IOWA CITY, Iowa – The University of Iowa soccer team welcomes assistant coach J.P. Valadares to the staff. Valadares joins the Hawkeyes after two seasons as the goalkeepers coach at Southern Miss.

“I first off want to thank Beth Goetz and Matt Henderson for supporting our program with the additional full-time position,” head coach Dave DiIanni said. “J.P. was highly recommended amongst many of my peers who had firsthand knowledge of who he was as a person. First off, his passion and love for the game, and his unique and special ability to coach the goalkeeping position. We welcome he and his wife, Gillian, to our Hawkeye Soccer family.”

Valadares has served as director of goalkeepers for the Olympic Development Program (ODP) in Mississippi and also was part of the ODP South Region staff.

At Southern Miss, Valadares was the first goalkeepers coach to lead the team to back-to-back seasons with a save percentage of .800 or higher. In 2022, the Golden Eagles set a program-best .860 save percentage.

Over the past two seasons, the Golden Eagles posted .95 goals against average, an improvement from 1.38 goals against over the previous three years. Valadares coached his keepers to a school record .83 goals against average during the 2021 season.

Valadares was the third position coach in C-USA history to guide multiple goalkeepers to conference goalkeeper of the week recognition during the same season. Under the guidance of Valadares, Kendell Mindnich earned multiple weekly honors, as well as all-conference and all-conference tournament recognition.

Prior to Southern Miss, Valadares spent the 2018 and 2019 seasons as goalkeepers coach for the Pearl River Community College men’s and women’s soccer programs.

During his stint at PRCC, Valadares helped develop some of the top goalkeepers in the MACJC. Across both teams, Valadares trained four conference weekly award winners and one All-Region XXIII selection.

The men’s and women’s teams each advanced to the conference semifinals in both of his two seasons at Pearl River.

Prior to coaching, Valadares was a decorated collegiate and youth player. He competed for William Carey during the 2011, 2016 and 2017 seasons at goalkeeper, leading the Crusaders to the 2011 NAIA Final Four.

At the youth level, Valadares played for the America Futebol Clube’s U-17 team, which is a first division club in Brazil.

A Brazil native, Valadares returned home to attend law school at Pontifical Catholic University of Minas Gerais in Belo Horizonte, Brail, after his freshman season at William Carey. In 2014, he returned to William Carey to finish his bachelor’s.

Valadares has a master’s in education from William Carey University. He is married to wife Gillian Valadares.