Gabe Carreno Named Head Coach of Pellissippi State Men’s Soccer

KNOXVILLE, Tenn. – Director of Athletics Brock Evans has announced the hiring of Gabe Carreno as the next head coach of the Pellissippi State men's soccer program, marking a new era for the Panthers under one of the NJCAA's rising coaching leaders.

Carreno becomes the third head coach in program history, bringing a proven track record of success, player development, and program building at the collegiate level. Across his coaching career, he has compiled an overall record of 80-53-11, including a 32-18-3 mark as head coach at Illinois Central College (ICC) over the past four seasons.

During his tenure at ICC, Carreno transformed the program into a regional contender, highlighted by a No. 5 national ranking in the NJCAA Division I poll, Region 24 Championships in both 2022 & 2025, and earning 2022 & 2025 Region 24 Coach of the Year honors. His teams consistently competed at a high level, combining disciplined defensive structure with dynamic attacking play, while also emphasizing academic success and character development.

Beyond wins and rankings, Carreno built a culture centered on accountability, recruitment excellence, and pathway development. He successfully recruited and developed student-athletes who advanced to four-year programs, while also expanding access to the game through community engagement initiatives and opportunities for underserved and first-generation college athletes through a program called 'Legacy Soccer'. 

"I'm incredibly honored to join Pellissippi State and grateful to Director Evans for the opportunity to lead this program," said Carreno. "This is a program with strong potential, and I'm excited to build a culture that emphasizes competitiveness, development, and opportunity. Our goal is to create an environment where student-athletes can thrive on the field, in the classroom, and in the community."

Prior to his time at ICC, Carreno spent two seasons at Illinois Wesleyan University as an assistant coach, where he directed recruiting operations and played a key role in establishing the program's first reserve team—enhancing player development and roster depth for that roster's future appearance in the 2022 NCAA DIII National Tournament. He also held assistant coaching positions at Heartland Community College and Otero Junior College, gaining valuable experience across multiple competitive levels of collegiate soccer, supporting Heartland's first ever women's soccer co-conference regular season championship in 2019 and winning a Region 9 Championship in Fall of 2017 with the Otero 'Rattlers'. 

"Coach Carreno is a proven winner and leader," Evans said. "He's shown he can win at the Junior College level, and we are excited to see the success he can bring to our program."

Carreno holds a Master's degree in Global Sports Business from Saint Leo University and a Bachelor's degree in Kinesiology & Sports Nutrition from UTEP. He also holds a U.S. Soccer Federation "B" License, multiple USSF Grassroots Licenses, and the FA Talent Identification Certificate, underscoring his commitment to continued professional development and talent evaluation. Coach Gabe is currently taking a Club Technical Leadership license through the United States Soccer Federation, expecting to complete by August 2026. 

Coach Carreno is also very passionate about youth player development having spent years as Director of Methodology, College Advisory and High School Boys director roles within top programming such as those at the FC Dallas & Chicago Fire youth networks to name a few. 

With a history of success and a vision for sustainable growth, Carreno now looks to elevate Pellissippi State into a competitive force within the region and beyond.