NORTH ANDOVER – A few years ago after turning 70, Gabe Mejail said he would stop coaching when he didn’t get nervous for a game.
Well, he apparently is still nervous.
The Merrimack College women’s soccer coach on Thursday night, his 872nd game, will lead his team into an NCAA record 46th season, when hosting the University of Vermont at Martone-Mejail Stadium.
This will be no ordinary season opener.
It will be a historical night, his 42nd year on the Merrimack campus.
“I’m already nervous, are you kidding me? Once the game starts, (the pre-game celebration) part will be done and I’ll be fine,” he said with a laugh.
The 71-year-old, who owns a career record of 524-277-72 — which includes four years at Wheaton College (1979-1982) — will break former University of North Carolina coach Anson Dorrance’s record.
Dorrance spent 45 years on the Tar Heels’ bench from 1979-2024 and won 21 NCAA Division 1 National Champions.
“I don’t consider myself even in the same breath as Anson. I’m not,” Mejail said.
While Mejail may not have the national titles, his resume is extremely impressive. At Merrimack, he has a winning record in 37 of his 41 years. He’s coached 26 All-Americans, has won eight Northeast-10 Conference Championship titles, six NE-10 Tournament Titles, two ECAC Titles and made 11 trips to both the Div. 2 NCAA and ECAC playoffs.
He led Merrimack to its first ever league championship title in 1986 – three years after starting the program from scratch.
He’s been named the NE-10 Conference, New England Women’s Intercollegiate Soccer Association and NCAA National Coach of the Year a combined 17 times. His teams also were the winners of the US Soccer Coaches Academic Award for 21 consecutive seasons.
He’s done all of that, with the same passion and love for the game that he’s had since his first time calling the shots back when Jimmy Carter was the U.S. President.
“I have enjoyed myself for all these years. You can’t last this long if you’re not enjoying the coaching part, enjoying the camaraderie you get with your team and your assistant coaches,” he said. “It’s like a family thing. You don’t count the years that you spend with your family.”
Born in Argentina, Mejail moved to the United States when he was 14 years old. He played a lot of soccer when he lived in Argentina, but when he went to Schenley High in Pittsburgh, Pa., the school didn’t offer soccer, so he became the kicker for the football team.
After high school, he ended up going to MIT. He briefly played on the JV soccer team before being called up to varsity. He became a four-year starter as a striker, known for his speed and skills.
After graduating from MIT, Mejail became an engineer and was working at Urban Systems Research when a co-worker showed him a coaching position ad in a local newspaper.
Forty-two years later, that marriage is as strong as ever.
“It’s exciting because you have to acknowledge that you have survived coaching for this long,” he said. “Merrimack has been very good to me. We normally have done well but I never felt that there was pressure to win year after year. We won multiple league titles and that stuff, but I never felt like my job was on the line if we had a bad season or anything like that. Merrimack has been terrific, and I know other colleges don’t work like that.”
Mejail said that he has no plans of hanging up the whistle.
“I still love it and couldn’t imagine not working here. Two of my (three) kids came here and I just feel like I’m coming home,” he said, noting that his sons Jonathan and Matt will be in attendance on Thursday but his daughter Emily has work obligations.
“I’m excited still (to coach). I know one day I’m going to say I’m done, and it won’t be a thinking thing. It could be five years from now; it could be next year so I can’t tell you, but I know that I still love it,” he added.