and there have been a total of 17 All-Region honorees. Thirty-three players have received All-Conference recognition, including six player-of-the-year awards. On the academic side, three student-athletes have been named to the NSCAA/USC Scholar All-America teams along with one to the CoSIDA Academic All-America Second Team, and David Goldsmith was named the 2016 BIG EAST Male Scholar-Athlete of the Year.
Snape has assembled coaching staffs that have seen success on the field and have received recognition from others. Two significant accolades have been the 2017 BIG EAST Coaching Staff of the Year and the 2016 NSCAA Great Lakes Region Staff of the Year. Under Snape’s direction, Butler has been ranked as high as 7th in the United Soccer Coaches national poll (9/27/2016) and was most recently ranked as high as 12th in the 2022 season.
Snape and his staff have refined talent that has moved to the next level and enjoyed success overseas as well as at every level of competition domestically. Most recently, Palmer Ault (who is returning to play at Butler in 2024) was selected by the Colorado Rapids in the second round of the 2024 MLS SuperDraft, and Wilmer Cabrera, Jr. was selected in the third round of the 2023 MLS SuperDraft by the Chicago Fire. Henri Kumwenda competed as a member of the Malawi National Football Team in 2024. Butler's 2014 season saw Zach Steinberger drafted eighth overall by the Houston Dynamo, while teammate Brandon Fricke was selected in the fourth round by the Colorado Rapids.
Snape joined Butler’s staff after spending eight seasons at Michigan, a stint that included an appearance in the 2010 NCAA Division I College Cup Final Four. He served as an assistant coach for the Wolverines for six seasons, before being promoted to Associate Head Coach in 2009. With his assistance, Michigan made four NCAA Tournament appearances, including a berth in the 2003 Elite Eight and the 2010 Final Four. The Wolverines finished the 2010 season with a school-record 17-5-3 final ledger and their first-ever Big Ten Tournament title.
In addition to his coaching experience at Michigan, Snape served for one season as head coach of the Michigan Bucks in the USL Premier Development League. He guided the team to the league’s Elite Eight in 2005. He also has served as an assistant coach for the Michigan Olympic Development Program (2001-07) and as a youth coach for the Michigan Rush SC (2006-08), Vardar SC (2003, 2009-10), Birmingham Bloomfield SC (2002-06) and Bloomfield Force SC (1999-2002).
Snape came to Michigan following a seven-year playing career with the Michigan Bucks. He helped lead the Bucks to five divisional titles (1997-2000, 2003) as well as a regional crown in 1997. In 2003, the Bucks reached the third round of the Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup. Snape was selected to the PDL All-League Team in 1997 and 2000.
A 2000 graduate of Oakland University, Snape was a four-year letterwinner and two-year (1999 & 2000) team captain for the Grizzlies. He was a three-time All-Mid-Continent Conference First Team selection and a three-time All-Region performer (1998-2000). Following his senior season, he was selected to play in the 2001 Senior Bowl. Off the field, he earned conference Academic Awards in 1999 and 2000.
Snape holds a National “A” Coaching License from the United State Soccer Federation, and he’s a member of the National Soccer Coaches Association of America, the United States Soccer Federation and the United Kingdom Professional Footballers’ Association. He formerly lived in Liverpool, England, and trained at the Liverpool Academy as a youth. He and his wife, Michele, have three daughters, Scarlett Sydney, and twins Palmer Lola and Madison Marie.
