Coaching Staff

John Hedlund
Head Coach

Having established himself as one of the most prominent coaches in the nation and is the winningest coach of any sport in North Texas Athletics history, John Hedlund has molded the Mean Green soccer program into one of the nation’s elite that has never had a losing season and hauled in now 16 conference trophies in 26 years. Since the program’s birth in 1995, Hedlund has led North Texas to a 365-136-35 record (71.4 percentage), 16 conference championships, seven NCAA Tournament appearances and a top 25 national ranking.

He is just one of three women's soccer head coaches to have never had a losing season while coaching at one university for 20+ seasons. The two other coaches are Anson Dorrance (North Carolina) and G Guerrieri (Texas A&M).

What has been a winning tradition program for decades, Hedlund has built an even greater dynasty since moving to Conference USA in 2013. The Mean Green have won a league-record eight C-USA women's soccer championships = all since 2014. They've reached the NCAA Tournament four times since 2015 and won more matches during this time span than any other active C-USA opponent. From 2014 through 2019 UNT won either the league regular season title and/or tournament title each season.

Hedlund built the program from the absolute beginning when they played their home matches at public parks but now he calls home to the North Texas Soccer & Track and Field Stadium, which is the premier soccer facility in C-USA and one of the best in the state. Protecting home field has always been a priority for Hedlund. The Mean Green are 193-29-15 (.846) all-time at home. Since joining C-USA in 2013, UNT is 34-0-2 in home conference matches.

UNT has not lost a home conference match since Oct. 31, 2008 and is on a NCAA record 56-match unbeaten streak in home conference matches.

In total, the Mean Green have had 113 all-conference selections, 61 all-tournament selections and 26 all-region selections. Alum Dominique James in 2018 became the program's first NCAA All-American honoree and MAC Herman Award Watch List recipient.

Hedlund was the only DI women's soccer coach to offer Dominique James a scholarship. A three-year captain who was the team's centerback, she played at UNT from 2016-19 and the Mean Green went 59-18-9 overall and 31-5-4 in conference during her four seasons with the Mean Green. UNT won five conference trophies and made three NCAA Tournaments over her time span. In home matches, James guided UNT to a 33-2-3 record. She played in all 86 matches and started the last 80 straight.

The Mean Green in 2020-21 overcame the obstacles of the COVID pandemic to once again have a winning season as they posted a 7-3-1 overall record and a 4-1-1 record in conference. They shutout Oklahoma 1-0 at home. They went 3-0-0 in home conference matches. They beat conference foe Rice 2-1 on the road, the owls went on to win a NCAA Tournament match. And UNT took No. 15 Oklahoma State into overtime. The Mean Green led the nation in 2020-21 in shots per game and shots on goal per game. They had five all-conference honors including senior Brooke Lampe and sophomore Allie Byrd who were voted first team all-conference.

In 2019 the Mean Green opened the doors to their new facility and stadium in style as they won the C-USA Tournament title on their home field. Led by NCAA All-American Dominique James and 2019 C-USA Goalkeeper of the Year Kelsey Brann, UNT posted a 15-6-1 overall record and kept many program streaks going.

Along with James being named the 2019 C-USA Defensive Player of the Year and Brann being the 2019 C-USA Keeper of the Year, freshman Allie Byrd, junior Berklee Peters and junior Logan Bruffett were voted C-USA All-Conference as well.

In the conference tournament, James (defensive) and Byrd (offensive) were voted the tournament MVPs and senior Natalie Newell and junior Brooke Lampe were voted to the all-tournament team.

The 30 points (10 goals and 10 assists) North Texas collected in the 2019 C-USA Tournament was a C-USA Tournament record. The 10 goals tied a C-USA record and the 10 assists also tied a C-USA record. Junior Berklee Peters recorded seven points in the tournament, which was the third-most in league tournament history. In just seven seasons, North Texas has now had 26 C-USA all-tournament team selections. The next most during the last seven years is Charlotte with 11. Furthermore, UNT has had both the tournament Defensive MVP and Offensive MVP in each of the last three conference tournaments.

The team was awarded by the United Soccer Coaches with the Team Academic Award for their outstanding GPA in the 2019-20 school year.

North Texas in 2018 won both the C-USA Regular Season and Tournament championship, earned a No. 24 national ranking and featured NCAA All-American Dominique James who also was named the C-USA Player of the Year and Defensive Player of the Year. They had eight all conference honorees, which was more than any other school in the league.

Entering the 2018 season, Hedlund was only one of eight active coaches who has won 300 or more matches all at the same school. Of those eight coaches, he ranked fifth in wins and fifth in winning percentage.

Since joining C-USA in 2013, UNT has dominated. Entering the 2018 season, they are 48-10-5 in all conference matches. No other school in C-USA comes close to the amount of wins or the .801 winning percentage since UNT moved to C-USA.

Entering the 2018 season, the Mean Green were and still are riding a NCAA-best home conference unbeaten streak. They haven’t been beaten at home by a conference opponent since Oct. 31, 2008.. They posted a 4-0-1 record in home conference matches in 2017.

In 13 years in the Sun Belt Conference the Mean Green earned the respect of the league’s coaches. UNT won eight conference championships and garnered 47 all-conference selections, including 35 first-team all-conference nods.

Seven women’s soccer players have been inducted to the North Texas Athletic Hall of Fame. In 2005 Krista Davey was the first soccer player to be inducted, followed by Christy Johnson in 2007 and Marilyn Marin in 2008. Melinda Pina was voted into the Hall of Fame in 2011, Heather Hutyra joined them in 2013, Kendall Juett entered in 2017 and Kelsey Hodges in 2020.

Under Hedlund, the Mean Green have also succeeded in the classroom.

In 2020-21, UNT had six women post 3.75+ GPAs and 22 had 3.0+ GPAs.

The team was recognized for its off-field accomplishments by the National Soccer Coaches Association of America as one of the recipients for the 2010 and 2014 NSCAA Team Academic Award. The NSCAA annually hands out the academic honor to Division I schools whose team grade point average is a 3.0 or higher. The Mean Green posted a team grade-point average of 3.22 for the 2013-14 school year. Additionally, the women’s soccer team’s APR (Academic Progress Report) has been ranked in the top 10% nationally three out of the last six years.

Hedlund’s association with North Texas began in 1990 as an assistant men’s soccer coach. He served briefly as the head coach of the men’s program in 1994 before the university discontinued the sport.

In 1995, Hedlund concluded a 12-year professional playing career, in which he played defender for the United States Men’s Olympic qualifying team (1983-84), the New York Express (1984-85), the Dallas Sidekicks (1986-87 and 1992-95) and the Dallas Rockets (1988-91).

In four seasons with the Sidekicks, he scored 15 goals in 78 games over four seasons, and ranks 19th in team history in shots blocked and 33rd in games played. He was a member of the 1986-87 and 1993 Sidekicks championship teams, blocking a total of 20 shots during his playoff career, the 12th-most in Sidekicks history. He scored five goals in the 1994 CISL playoffs for the Sidekicks, and ranks 20th in club history in playoff goals.

In the outdoor game, Hedlund played with the Richardson Rockets, who won the 1991 SISL Championship and reached the 1991 Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup Final. Hedlund helped the Rockets reach new heights in American soccer by reaching the fourth round of the 1992 CONCACAF Champions Cup. The Dallas Rockets were one of only three United States teams to reach the fourth round of the Champions Cup in the pre-Major League Soccer era (1969-1994), but fell in the fourth round to Club America in Estadio Azteca in Mexico City. He played with the United States Olympic team under Manfred Schellscheidt in the lead up to the 1984 Summer Olympics, but missed the Olympic Tournament due to injury. With the United States,

Hedlund played tournaments in South Korea, Sweden, Finland and Malaysia.

A four-year letterwinner at Midwestern State University, Hedlund was twice voted to the NAIA All-America team in college. He scored 26 goals and added 12 assists playing several different positions on the pitch. He was named the Most Valuable Player in the 1983 NAIA National Tournament, as he led the Mustangs to the championship game. He is a member of Midwestern State’s Athletic Hall of Honor.The Plano native holds a bachelor’s degree in criminal justice from Midwestern State and resides in Argyle with his wife, Julie. They have two sons: Chad, who played football at Wake Forest and SMU and Cole, who is currently on the Mean Green football team and set the national high school football record for field goals made for Argyle High School in 2011.

Dylan Burnett
Assistant Coach & Recruiting Coordinator

Dylan Burnett joined the Mean Green soccer staff prior to the 2021 season.

Joining the Mean Green was somewhat of a return to North Texas for Burnett as he was hired as a volunteer assistant for UNT in 2020 but due to the postponement of the season those plans were put on hold.

Burnett took the opportunity to teach health and coach the girls soccer team at Denton's Braswell High School for the 2020-2021 school year. At Braswell, Burnett coached five 5-6A All District selections and the team improved their win total by three from the previous season.

But coaching in Conference USA is be nothing new to Burnett. The 2014 Lincoln Memorial University alum was an assistant coach at Southern Miss from 2017-18, which were two of the Golden Eagles' most successful seasons in program history. Burnett was responsible for helping recruit some of the most talented Dallas/ Fort Worth student-athletes to Hattiesburg. USM's 2018 C-USA Tournament finals appearance was the first time in program history they had reached the finals of a conference tournament.

The Golden Eagles saw three all-conference selections, three all-conference tournament selections and two all-south region selections for their 2018 effort.

Burnett also has head college coaching experience. He served the 2019 season as the head men's soccer coach at Mississippi University for Women where he led the program to its first appearance at the USCAA National Tournament and improved its previous win total by two. He was responsible for coaching three All-Academic Americans, two National Player of the Week accolades and two National Goalkeeper of the Week accolades.

Burnett earned his Bachelor's of Science Degree in Kinesiology with minors in health and strength and conditioning. Burnett also holds his Texas & Tennessee Practitioner Teaching license, a NSCAA National Diploma, USSF E License, NSCAA Level 1 Diploma, NSCAA Goalkeeping 2 diploma, a NSCAA Futsal Level 1 diploma, an Advanced National Diploma & is working on his Premier Diploma. He has his Master's of Science in Sports Coaching Education from Southern Miss.

Alexsis Cable
Assistant Coach & Camp Contact

Alexsis Cable, a 2017 North Texas alum, joined the Mean Green soccer coaching staff as an assistant coach prior to th 2021 season.

Cable played for head coach John Hedlund and the Mean Green from 2015-16 and was a member of the elite 2015 squad that won a program-best 19 matches and won the 2015 C-USA regular season and tournament titles. As a senior in 2016, she guided the Mean Green to the 2016 regular season title however her season was cut short due to an injury.

Prior to joining UNT coaching staff, Cable was the interim head coach at Nicholls State where she coached for two seasons. She also served as a graduate assistant at Northwestern State University for two seasons before heading to Nicholls.

Cable earned a Bachelor of Science in Integrative Studies from North Texas and a Master of Science in Health & Human Performance from Northwestern State in May 2019. She grew up just down the road from the UNT campus and is a 2013 graduate from Marcus High School.

The University of North Texas Soccer Camp Coaching Staff is made up of talented collegiate, olympic development, and high school coaches, who are assisted by current UNT Soccer Student Athletes.