Siena University Athletics

"We are fortunate to have Cesar join our staff and lead our men's soccer program," said director of athletics John D'Argenio at the time of his hiring. "He has proven that his teams achieve athletically while performing in the classroom as well. His experience as a head coach and having won championships will be a benefit to the young men on the team and the College."

Markovic previously served as the head coach at NJIT (2011-12), Stony Brook (2004-11), Saint Peter's (2000-04) and his alma mater, Division III Hunter (N.Y.) College (1995-00) and is the winningest head coach in program history all four institutions. Markovic has led his programs to four NCAA Tournament Appearances, guiding Saint Peter's into the College Cup field in 2003 and Stony Brook in 2005 and 2009. Both Markovic's 2003 Saint Peter's and 2005 Stony Brook squads each won First Round games. He also led Hunter to the regional semifinals of the 1999 NCAA Division III Tournament.

A pair of Saints earned Second Team All-MAAC honors during the team's 2019 campaign, with senior Conor McGlynn and junior Alejandro Riquelme each getting the nod. The teams's total offense saw an increase on the year, scoring 73 points for its best output since 06. Under Markovic's direction, a program-record 13 Saints were named to the MAAC All-Academic Team and the program received a team Academic Excellence award from United Soccer Coaches for the seventh time in the last eight years. 

Markovic guided a pair of young rising stars to postseason honors during the 2018 season. Freshman Aaron Martin and Birgir Thorsteinsson were both named to the 2018 MAAC All-Rookie team, with Martin taking home three Rookie of the Week honors and the pair ranking inside the top-3 in scoring on the team. Overall, the Saints improved their overall record by one and their MAAC mark by two from 2017, taking home victories in two of their last threee matches to close out the year. 

The 2017 season saw Markovic earn his 200th career victory, a 2-1 road overtime defeat of Sacred Heart on Sept. 16, 2017. The Saints showed grit and determination in conference play, tying eventual MAAC champion Fairfield, 1-1, on the road, and knocking off #22 Rider at home, 2-1, for their first win over a nationally-ranked opponent since 2014. Siena saw two players, redshirt senior captain Danilo Markovic (First Team) and freshman Alejandro Riquelme (Second Team) earn All-MAAC honors, with Riquelme also receiving a nod on the MAAC All-Freshman squad. The first four-time team captain in program history, Markovic also received Second Team All-Region honors from the United Soccer Coaches, and Riquelme was tabbed as the Siena Male Rookie of the Year at the athletic department's annual year-end awards banquet. Seven players were named to the MAAC All-Academic Team, while 12 were placed on the MAAC Academic Honor Roll. 

Siena continued to make progress under Markovic in 2016, advancing to the MAAC Semifinals for the second consecutive season. The Saints caught fire late, going unbeaten in 10 of their final 13 matches to finish 8-8-5 overall. Siena posted a 6-3-1 league mark to finish third in the MAAC, and mark the program's best conference finish in five seasons. The 2016 campaign was highlighted by the program earning its first-ever home postseason match, and ousting Monmouth in penalties. The Saints tied a program record with three MAAC All-Rookie Team honorees, and Siena was ranked 21st nationally in the first TopDrawerSoccer Top-25 Poll of the regular season following an impressive season-opening victory over LIU Brooklyn. 

In 2015, the Saints continued to achieve program firsts under Markovic. For the first-time ever, Siena won multiple matches in a single MAAC Tournament, advancing to the conference semifinals as the No. 6 seed.

The following spring, Markovic was appointed Assistant Coach/Technical Assessor of the Puerto Rican National Team, which reached the Third Round of the Caribbean Cup for the first time ever. 

Markovic has wasted no time in turning the Saints into a contender. In just his second season in 2014, Markovic led Siena to a 10-8-2 overall record including a 5-3-2 mark in league play which secured the Saints the No. 5 seed in the MAAC Championships. Siena's 10 wins were tied for the second most in program history and Markovic guided the Saints to the program's first-ever undefeated home season (6-0-2). Additionally, the Saints started a perfect 4-0 for the first time in program history, which included a victory over 23rd ranked Boston University. For two consecutive weeks in mid-September the Saints received votes in the NSCAA Top-25 Poll with a peak of 24 votes on Sept. 16 which marked the 32nd highest total in the nation. The Saints were also ranked as high as second in the Northeast in the NSCAA's regional rankings the week prior.

Prior to being named the head coach at Siena, Markovic spent the previous two seasons at NJIT where he led the Highlanders to their best mark at the Division I level in 2012 in posting a 10-9 record. NJIT was ranked in the NSCAA North Atlantic Poll throughout the season, achieving a peak ranking of third. In his first season, he guided NJIT to its first win over an ACC opponent, defeating Virginia Tech.

Markovic began his collegiate head coaching career at Hunter in 1995, leading his alma mater to the conference title in all five of his years. He was twice named the CUNYAC Coach of the Year and also earned Skyline Conference Coach of the Year honors.

At Saint Peter's, Markovic led the Peacocks to a school-record 18 wins in 2003 and was named the MAAC Coach of the Year. Inheriting a program that had gone 14 years without a 10-win season, Markovic guided Saint Peter's to a 10-win campaign in 2002 prior to the Peacocks' record-setting 2003 season.

Known for leading programs to quick turnarounds, it took Markovic only until his season year to turn Stony Brook into a contender. In 2005 he led the Seawolves to a school-record 13 wins and first-ever NCAA Tournament Appearance en route to being named the BigAppleSoccer.com Coach of the Year.

Markovic began his coaching career at St. John's Prep in Astoria, N.Y. from 1991-93, leading the school to Catholic High Schools City and Sectional titles in 1993. From there, he matriculated to Queensborough Community College in Bayside, N.Y. in 1994.

Markovic holds a USSF A License, the highest granted in USA Soccer, an NSCAA Premier License, and he was among the first American coaches granted a Brazilian Professional Coaching license after serving as an apprentice/assistant with the famed Sao Paulo FC. He also served as an assistant coach stateside with the professional Long Island Rough Riders in 1997 and 1998.

A native of Queens, N.Y., Markovic enjoyed a stellar collegiate playing career at Hunter where he is a member of the College's Hall of Fame. He earned his bachelor's degree from Hunter in 1992 and his Masters of Science from Hofstra University in 1997. He is married to Tijana and has four children: Danilo, a 2018 Siena graduate who was a four-year captain on the men's soccer team, Alessandro, a 2020 Siena graduate on the men's soccer team, Nikola and Viktorija.

Year-by-Year With Coach Markovic