The Portland Timbers announced today that Caleb Porter has been hired as the club’s next head coach. The 37-year old has been the head coach at the University of Arkon since 2006 where he won the 2010 NCAA title with Darlington Nagbe among his star players. Porter will remain at Akron throughout the 2012 season and will formally join the Timbers in mid-December.

Said general manager and interim coach Gavin Wilkinson in a press release, “Caleb is ambitious and one of the most respected coaches in the nation. He has consistently developed and produced talented players who have gone on to excel in MLS. We feel that his mentality, personality, skill set and coaching philosophy are a tremendous fit with the culture of the Timbers organization and we’re excited to bring Caleb on as the Timbers head coach.”

Porter added, through the same press release, “I know that Merritt [Paulson] and Gavin are committed to long-term success for the Timbers and come December, I will be completely focused and driven to continue building a professional club in which the Timbers supporters, city and organization will be proud of. In the meantime, out of respect to the Akron program, I will not be commenting further on this matter until after the conclusion of the 2012 college season.”

Timbers owner and president Merritt Paulson said, in conclusion, “Put simply, I believe Caleb Porter is the best young soccer coaching mind in the country. He is the right fit for the Timbers on every level. We went through an exhaustive and thorough search over the last couple months where we spoke with some truly excellent candidates, but Caleb quickly emerged as the consensus target. We look forward to 2013 and beyond with Caleb at our helm.”

Wilkinson will see out the remainder of the 2012 season as Porter completes the year at Akron.