Eric Quill leaves New Mexico United to coach MLS FC Dallas

Three words can effectively sum up Eric Quill’s coaching tenure with New Mexico United: Short but sweet.

Quill’s successful 17-month run with United came to an end Wednesday when the club announced he has accepted the head-coaching position with MLS FC Dallas. It’s a homecoming for Quill and his wife, Susan, who are Texas natives. Quill played for FC Dallas and coached in Texas previously.

Quill said it was the only position he would have considered.

“Nothing else was going to take me away,” Quill said. “I always thought of FC Dallas as a dream job and this is a blessing for our family, but it’s also bittersweet. I was looking forward to building a roster, coming back next year and winning a championship. Coaching New Mexico United has been unbelievable — nothing but positive.”

Quill informed NMU owner/CEO Peter Trevisani on Monday that he had accepted the job in Dallas and the club reached a buyout agreement on the final two years of Quill’s New Mexico contract. Quill informed the rest of United’s staff Wednesday morning.

“I’ve had a couple days to process it and I’m still going through the stages of grief,” Trevisani said. “It’s tough to see Coach Quill go but I’m happy for him and his family. He did an incredible job here and created a winning mentality and style of play that we can keep and build on as we move forward.”

Quill took over as United’s head coach midway through the 2023 season and led an unlikely late surge to the USL Championship’s final Western Conference playoff spot.

In what would be his lone full season with the club, Quill coached New Mexico to a first-place conference finish, setting team records for wins and points. United secured and won its first-ever home playoff game before falling to Las Vegas in the conference semifinals. NMU also advanced to the U.S. Open Cup quarterfinals in 2024, defeating MLS Real Salt Lake at Isotopes Park along the way.

“I really appreciate the way New Mexico’s taken us in with open arms,” Quill said. “The loyalty and passion of the fans is amazing, and really just the beauty of the state and the people here. We were one state over but we never really traveled to New Mexico. I’m so glad we got to experience it. It’s been a great adventure.”

Trevisani said Quill’s departure did not come entirely by surprise. FC Dallas announced it would be starting a coaching search during the late stages of United’s regular season.

”Eric told me FC Dallas was his dream job,” Trevisani said. “But to his credit, he told them he wouldn’t even talk to them until after our first home playoff game. That was a risk because they could have hired someone else, but he was laser focused on our season.”

Quill finished with a 28-21-10 overall mark in USLC regular-season and playoff games. United players often referred to him as demanding but also said they appreciated his honesty and his drive to be successful.

”He pushed the players,” Trevisani said, “and he really appreciated the ones he called, ‘climbers,’ who were focused on improving themselves and advancing their careers. That mentality is something he relates to.”

Quill becomes the second United coach to move on to a head position in MLS. Troy Lesesne, who led NMU from 2019-21, is the head coach for D.C. United. Zach Prince, who was promoted to United head coach in 2022, moved on to join Lesesne as an assistant in June 2023, opening the door for Quill.

”Eric didn’t try to reinvent the wheel right away when he got here,” Trevisani said. “He recognized that Troy and Zach had put good pieces in place. He just thought we needed more of a winning mentality, giving players more freedom and more responsibility. He brought that and it’s not something we’re going to lose.”

United sporting director Itamar Keinan will take the lead in the upcoming search for Quill’s replacement. Trevisani mentioned the club has strong assistant coaches on staff and said United had already received “a ton of emails” from prospective candidates by midday Wednesday.

”I look at it as a badge of honor,” Trevisani said. “We’ve established New Mexico United as a solid platform in the USL Championship where people can enhance their careers. We’re gonna get a lot of interest.”

Trevisani said United has numerous players returning next season from its 2024 roster — a list the club plans to release in the coming days. Still, United will be in the market to fill some roster openings and Trevisani hopes to complete the upcoming coaching search in “a few weeks.”

But Wednesday, he said, was about saying goodbye to Quill.

”Eric said he wants to be here when we open our new stadium,” Trevisani said, “and he wants to be there when we raise our first championship cup. In a relatively short time, he made a generational impact on our club. As far as I’m concerned, he’s a New Mexican for life.”

Quill said club leadership including Trevisani, Keinan and club president Ron Patel give him confidence that United will continue its upward trajectory.

”I’ll be super interested to see what United does next year. I hope they win a championship,” Quill said. “Maybe we can play each other in Open Cup. That would be fun.”