College of Wooster Women’s Soccer – Coach Geordie Brown
On today’s episode, I speak with Coach Brown from the Wooster Women’s Program in Ohio. We talk about how their recruiting cycles overlap. He describes the true community both at the school and in the town. Lastly, we discuss their roster size that is geared to support everyone. Learn more about College of Wooster Women’s Soccer.
Matt: [00:00:00] Hi, everybody. Welcome to Discover College Soccer. Today, I’m lucky enough to be joined by Coach Geordie Brown at Wooster in Ohio. Welcome, Coach.
Coach: Thanks so much for having me, Matt.
Matt: Thanks for being here. Uh, we were just, just chatting before, uh, you know, I grew up not too far from you guys, uh, and it was good to see on your roster, a girl from my hometown.
And actually I used to run the Arlington soccer association. You got a girl from Arlington, Virginia on the roster. Uh, and, and one thing I noticed though, looking at the roster. Uh, for a division three, you have quite a breadth of locations, uh, of your, of your girls on there. A lot of times it tends to be more regionally focused, but you’ve got a good, a good swath there.
So when it, when it comes to recruiting, you know, how, how do you go about it to, to kind of get that broad spectrum of players from different places?
Coach: Well, I think it has to mirror our school and, you know, with, with Worcester being a national liberal arts college. You know, we’re attracting students from all over the country and lots of countries around the world.
Um, you know, they, they find Worcester, Ohio for some reason, and, uh, has a very good reputation. Um, so we, we try to mimic that in, in our recruiting and, uh, you know, Be attractive to students from different parts of the country who are looking for this kind of an experience.
Matt: Yeah, well, you know, we’re talking here middle into January.
It’s a college showcase season. Um, so [00:01:30] help me understand kind of your guys timeline because you are that kind of high academic liberal arts school like it. Is class 2024 locked and loaded? Are you on the 25s? What kind of, what’s your normal timeline in a recruiting year?
Coach: Well, um, I would like to be done with 24s, but, uh, there’s been a lot of issues with, uh, the FAFSA coming out late this year.
And that’s, I think that’s pushed a lot of families back, uh. Uh, by by months, unfortunately. Um, so we’re probably three quarters or more through the 2024 class. Um, but classes kind of overlap, um, cycles overlap. And, uh, you know, we’re already deep into 25 scratching the surface of, of, of 26 and potentially talking to 27 if they’re ready.
Wow.
Matt: Okay. Well, what are the, the places you like to go to watch players? What are the tournaments that are kind of on your, your must see list?
Coach: You know, I, I think the, the recruiting landscape changes every, every few years and tournaments, you know, that were big five to 10 years ago or have kind of faded out and new, new events come along.
So I think you have to be very, very flexible in, in how you go about recruiting. Um, You know, we still have three or four, what I would call local events, which are, you know, within our region. And I would include a blue chip in Cincinnati, uh, crossroads in, in Indy. Um, that’s two [00:03:00] of those. Um, so we get to some regional events like that.
Uh, we go to Raleigh, uh, late in the fall. Um, I was in St. Louis, uh, for an ECRL event. Just before Christmas, uh, and then hit Florida for the, uh, ECRL, ECNL events, um, and again, I think it’s, you try to go where the players are and, and that can change from year to year. So we have a defined recruiting budget, but then if we want to go somewhere special, um, you know, a surf cup or something like that, we can.
Uh, apply for a grant that, that gets us there and it might not be there every single year, but, uh, just to try to make inroads in, in different communities and different areas where we can get our kids from. Okay.
Matt: Well, it makes sense. Sorry. I missed you in Sanford. Uh, I was there for, for that event. And then of course.
The NL event was here in my backyard, but I had to be in Sanford. So go figure. Um, how about ID camps? Those have kind of, uh, like you said, the recruiting landscape, the ebbs and flows and changes in recruiting ID camps seem to be all the rage these days. Do you guys do your own ID camps? Do you, your staff work others?
Did they come into play at all for you all?
Coach: So. It was something I was, I was probably philosophically opposed to when they first came out, you know, it was kind of a money grab and I, you know, I didn’t want to kind of jump into that. And then it kind of became from the, from the student push became, well, this is how we’re going to look at your school.
And I kind of want to come to something. And so we went into it on a, on a smaller basis and [00:04:30] we keep it on a, on a very small basis. We have just one in the summer that we’ve had for the last 5 or 6 years and keep it to about 30, 32 kids where again, at the end of the day. We’ve been able to actually ID and evaluate and see where these kids who are coming to us, where they fit in our program and be able to give honest feedback.
And, you know, having been through, uh, the division 1, uh, ID camp situation with my son, you know, there’s just no comparison. So I know ID camps get a bad rap. Um, but I think in. In the right moment, it can be a great way for a student to look at your school to get some feedback with the coaches and vice versa.
And I think that’s, you know, kind of what. Families want to know is, hey, do you see me playing for your, for your team? Do I like you as a coach? Do I like your program? Um, so we’ll, we’ll continue to stay on a small scale. Um, we, we occasionally will go to, say, a Kent State or something like that, who offers a bigger, uh.
ID camp in our area. Um, but I wouldn’t say we’re out working a lot or hitting other people’s ID camps. We, we, we want kids who are interested in our school. And so we keep it to a kind of a minimum on our campus.
Matt: Okay. Well, whether it’s at an ID camp or a showcase or anything like that, kind of what makes up the, the hierarchy of things that you’re looking for in a player, whether that’s on the field or off the field attributes.
Coach: Well, I would, I would say, and I think the older a coach gets, the [00:06:00] more you, you look at. People skills and character as the main things that you start with and obviously, you know, when you’re just at an event, you see the player and you look at their mannerisms and things like that, but, um, you know, it starts with, with those things we’re looking for, for, you know, for good kids from good families who are going to make good teammates.
Um, you know, a lot of us are too old for drama. And so we want to try to, you know, recruit the right kinds of kids. Um, so it has to start with that. And then, you know, on, on the field, you’re looking for dynamic kids who, you know, want to compete. Um, you know, we’re going to talk about balance in academics and athletics, and you, you have to have a kid that is going to fit your profile and it’s going to thrive in your environment.
So, you know, I think you’re looking for the kid that’s going to compete and be athletic, be quick, have a good first touch, um, but just. You know, it’s also going to then congratulate the, their teammate when they scored or, you know, have the, the, the, the right non verbals when, when you’re watching them as well.
Matt: Okay. Well, let, let’s talk a little bit more about the school. I’m sure there’s folks maybe not familiar with Worcester. You have been there over three decades now, coach, which is, which is awesome to see, you know, I think a lot of the several Ohio D threes have those longstanding coaches, which is amazing.
Um, so, you know. What are some of the things that you find really just awesome about Wooster, maybe some things we wouldn’t even know just by going through the website?
Coach: Well, you know, it’s one of those [00:07:30] places that I think kind of grabs you when you, when you get here and it, and it just, you know, kind of makes you feel good.
It’s a, it’s a place where, um, People, I don’t know, I think they’re, they’re enjoying their experience. It’s a friendly, community friendly campus, and I think people enjoy being here. And I think that, you know, is something that when you, when you’re not happy, uh, you know, you start looking around. And I think we’ve been fortunate here to, to have a great situation.
Um, one that it was family driven as well. It was a place where I wanted to bring up my family and I, Felt that this was a great community to do that. Um, and, and when I talk about community, you know, Worcester is a small school. It’s about 2000 students in a town of about 28, 000. Um, so we’re not the only thing, but we are part of a community.
You know, the vast majority of coaches and faculty members all live in the community. So it is a community in the true sense of things. It’s not just, you know, a standalone place where people drive into and drive out at the end of the day. Um, so I think when we talk about community, we really feel those community bonds.
Um, we use those connections with our, our people in the community to help us with our students and to be able to place them in different situations. And we want them to be able to, you know, value what we have here as a community. So it’s a, I don’t know, it’s just a friendly place that keeps you around and, uh, you know, I, I think If you’re happy, [00:09:00] you’re going to, you’re going to stick around and you’re going to work hard to try to do a good job.
Matt: Okay. Well, you mentioned it before, um, you know, the balance of academics and athletics can be tough, especially at a, at a strong academic school. So specifically how do your student athletes really manage the, the pull of all their demands? Both as a soccer player and in the classroom and what kind of support systems does the school offer to help.
Coach: So I think, you know, it starts with obviously bringing in the right kind of students who are looking for for what we have a rigorous academic environment. I don’t know that it’s. A lot different from students who are high achievers in high school, you know, you have to be, um, a planner. You have to be a multitasker.
Um, you know, the, the, the students that are coming to us are used to being very active. And all we’re doing is taking that and, you know, changing it into maybe a more intense. Class setting, um, different expectations on, on homework. Um, but we want them to be, to be thriving in, in lots of things. We don’t want them to be very one dimensional and just be soccer players and go to class.
We want them to have a life outside of that. Um, the support networks we have, uh, you know, learning center, STEM zone, writing centers, tutoring available. Um, we’ve just instituted a new academic success program for our first year students to, again, to try to make sure nobody falls through the cracks. So, there’s help out there [00:10:30] if, uh, if people want to be helped, um, and I think our students do a wonderful job of keeping everything in its, in its place.
I think the one thing Worcester does, Matt, is, um, you know, we don’t have a conflict between a practice time and a class time. We have set hours where between four and seven, we don’t have class. And that’s awesome because that’s when we practice. So it’s never, you know, kind of a decision for a kid to have to.
Take a class or a practice. Um, and, and I think we have to navigate that as coaches when we set up a schedule to make sure we’re, we’re not traveling away and missing a lot of class too often. We miss a couple of classes a semester. And as long as we’re, you know, spreading that out, our students are going to be good students and work with the professors.
And, um. Hopefully not cause them any, you know, any harm academically.
Matt: Well, and that actually was perfect segue to my next question. And that is, can, can you walk me through what a, what a typical week might look like for pilots? Let’s put it in a, in the conference schedule, you know, where it’s a little bit more regular, you know, when is.
Meals and classes and practice and game cadence and all that kind of stuff. What’s a normal week look like?
Coach: So if it was a normal week, we’d probably have a midweek game and a Saturday game. Um, and our midweek games, uh, you know, are in the conference are scheduled by our conference. So it’s probably a Tuesday or Wednesday, uh, late afternoon or evening, depending on who we’re playing, [00:12:00] um, within an hour or two drive.
So again, the, you know, that will be. Dictating when we leave and what we do. But, you know, we probably if it were the Wednesday game, we practice Monday, like practice Tuesday, do some video, um, and then go off to our game Wednesday, recovery day, Thursday and again, prep again Friday. So you don’t have a lot of, you know, hard, intense practice times during conference season.
It’s also the second half of your of your season. So we’re, we’re going to be in that 4 to 6 kind of timeframe for practices, maybe even the game, um, the students would have. A full load is four classes normally, uh, some variance based on, you know, what, what subjects they’re in, but they take those Monday, Wednesday, Friday or Tuesday, Thursday, depending on when they’re available and what a student wants to be studying and where they are in school.
So you could have. Three classes, Monday, Wednesday, Friday, you can spread them out one late morning, couple early afternoon. You can stay out of the afternoon if you want to make sure that you’re, you know, ready for practice and you’re not going to miss anything or you can, you know, have them all afternoon and sleep a little bit later, but you have to be productive within your day.
And I think each each person is going to figure out. Where are they productive? When are they productive? How are they getting through their classes? And I think those are important things. So a typical day, you know, would see them in class for 2 or 3 hours, getting some work done prior to practice, coming out of the locker room about [00:13:30] 3.
30, getting ready, some of them stopping at the training room, getting ready. Prep for practice. Starting practice between 4 and 4. 15, and go until about 5. 45, almost 6 o’clock sometimes, depending on the day. Um, showering, eating in the dining hall, 7 o’clock, alright, time to get some, get some stuff done, or be involved in something else.
Um, so, obviously away games will dictate, you know, kind of, some of that. But, uh, yeah, four game, uh, four practices, two games, and a day off. That’s a typical week. Okay.
Matt: Well, you mentioned it a little bit earlier and that’s always a question of us parents, right? Uh, and that’s around financial aid and cost of attendance and that sort of thing.
So I’m not holding you to hard numbers here, but if you can just give me a broad strokes idea, you know, what would a player on an average basis be looking at? What, what does kind of the whole tuition and financial aid situation look like at Worcester?
Coach: So I’m going to avoid your question. Um, ultimately, Matt, it’s, it’s, it’s so variable depending on, on the, the, the student, the family, the family finances, the academic level of the student, um, I’ll just say that Worcester is very generous in finding, you know, financial aid packages, uh, for deserving students.
Uh, we, we have students from all different socioeconomic backgrounds, um, and, you know, the, the higher academic level somebody is, they’re going to qualify for more. academic scholarships, uh, the greater need in the family, there’s going to, going to be more qualifying [00:15:00] for, uh, for need based aid. So, you know, it really runs the gamut.
Uh, we, we have, we have students from all different parts of the country, as we talked about, and, um, and, and different, you know, different socioeconomic backgrounds. So I don’t think there’s a number. I think we, and to be honest with you, I don’t know what our players pay. Uh, it’s, it’s between them and financial aid and the admissions office.
Uh, and so we, we stay out of the financial picture altogether. Um, you know, we recruit them, we get them here, and then they work with financial aid and admissions to see if they can, um, get a package that allows their family to be able to afford to come here.
Matt: Fair enough. Fair enough. Let’s shift gears.
Let’s talk more about the on the field stuff. You guys had a fantastic season. Um, you know, in terms of, well, I guess more talking back about recruiting, but is there a roster size that you like to be at, that you’re trying to hit each season?
Coach: I wouldn’t say there’s one we’re trying to hit. I think it’s, you know, what can we support?
And I know a lot of. Schools have, you know, gone for reserve teams, JV teams. We have not. Um, I just, I just don’t feel like the experience that somebody is getting in those situations is something that I’m supportive of. And so, um, we’ve tried to keep the squad at 30 or less. Um, and, you know, we’re graduating eight this year.
Graduated eight last [00:16:30] year. Um, you know, so we’re, we’re looking at a class of about of about eight each year coming in. Um, and there’s not a lot of pressure to, you know, be at 32 or 34 or 36, because ultimately. And what is, I guess I look upon it as what is the experience of number 36? What are they getting?
So we try to just have players in the squad that have a reasonable opportunity of being on the field. You know, we can’t promise them they’re going to be on the field, but there’s a much greater chance if you’re, you know, one in 30 than one in 40. So we try to keep it at that level. And it just, you know, that works with our staff and, uh, and our facilities and our support and what we can do for the students here.
Matt: Well. Besides a roster of players, you got a coaching roster. So talk to me a little bit about your overall staff, as well as any support staff through the athletic department that help out with the team. What roles does everybody play there? That kind of thing.
Coach: So I have a full time assistant, Wes Davis, who’s been with me about 12 years.
And, uh, that’s again, unusual, uh, to have somebody in that position for as long and, uh, was as coached at Oberlin and Earlham. And, uh, so as a wealth of experience and, uh, you know, it’s super helpful to have somebody who you can rely on to run a practice. For us to break down a game to, you know, have great insights into the game is only drawback is he supports Liverpool.
Um, but, you know, we can’t have it all. Um, [00:18:00] and then we’ve, we’ve been blessed to have some part time volunteer coaches. Um, Carly Epler is a, is a grad of ours who’s been our goalkeeper coach for about 5 or 6 years, and she works in our experiential learning center here in Worcester. So it’s also a great resource for our players in that sense.
We’ve had a, uh, an older gentleman from the Cleveland area, a legend in his own time, Les Szabo, who’s a former, um, coach at, uh, many places. And he, uh, drives down, um, at various times of the day to, to come to practice and support the team. He’s been with us for about five years as well. Um, and then year by year, we have different volunteers around.
We’ve got a young lady from, uh, who’s a local. A girl who had just graduated from Houghton College this year and help us help out the team. Um, before she was going off to grad school. So we’re, we’re open to volunteer opportunities. Um, and again, all we do is get them involved, be around the players and, uh, and, and hopefully have, you know, another pair of eyes to help people out and then, you know, beyond, beyond the coaching staff, uh, you know, we have four full time trainers that work with the team.
We will have one of those who is specifically, um, um, Kind of designed for, for, for women’s soccer. So Jalen is our trainer. And, uh, again, it allows us to have somebody that gets to know the players, gets to know their ins and outs and what they need and can then report to me every day, how somebody is doing and her feedback as to how training is going.
Right now, the. The, you know, it’s our off season, [00:19:30] but obviously in in all college sports, there’s no off season. And so it’s our, it’s our, um, strength and conditioning season. So that with our strength and conditioning coach three days a week. Um, and again, obviously it’s, it’s, it’s an optional, but. Highly suggested.
Um, so Josh Mase is our strength and conditioning coach, and he works throughout the year with them, um, both in season and out of season. Um, and then, you know, you get your faculty athletic reps and things like that, who just support the team and give us the, the chance to have a bridge back to the academic side as well.
So really good network of people and, uh, you know, happy to have all those, those bodies who are, you know, looking out for the best interest of the students. Well,
Matt: let’s talk about you specifically then, uh, how would you describe kind of your style of coaching team style of play in the culture of the team that you’re trying to implement?
Coach: That’s always a tough question. And, and I, I think that, um, I think I’m very player centric and, and, uh, what I mean by that is that it has to work for them. You know, I have to be able to be thick skinned enough to say, okay, well, what’s not working for us? What would you like us to change? And take that as part of a of a feedback mechanism that we allow the students, you know, kind of an open forum to be able to give us that.
Um, we provide them with a practice plan ahead of time. So they know. What they’re doing, but more importantly, why they’re doing what they’re doing. And I think that that’s something that, you know, some of our [00:21:00] players will pour over the practice plan. And at first I thought, well, you know, is that a good thing?
And it’s been terrific because now we spend less time having to explain some of our, some of the things that we’re doing. We, we like to do a lot of new things. We, we try not to repeat stuff very often. Um, because ultimately that is the game, you know, you have to figure out problems. So we try to do a lot of things that are very fresh, but that means they have to learn it as well.
So I think we’ve tried to create something where they’re involved and we’re shaping what they need. And I think. That’s our playing style. You know, we can only have a playing style that our players can play. We can only play a system that is determined by the strengths of our players. So, you know, we don’t have one set system.
We’ll, we’ll change from year to year. We’ll change within, uh, within a season. Um, and we try to make the culture on the team, uh, you know, one of collaboration. You know, that we’re, we’re bringing each other up where together we’re rising. And, uh, you know, that we’re, we’re welcoming new players, uh, who fit our character and our culture and, um, you know, culture.
It’s only kind of evident when the coach isn’t there. What is, what are the, what are the team doing when you’re not there? Are they doing the right things? And, uh, you know, we’ve got wonderful kids in the classroom. I think there were 3. 68 this past year. Um, kids going on to NCAA post grad scholarships and honor rolls and things like that, so they’re [00:22:30] doing the right things in the classroom and that’s what we’re looking for, you know, moving forward.
Um, and, and that’s what we, you know, foster within our team. Awesome.
Matt: Well, Coach, you’ve been generous with your time and giving us a lot of insights. I like to end these with with the same question for everybody. And and that is, if you had one nugget, one piece of advice that you wish all parents, players, families going through this recruiting process knew, what would that be?
Coach: I would say that, you know, the process changes as you go through it. And, you know, we, we have families and students, you know, pick a school based on a particular major particular part with and they block other things out. Just being very open to different opportunities and different things within the process.
Take on lots of different experiences. And again, decide, you know, which, which things are the most important. Of your pillars that you know, you cannot, you cannot give on any of these pillars because ultimately, you know, you have to find out as much as you can as you can about a school and a program and even a coaching staff, you know, I, I know that you shouldn’t be picking a school based on a coach, but if you’re a soccer player and or any athlete.
Who you’re going to be working with on a daily basis does, does make a difference. So I would say just being open to lots of different opportunities, different schools, different types of schools, different types of programs. [00:24:00] Um, and yeah, do your homework and, uh, and, and then start to move forward in the process.
Matt: Couldn’t agree more. Well, coach, really appreciate it. Wish you the best of luck, uh, in the, in the fall and finishing up your recruiting class. And if you get down to the March ECNL event in Lakewood Ranch, give me a shout and, uh, we’ll grab a cup of coffee or something. All right. All right.
Coach: Thanks so much, Matt.
Thank you, coach. Take care. Okay. Bye now.
