Out-of-state recruit Bobby Weinberg (Louisville, Ky.) began crafting an immediate second home for himself very quickly after his parents dropped him off at Otterbein, arriving to a men’s soccer program littered with talent, expectations and kids mostly from Central Ohio.

A dynamic athlete, Weinberg played three sports in high school but had now settled on joining the reigning Ohio Athletic Conference champions as a promising midfielder. The quick-footed tactician, not huge in stature at just 5-foot-9 and roughly 150 pounds, featured Division I pace/quickness yet was going to be happy with whatever playing time he received as a true freshman. Bobby learned the ropes quickly during his inaugural season as the Cardinals won the second of three straight OAC crowns, advancing to the NCAA Sweet 16 before a narrow one-goal loss. The natural runner not only had a great engine to find gaps and cover huge parts of the field but possessed the intelligence to lull defenders into a false sense of security before storming by.

Beginning his career as an outside midfielder before working into the center, Weinberg helped lead Otterbein to a 19-1-1 record as a sophomore - where the team won a third consecutive OAC title, reached as high as No. 5 in the national rankings and made the NCAA second round. However, after graduating some critical pieces, the team finished tied for fourth in the conference standings (and missed the postseason) during his challenging junior year. But it’s not necessarily how hard you can hit. It’s more about how hard you can get hit and keep moving forward. Bobby did just that in lifting his squad back atop the league throne as a senior, where he netted the game-winning goal in the second half of the OAC Tournament Finals at Wilmington. That impressive campaign warranted him OAC Midfielder of the Year, first team All-Great Lakes Region and prestigious second team NSCAA All-American honors. The three-time All-OAC standout was responsible for 82 points during his undergraduate years, coming by way of 29 goals and 24 assists.

Bobby had truly fallen in love with the program, deciding to stick around to obtain a master’s degree while serving as graduate assistant coach the next two years. Otterbein won two more conference titles with him on staff, including a memorable 2002 journey that carried all the way to the national championship match. The Cardinals would fall just short in a 1-0 loss to settle as NCAA runner-up.

All in all, Weinberg enjoyed a combined 99-26-4 record during his time at Otterbein; 65-16-1 as a player and 34-10-3 as a coach. The Cards were also 41-11-1 against the league over that span.

Bobby, receiving an undergraduate degree in business before his subsequent MBA, went on to a lengthy career with Worthington Enterprises. He and his wife (Abby) share four children – two sons and two daughters.