When It's Time to Say Goodbye
6 years, 10 states (+ 1 district), 3 names + a pro club launch, 80+ players, 10 trophies = 1 experience of a lifetime
6 years, 10 states (+ 1 district), 3 names + a pro club launch, 80+ players, 10 trophies = 1 experience of a lifetime
Now that the 2022 Maryland Bobcats FC season has ended, it’s time for me to announce that my time with the club is ending as well, and to say thank you and goodbye.
How did I get here?
I attribute the last 6 years of my life to pure luck (and maybe a bit of hard work). After playing the game I love for 18 years straight (yep, I started at age 3), when I graduated from college I was sure that I’d want to hang up the boots, at least for a little while. I moved back to Maryland (to––you guessed it––Baltimore), where just 1 month after graduation I got the itch to play again.
At that time, the Maryland Major Soccer League had a free-agent page on their website as a resource to bring together players looking for a team and clubs looking for players. I threw my name and info on the page, and the first person who emailed me was Jay Saba (one of our now owners), saying their team (at the time, Next Level Graduates, which soon after became World Class Premier Elite, which ultimately became MD Bobcats FC (MBFC)) was looking for another goalkeeper. Here comes the luck––If another club had emailed me first, I most likely never would’ve hooked up with Jay’s team/club and never would’ve worked for MBFC. One email, pure happenstance, changed the course of my life in ways I never could have imagined.
Fast-forward to my being half-asleep on an away bus trip, when I heard the coaches talking about how they’d like to increase the team’s social media presence, and my ears perked up––that’s what I did professionally, so I volunteered to take on that role for the team. I kept volunteering for more tasks, responsibilities, and work, as the owners wanted to grow the club both on and off the field. I don’t think I understood the word “no” when it came to the club. It felt special at the time, but little did I know how special it would become.
While I still had my “real job” (as I liked to call it), MBFC was a passion project, and I felt so lucky to be a part of it. After months and months of conversations, emails, calls, research, and––oh yeah––a pandemic starting, we decided to make the jump to professional soccer and were now gearing up to join the National Independent Soccer Association (NISA). I (unsurprisingly) volunteered to help lead the charge for this next huge chapter for the club. My days were getting busier, my MBFC responsibility list was getting longer, and I still had my real job to focus on and do to the best of my ability (and with people whom I really loved).
Working in sports––and soccer in particular––had been my dream for as long as I could remember (once I quickly realized I’d never actually PLAY the sport professionally). Prior to the announcement about MBFC joining NISA, I knew that the team needed someone full-time to manage the buildup, operations, marketing, and so much more as we got ready for the professional game. I made it clear to the owners that it did not have to be me. But after almost 4 years with the club, 2+ of which was “front office” work (basically me working two jobs), the owners put their faith in me, a 25-year-old kid who had no pro team experience prior to this, and––for lack of a better description––handed me the keys to the club and trusted me to help them get to kick off in NISA. Every single day since, I’ve worked as hard as I can to repay them for that faith and opportunity.
I’m pretty sure that even in my wildest dreams I never imagined that something like this was possible. I’ve spent a lot of time, energy, and emotion to help the club in any way I could to get it to where it is now. The club has been on my mind every second of every day. Everything I’ve done––professionally and personally––has been to help the club and our players grow and be the best they can be. And I haven’t done it alone––we’ve been fortunate to have a great core group of people involved with the club––many of whom are still involved to this day––and having their support, efforts, and commitment helped propel MBFC forward more quickly than I think any of us thought was possible.
We brought professional soccer to Maryland!
These words still amaze me, and the whole process has been incredible. There have been other groups that have tried, done great initially, and folded almost as fast as they started. MBFC just wrapped up year two as a pro club (remember, we launched during the pandemic), and the steps forward we’ve taken in year two from year one have been massive. To do this in my home state has made it even more special.
Let’s talk about the fans.
The fact that people––STRANGERS––spend their hard-earned money and valuable time on the club is something I’ve never taken for granted. In 2021, we averaged a hair under 400 fans per game. This year, 2022, we more than doubled that number, averaging more than 800 fans per game, including two matches where more than 1,000 fans “packed the ‘Plex” to cheer on the boys.
We have fans who genuinely care about the club and come out to every match, no matter what. They’ve become the backbone of our supporters’ culture and helped to define what being an MBFC fan means. They cheer! They chant! The fully independent Old Bae Brigade formed––and brought their drums! They harassed the other teams (some took it better than others). The flags, jerseys, drums, and club colors amazed me at every home game. We owe it to our fans for making the Maryland SoccerPlex a fun place to watch a game, and for motivating us to a 7-match unbeaten streak at the SoccerPlex to end the year
#ForAll.
More special––and more important to me––than being just a club that plays soccer, is the work the club does off the field, away from the game itself: getting into our community, connecting fans of the beautiful game, making sure we leave our community a better place than we found it. Using our platform as a soccer club to positively impact the people around us has always been our goal. Modeling how a soccer club can be “more than a club” and showing that no matter how big or small you are, win or lose, you can always be a positive force in the world is what’s so special about MBFC.
We’ve worked hard to make sure that #ForAll isn’t just a hashtag, but a way of thinking, a way of acting. From our Youth teams up to the First Team, it’s been engrained that everyone deserves to be a part of the best game in the world and that everyone should be able to be a part of our club––whether as a player, coach, staff member, or fan.
Using our club as a force for good is more important than any on-field results (despite how much I hang on every final scoreline). It’s one thing to be a good team on the field. It’s another thing to promote inclusivity and positivity in the community. And it’s another thing entirely to do your best to marry the two.
Thank yous.
I have so many people to thank, and I certainly will forget not just one, but many of them here. Just know that, whether listed here or not, if you touched the club in any way, I forever will be grateful.
To our owners: Thank you for the faith you put in me, and for giving me the chance to live out the dream. You could have picked anyone to run the first iteration of the club as a professional organization, and I’ll always be indebted that you chose me. It has been the job of a lifetime to launch the first professional men’s soccer club in my home state, and I hope I met to your expectations, and then some.
To Jay, in particular: Thank you for allowing me to try things, give suggestions, and do things others might think are crazy. I’m thankful you had so much faith in me and that we were able to talk almost every day for the past 3 years, whether about soccer, life, and everything in between.
To the players: Thank you for letting me be a small part of your soccer journey. Thanks for bearing with me as I learned, experimented, and sent one-too-many WhatsApp text reminders.
I hope I made your lives even a little bit easier. I know a lot of players have come and gone, but helping you on with your careers has been one of the most rewarding aspects of my job. Whether you were offered a new contract, played every game, were on the bench, or helped us get to where we are today in the amateur days, I hope I was always a positive voice and was able to have the smallest impact to make you a better player and person.
You guys are the reason I love this job so much, and being able to see you play, score, smile, and live out your dreams has been the best thing about long gamedays. You’ve made me a fan of the club, not just an employee.
To the Staff: There are so many staff behind the scenes, many of you who volunteered your time, that helped make the club run.
Kalin, Adam, Edwin––Thanks for laying the groundwork for what being a part of MBFC means and for giving your all for us at every match. I hope that I was a decent enough boss and was able to help you get experience in areas you wanted and drive your careers forward.
To Haley: You’ve lived this job along with me. Thank you for your constant support and unwavering willingness to have our house be MBFC HQ, to have (at least) 75% of the clothes I wear be MBFC-related, and to jump in and help me when I’ve been strapped for support. You’ve been the biggest support system through this entire journey, sharing in the ups and downs, but always getting excited and helping wherever you could. I wouldn’t have been able to do this job without you, and sharing it with you has made it that much better.
To Protagonist Soccer and, in particular, Dan Creel: Thank you for making the club feel legitimate. I think a lot of the early push to keep building was due to the articles and coverage you gave us (even if it seemed like me, Jay, and my parents were the only ones reading them). Your words of encouragement, coverage, and dedication to not just MBFC, but to lower league soccer as a whole, made us feel like we weren’t crazy for trying to make it work.
Dan Creel––Thanks for being such a staunch supporter of our club and the work we were doing. I can’t tell you how much it meant to have you there on gamedays, whether as a reporter or fan, and to know that someone cared enough to be there each and every match. When we’re both at a match together (as fans), the first beer is on me.
To the people who’ve helped me grow: This list is too long, and I know I’m going to forget at least one person, and most likely more than one. Ron Gilmore, Jeremy Alumbaugh, Peter Wilt, Ron Patel, Steve Johnson, Owen Seaton, Michael Collins, and many, many more. I’m sure I annoyed more than one of you with my calls, texts, or emails asking questions, bouncing ideas off of you, and asking “what else can we do?”. The soccer community has been a fantastic help to me as I learned to navigate the ins and outs of running a club. I am forever thankful for those people who took time out of their own days, lives, and clubs to talk to me, grab a beer, and answer my calls.
To the fans (I still can’t believe I get to type that!): There are FANS (plural) that support the Bobcats each week, home or away. They supported us in year one as a pro club, but year two went better than I could have hoped. Getting to meet, talk to, and laugh with so many different fans at home games was the biggest rush. People not only were coming out to the games (up over 100% attendance this year), but were excited to tell me how much fun they were having, how much they enjoyed the game, and how they like what we are doing. To have our vision and hard work enjoyed and shared by so many people outside of the club is the biggest validation we could get. Thank you, fans, for giving our players and staff a great group to play in front of and for making the SoccerPlex feel like home. Alex, Mike, Don, Sam, Christian, Angus, and more––Thanks for being such vocal supporters of the club and, when needed, demanding more. You’re the heartbeat of the club and have helped us to continue to push and have even higher standards for ourselves.
What’s been the best part?
The best part of this job is hard to nail down. Is it the fact that it’s soccer, the game I’ve loved for 24 years? That I got to watch our players––many of whom hadn’t played professional soccer before––take the field in their home state in front of their friends and family? That we have kids from all over the state come together and cheer for us, their local club? The relationships I’ve made not just from within our club, but from all the other clubs, leagues, and more around the country and world?
Surprise! It’s a combination of everything.
This job was a dream for me as a 25-year-old kid who hadn’t ever run a professional soccer club. I’ll always remember the faith that was shown in me by our ownership, and the players and staff we had to do the job that needed to be done. Being able to be just a small part of the story of MBFC, of where we began and how far we’ve come, has been incredible. I couldn’t be prouder to say I was a part of Maryland Bobcats FC.
I’ve worn a lot of hats while with MBFC, almost too many to count. I’ve been a social media manager, Board rep, sponsorship salesman, operations manager, capital raiser, photographer, gameday manager, travel coordinator, webmaster, communications director, league liaison, waterboy, referee, ticket salesman, PxP broadcaster, marketing director, and yes, even kitman. Learning all these roles––and doing the absolute best I could in each of them––helped me grow, learn to solve new problems, and feel connected to the players and club more than I would have otherwise.
My goal was always to make the lives of our players, staff, and owners as easy and stress-free as possible, and I hope I did an okay job at that.
To the game I love.
If it wasn’t for the best game in the world, I wouldn’t have been able to experience this journey. From 3 years old through today, soccer has been an integral part of my life. It’s brought me joy, sadness, travel, memories, best friends, a fiancé, and so many other wonderful things. The thing about soccer is it’s so simple and can bring so many people together. The wins and losses will fade, but the emotion, memories, experiences, and relationships will last forever. There’s not much better in life than football and to be able to have it be my life––as a job––for the last 3 years has been a dream come true. The game has brought me so much over the course of my life and I like to think all my experiences with the game up until this point culminated with the Bobcats and what we have been able to build.
I will forever be a supporter of this club (the best club in the galaxy) and will be at games, beer in hand, when I can make it, and following along online like everyone else when I can’t. This club will be a piece of me forever. My role was more than a job, more than a club, and more than a project. This club has been a huge part of my identity for more than 3 years. It was––and always will be––an integral piece of me and my life’s story.
I can’t wait to sit back and watch where the club goes from here. It’s got great people involved and this year, more than any other year, set the stage for what’s to come.
Until we meet again, Up the Fucking Bobcats.
