Northern Illinois University Women’s Soccer – Coach Laurence Paterson

On today’s episode, I speak with Coach Paterson from the NIU Women’s Program. We talk about how they are recruiting feverishly as a new staff. He describes the tremendous facilities for both academics and athletics. Lastly, we discuss their staff and how they are all deeply invested into the team. Learn more about Northern Illinois University Women’s Soccer.

Matt: [00:00:00] Ladies and gentlemen, uh, welcome to Discover College Soccer. We are excited to continue our interviews here at the United Soccer Coaches Convention in Philadelphia. And I am lucky enough today to be joined by Coach Lawrence Patterson of Northern Illinois Women’s Program. Welcome coach. Thank you so much for having me.

Appreciate this. Yeah, thank you for being here and making time. Hopefully I’m not, not dragging you away from all the fun stuff on the exhibition floor. Uh, no. 

Coach: I, I’ve spent too much money already and, uh, so, but no, happy to be here, . Great. 

Matt: Well, you know, let’s, let’s talk, uh, about the recruiting side of things to start.

You know, you, you guys. Uh, like you, I think with the words you use up and coming, division one, uh, program, new, new staff, you’ve, you’ve just been there, uh, this season, um, and it’s now heavy recruiting time with all the showcases. I don’t know if maybe you flew, uh, directly from Tampa and the East Cino Florida event here to Philly, like a lot of coaches did, but, um, are you guys, is your 23 class all locked up or are you looking at 20 fours or what’s that look like right now for you?

Yeah. 

Coach: Um, given the fact that, that, uh, myself and the other assistant, uh, coach Valentina, like we all, we all just started in, in, uh, in July. And, um, with that it, it sort of meant like we had to kind of recruit. On the fly still recruit some 20, 20 twos even 2020 threes. And so right now we’re kind of doing like two classes at once, if you will.

Right. So I know a lot of coaches, I was speaking to a lot obviously at the ECN L event in Tampa, um, that have [00:01:30] pretty much everything wrapped up, not just for 23 but for 24. And I was like, oh my goodness. Cuz you know, we, we could still maybe be looking at a few 20 threes. Um, so just based on the fact that when we started the.

That’s kind of why we’re recruiting two at once. You know, um, this will obviously as, as we get going, like this will change in the near future. Um, but. For the most part, got 20 threes wrapped up. Uh, and, and we’re, we’re making some headway on 20 fours as well, for sure. 

Matt: Okay. Well, you, you mentioned, uh, you were down there at EC and l in Florida.

Are there other tournaments that you guys consider kind of the, the must see, uh, hit list that, that you gotta get to each year to, to find, find talent? Yeah, sure. 

Coach: So, I mean, we were at the, uh, we were at the ga. In Arizona, um, just a fantastic standard, right? Um, sometimes it’s nice, obviously we’re, we’re always looking for players, but sometimes it’s nice just to watch really just high level soccer.

Um, cuz we’re, we’re fans first and then kind of coaches second, you know what I mean? Um, So the, the GA event in Arizona was, was fantastic. And, uh, yeah, we, we enjoyed the EC L event too. These are, these are sort of like the go-tos, right? And, um, as you probably know, haven’t been to some of these events. You, you just see like, there, there are hundreds of college coaches, um, that, that, I think there was something like 22 fields at the one complex in Tampa and it was just lined, uh, with coaches just out there with their chairs and a lot of guys working really hard going from field to.

You know, um, and so again, with it being our [00:03:00] first experience kind of recruiting at the division one level, we’re kind of model. Are still rather figuring out what our model is to go to these events and how we approach them as a staff. And uh, a lot of those guys who have been doing it for an awful long time set a really good example for us, you know, so, but these are events that you just have to go to for sure.

Matt: Well, in, besides tournaments and, and showcases and all that kind of stuff. Uh, are you guys having your own ID camps? Do you and the other staff work other people’s camps? Uh, do camps fit in at all? 

Coach: Yes, absolutely. Um, you know, if we look at our current roster, um, you know, there, there’s a handful from our current roster that you can say, you know, came through an ID camp, or at least that’s how we found out about ’em.

So these are great. Um, tools for us to have things to have on campus where we can kind of show a little bit about what campus is like, uh, what our coaching style is like, and hopefully garner some interest from players as well who are, who might already be coming to Northern Illinois or might be thinking that, you know, I wanna go to niu.

Uh, you’re on my list kind of thing. Uh, we do have camps coming up February 4th and February 11th, and we do an ID camps, so, uh, back to back weekends. Really excited for those spots are filling up quick. Um, and again, it’s, it’s more than just the soccer stuff that we like to show off, right? We like to show off the campus the facilities that we’ve got.

What we can offer to potential NIU soccer players. 

Matt: Oh, that’s awesome. Well, in, in terms of, um, [00:04:30] you, what, what makes a, a player kind of stand out in your eyes, whether you’re at a camp or at a tournament, or what, what are those hierarchy of things that you’re looking for in a player that, that that’s gonna make the, you want them to come to niu?

Coach: Sure. I, so I, I, I work on an awful lot with goalkeepers, and I’ve had this question in the past from goalkeepers, like, what, you know, what kind of traits are you looking for in a player? And, uh, I kinda always give this almost like, it feels a little bit like a cop out answer sometimes, because we’re really looking for the complete player, right?

A player who’s got more than just one attribute. I think that one of the things we stress, and this is could be our coaching style, but also the style of just division one’s, women’s soccer in general is the speed of play, right? It’s, it’s gotta be, it’s gotta be one and two touch players with a little bit of vision and awareness.

Um, no, not just awareness of where they’re out in the field, but rather just awareness of what’s behind. Can they play in one and two touch? Can they move the ball quick, left or right? You know, the speed of play thing is normally our, if players ask for feedback, that’s the thing that we go to right away, you know?

Um, so again, it’s, it’s a complicated answer because I know it’s a multitude of traits that you’re looking for on a player. Um, but that, that has to be the, the first one on our list. 

Matt: For sure. Well, and and you’re not the first coach to say those words today. Speed of play. Yes, of course. . Well, and going back to, to kind of the recruiting side of things, you know, one of the biggest changes in the college soccer world these days [00:06:00] is the transfer portal.

So is that something that, that you guys are, are looking at, has that factor into your recruiting? 

Coach: Yes, definitely. Um, you know, we’re, we were lucky enough to, to get three from the transfer portal this year who are gonna come in right away and help us. Um, some, some really like big time, uh, players that we know are not only gonna come in and make an instant impact, but they’re doing that because they’ve got a wealth of experience as well.

Um, so we’re, we’re definitely really excited about the transfer portal as a, as a resource. It’s not something that, you know, was around when I was a player at the college level. You. Um, and again, when, when you’re expecting 17 year olds, 18 year olds, to make decisions about where they’re gonna end up for the next four years, sometimes you might have a good first impression on a recruiting visit, but things don’t work out, you know, and the portal’s obviously a great resource for them.

Definitely a great resource for us. Um, and then just with the way that technology works and, and what we’re able to, to, to see on things like game footage and video, right? When we find players on the transfer portal, we can have like an instant evaluation, if you will, right? We can just see, you know, where they’re at, um, in terms of the level, what their attributes are, what they could bring to us as a program and so on.

So, Uh, that was a, that was a huge tool for us to use this year, and it’s definitely something that we’re gonna continue to use in the future. 

Matt: Well, the other question I have around recruiting then is, you know, something tells me that your accent is not from Northern Illinois. Sure. Um, so what, uh, How [00:07:30] does the international recruiting figure in, uh, for you guys?

Coach: Yeah, so I’m, I’m originally from Scotland. I’ve, I’ve been in the States for a while, so that’s why I’ve kind of got the start of sort of strange hybrid accent. I think , uh, no one can quite tell where I’m from. Um, but, uh, It in terms of, again, it’s when we are using things like agencies, you know, this is kind of where the international, uh, the international stuff comes in, right?

We, we haven’t been on any international trips ourselves. I know, uh, coaches that I worked for in the past. I know that, uh, coaches that I worked for at Saginaw Valley State have made trips and we’re able to go to recruiting events, uh, back in the uk. Um, we kind of rely more. The agencies who are gonna send us players.

There’s a lot of guys that we work with, guys that we know and, and trust guys who have sent us players in the past and, and we know Will, will send us good names. Um, so we, this year, uh, we’ve got a few internationals. We’ve got one from England. Uh, we’ve got a girl from Germany, uh, who was just fantastic for us last year.

So, um, sometimes obviously the styles are different, right? And you can tell. They came from very high level academies in in England or in Germany, wherever they might have come from, they may take a little bit of time to adjust. What we’re impressed with is that that adjustment period has usually been quite quick, right?

And again, it’s to, to harp back on ’em at that point. It’s usually a speed of play thing, right? And just. Seeing what it’s like at the MAC level, the division one level. [00:09:00] It’s a tough league to be in. It’s, it’s an aggressive league. Right. And, uh, the adjustment period for those guys has just been fantastic.

So they’ve adapted really well. 

Matt: No, that’s great. Well, let’s talk a little bit more about the school. You know, there may be some folks out there, don’t, don’t know, Northern Illinois. Sure. Uh, I mean, come on. It is a Mac school. You know, the, the best conference, uh, yeah, I think dominated. By in Ohio University, but that’s, no, I’m just kidding.

I’m just kidding. I gotta, I gotta gotta send some love to my alma mater, but no. Um, but you know, like you say, you, you guys have just, uh, just got there this summer. So in your, in your six months or so there, you know, what are some of the things that you found that are really awesome about Northern Illinois that folks may not know about?

Coach: Sure. Um, well, I, so I’m, I’m speaking first from, from my experience coming from the division two level. I came from a division two school that has just fantastic facilities. And then moving to the division one level, this is just goes up tenfold. Right. Um, so really impressed that we’ve got the Cheswick field house that we’re able to train in all winter.

Um, I, I think back to my playing days when we didn’t have a field house, right. And we were playing on this hardcore surface. Doing mostly foot sal and laps. Um, whereas now we get to do soccer specific stuff year round. Right. So it’s a fantastic, uh, facility for us to have. We just put brand new turf into our, uh, our home field, um, and we’ve got state of the art turf now.

It’s, it’s just been excellent as well to train on day and day. Uh, as far as, uh, the athletic side of things, we always love bringing [00:10:30] recruits in and kind of just showing, you know, what it is we have to offer. And, um, it’s, it’s, it’s a phenomenal facility for the athletes, multiple training rooms. Uh, they’re well taken care of for sure.

Um, in terms of the academic side of things. You know, when we do tours, we usually like to bring in a player to do the tour. Someone who knows the facility a little bit better than us and knows the academic buildings better. But recently I’ve been going on some of those myself, not just because, you know, I’m tagging along and, and just meeting the recruits, but because I wanna see the facilities too.

You know, and I wanna be able to show the recruits these facilities. So, um, we’re about an hour west of Chicago. Um, so we’re still in an area where DeKalb’s a college town, uh, pretty easy access to Chicago should players want to, you know, spend some time in the city. Um, but in an area where it’s also quite quiet.

And, uh, my girlfriend and I, we just, we just moved, uh, we’ve got a condo and, and we kind of joke that we’re out in the cornfields. But it’s kind of perfect cuz it bridges that gap between the city life, the college town, and of course some peace and quiet as well. So, um, I, I, I know that there’s a great atmosphere, a great environment for players, um, in terms of the soccer facilities.

We have, we offer just about every, uh, academic program you could think about. Um, and, uh, the social life aspect. Obviously that’s a huge part of, [00:12:00] of college as well. We want, you know, we want players to come in and have the full college experience and we understand that, you know, there’s some give and take there, obviously when you’re a Division one athlete, right?

You’ve gotta prioritize that and prioritize your school stuff, but it’s part of the college experience and it’s an important. So that’s when we bring in recruits for overnight, we definitely want them to, to experience multiple as, uh, multiple aspects of what the campus is like itself. 

Matt: Well, and that, and that brings me to my next question, and you kind of mentioned it there, but, but in terms of that balance between academics and athletics, you know, what, what support systems does your school offer to help and, and how do your players really, really tackle that balance?

Coach: Yeah, so we’ve got. We, we’ve got a, an advisor who works specifically with us at Women’s Soccer. Um, she’s absolutely fantastic. She’s helped us out a ton on, uh, with the recruiting trips as well. She likes to sit down and meet the recruits. Um, we have what’s called the, it’s the, uh, student athletes, uh, academic Support Services.

Um, so. These are resources where if you’re falling behind in certain classes, um, we can certainly offer things like tutors, um, specifically for the athletes, um, that there’s really just great resources in terms of that stuff because we want to, we want to get out in front of these things before. Problems occur.

Right? And we know that especially coming in as a, as a freshman, uh, to college life, sometimes the adjustment period is tough, right? [00:13:30] Uh, I don’t think anyone has just a completely flawless freshman year. It’s, it’s an adjustment period. Um, but we’re able to see. Grades pretty much not in real time, but we get reports every now and again where, you know, it’s, we’re never disciplinary about it kind of thing, but we wanna make sure that we can offer support in whatever way.

And there’s certainly resources that players can use, uh, as long as they’re proactive about things, they, they meet with their advisor. I think it’s on a bi-weekly basis, which is just outstanding. Um, I never had that again when I was a player. I keep harping on about how, how tough life was when I was, when I was in college.

But, 

Matt: um, yeah, and I’m, and I’m a good 10, 15 years You’re senior and trust me, it wasn’t any easier than either . Sure. Well, so I know there’s no such thing as a typical week when it comes to college soccer, but. Can you give me a quick walkthrough of what your players would normally go through during the season?

Just in terms of, you know, Monday, you know, when, when’s practice, when’s your typical game cadence, winners, prac, uh, classes and meals and all that kind of stuff. 

Coach: Sure. So, uh, during the season we trained. Um, uh, at 10 o’clock, right? Um, in the, in the morning. That is, um, right now, it, it all depends again on, on the, the availability of our indoor facilities, right?

We’re, we’re not in Florida. We, we can train, you know, outdoors five days a week. Um, so our, our practice schedule for over the winter is gonna be 7:00 PM um, during the season, the season’s tough. [00:15:00] You know, our, our game schedule is Thursday, Saturday. So it, it almost felt like once we were into conference play, once we were into the Mac play, it seemed like it was just game and then regen and then match day minus one.

Right? So we’re doing your match day minus one is more your tactical session where you’re kind of going through almost like a walkthrough. Your regen is just a recovery session, um, you know, to, to rehab any injuries or things that might be going on. Um, it seemed like it was just match eight minus one, regen match, eight minus one.

So during our pre-season, again, we, we train, uh, at, at, at our act, our, uh, our fall schedule. Um, we were really impressed with a lot of the fitness test results and that kind of meant we were able to hit the ground running with the soccer stuff. You know, we’ve always said we don’t wanna be fitness coaches, we’re soccer coaches.

And, um, and so had a. Fantastic preseason, two very tough games going into the season. Played Iowa first and then played, uh, university of Wisconsin, um, which was a great test, uh, for us to see where we’re at. Um, and although we didn’t get results in either of those games, uh, we walked away with tons of positives, you know, and that kind of really set this.

Standard for how this season was gonna go. So we’re very encouraged about not just the girls’ attitude in, in, in games, but also in practice. They’re very professional, the way they approach the practice sessions and, um, and that, that definitely set a standard for how the season was gonna go. And we hope that we’re on onward and upward from, from here on in.

Matt: No, that’s. That’s tremendous. And I think we actually, [00:16:30] uh, one of the Iowa players, uh, has been, has been helping out with the podcast next to us, but we won’t, we won’t, uh, we won’t, we won’t go there, . Yeah. Uh, well, let’s talk a little bit more about, about the soccer side of things. Um, I, is there a, is there a roster size that you guys are trying to hit each year that you find as ideal? 

Coach: Sure. Um, . So I think this year we were at, uh, 26. Um, we’re definitely, we, we don’t have like a roster cap, so to speak. Um, I guess it sort of depends maybe how, how many lockers do we have in the locker room kind of thing as well. But, um, we don’t really have a cap in mind. We are an ideal roster. Um, obviously it’s important to have depth, especially when you’re playing that Thursday, Saturday schedule, you know, um, or excuse me, Thursday, Sunday schedule.

Um, so the, uh, I, I guess, I think for the next year we should be somewhere around 28 or 29. Um, again, could be looking to add one more, uh, potentially for class of 2023. So in, in short, no, we don’t have an ideal roster obviously. Um, we like to travel with, with everybody if we can. Um, as you start seeing the numbers go into the thirties, that’s when usually you actually have to have a travel roster and so on.

Um, it was great that we were able to get everyone on, uh, unless of course there was some serious injury or illness or something like that, we were able to get everyone on the bus for all of our trips, which was great. Um, so I think we’ll probably cap out somewhere just under that, that [00:18:00] 30 number for sure.

Matt: Okay. And then I know you mentioned yourself and your other assistant that’s here, but what, what. Does the overall staff look like? And, and, and maybe even not just soccer staff, but are there other support staff in the athletic department that help out with the team, that kind of thing? 

Coach: Yeah, so, um, we’re really lucky, uh, this year, uh, we’re gonna be able to bring in a graduate assistant who’s gonna be able to help us out.

Um, they’ll be great, uh, cuz they’ll also be able to jump into sessions. Uh, I still jump into sessions every now and. Um, I’ll be icing my kneecaps after it, but, um, uh, coach Valentina like I was saying as well, uh, graduated, uh, from SSU in 2019. So, uh, she’s big on the fitness stuff and still jumps into sessions, so you’ll see the staff kind of being a bit more dynamic and interactive in the session.

We like that stuff. Um, bringing in the graduate assistant obviously will be fantastic for us, uh, to help out with not only sessions and games, but with recruiting events as well. Uh, so we’re really pleased about that. We do have a, uh, a strength. Coach that works specifically with women’s soccer. Um, and we have a full-time athletic trainer just specifically for women’s soccer.

And what’s really been great is just the open lines of communication between the soccer staff, the strength staff. And the, uh, the athletic training staff because number one keeps our players fit and healthy, helps us or keeps us in a loop regarding what kinds of things we should be looking [00:19:30] to do in training, um, as player specific.

And then what kinds of things can be done in the weight room, whether that’s preventative, stop preventative measures, or whether that’s rehabbing certain injuries or whatever it might be, soreness. Um, there’s just been great communication between those three branches. Uh, and that allows us to just maintain, like we want to maintain our, our roster size and a, and a healthy roster to make sure that we have that depth for when we go into a Mac conference play.

And, um, and you never know what’s gonna happen. I mean, god forbid we, we don’t plan on injuries. We don’t want that stuff to happen. Um, but working with the ATS and the strength staff has really just been fantastic. They’ve been an absolute blessing for us. We’re very lucky to have them on board. 

Matt: Well, it sounds like it, that, that it is always a, a good thing when everybody can work together for, for the betterment of the whole, the whole squad.

Absolutely. Um, well, when it comes to on the field stuff, I mean, how, how would you describe kind of your, your staff’s style of coaching and the, and the team style of play? 

Coach: Sure. Um, well, I mean, I’ll, I’ll harp on Mike. Mike’s one of the most, uh, dynamic and, and passionate coaches I’ve met. He just, he just loves the game in general.

Uh, you know, part of my job description is making sure that Mike doesn’t get yelled at too often for stepping onto the field . Um, cuz I know he would if he could. Um, but no, I think we’re all a very dynamic staff, especially games and sessions. Right. Mike? You cannot sit down. I don’t know why they put a chair out for.

A guy will [00:21:00] pace up and down that sideline, uh, and get constantly yelled at by linesman. But no, he’s, he’s a fantastic role model and obviously, you know, as, as coaches, you, you kind of, you model your style a little bit off your mentors as well. And so I think that that rubs off on both of us. And that’s, you know, I’ve worked with Mike now for, um, for, since 2019.

Uh, so this will be my fourth, uh, full year working. With him, um, obviously started at Svsu with him now at niu. Um, I definitely model a lot of what I’m trying to do off of what the example that he set, you know, so like I said to you before, when we’re jumping into sessions or serving balls, whatever it might be, we are very dynamic coaching staff.

We’re not ones to just sit down in the chairs. Um, it’s been great this past year. Uh, we, we actually pull up the live stream, so I’m on the iPad for a lot of the games, so I kind of see. 10 seconds after they happen. We make notes about coaching points, things that we can talk about at halftime, how we can improve.

Also, I get that sort of bird’s eye view and being able to see things like shape and uh, and where we might, where our shortfalls might be. Um, and then just in terms of warmups, like it’s been just nothing but good vibes. We’re all involved in that stuff. We want to. The games are where we want you to go out and express yourself, have a bit of creativity, still be creative, but disciplined.

Um, but no, can’t say enough good things about how dynamic the staff has been. Um, I think that that’s hopefully creating a culture, setting a standard for what we expect from the players too. 

Matt: No, that, that’s a, that’s a [00:22:30] good way to look at it, for sure. Um, well you mentioned the livestream. You know what, I guess what kind of, besides or what video, what, what other technologies, what, what kind of things do you guys employ on a regular basis to help, whether it’s in training or in games or using gps or.

Looking at data, what, what, what’s that look like? Sure. 

Coach: So we have looked into some of the GPS stuff. Uh, some of the things like heart rate monitors. I know that we, we don’t have them yet. Uh, it’s something that we’re, we’re hoping to get soon. Um, a lot of the, the teams that use this stuff, It’s great for them because they can design their sessions based on the data that comes out from that.

Uh, in terms of what we look at, we obviously look at, um, when we’re scouting teams, we definitely look at a lot their previous games. Uh, I do the scouting reports, whereas Mike will kind of take charge of how we are gonna operate, uh, based on what that scouting report says. Uh, it’s always easy to kind of identify things like key players and to.

Historically what their formations might be, right? But style of play is something that you’ve gotta be a little bit more analytical about and kind of have a look to see, like not just who the key players are and what the formation looks like, but what is their brand of soccer, you know? Um, again, when it comes to the scouting stuff, you know, nothing’s clear cut you, it’s your best guess, right?

Um, we’ve gone through scouting reports where we’ve seen a team do nothing but a 3 52, and then they line up in a four 30. You know, and I, I’m looking at myself going, or Mike’s looking at me going, you know, what did you waste all your time doing this for? So, no, we, we definitely, [00:24:00] we, we don’t look too much into that.

I always kinda make the point when I do deliver the scout reports, right? Like, we wanna focus on us, we want to focus on our brand of soccer, and we don’t really want to influence our brand of Sulker based on. How someone else plays, you know? Um, so I kind of take them for what it’s worth, right? It’s important to highlight some things, but we don’t harp on and on about this, and we don’t design entire tactical sessions based on a team that hits a long ball or something like that.

Right. 

Matt: No, that makes sense. Well, Lawrence, you, you, you’ve been very generous with your time. We’ve covered a lot of ground and I always like to end these the same way, and that’s what didn’t we cover. What else would you like folks to know, whether it’s about the recruiting process, about NIU or about anything college soccer related?

Uh, I leave you with the last word.

Coach: Yeah, I mean, I’ll, I’ll do the shameless plug. For our camps again, we, we always give, uh, you know, fair evaluations when it comes to camps. We love meeting players, having them on. We love showing what we can offer, uh, in terms of what NI NIU can, can offer for players, but also what we can offer as a staff.

You know, um, when we’re recruiting players, we, we always say that we, we want everything to be a good fit, right? And maybe the case that you’re a fantastic player or something, but it’s just not the right fit for you in terms of maybe the school or campus or something. And we understand that, you know, we want players to come on campus and be excited to be on NIU’s campus and excited to play.

You know, uh, are excited to become an NIU Husky. So, um, I think that my one little sort of bit of advice, I [00:25:30] think just for these potential recruits is just make sure that you know where you’re looking at. It’s gotta be, it’s gotta be a good fit in multiple aspects of the game. That be coach. School, the campus, all these things are important.

Social life, I know we touched on this is also important, um, but no, we’re, we’re excited for the future, NIU Women’s Soccer. Um, we know we’ve got work to do, but we’ve got ambitions. We wanna win a MAC Championship for sure. We wanna beat Ohio University. Of course. 

Matt: Well, I was gonna say, I wish you the best of luck in all your games, but one.

Yeah. Uh, but no. Well, and, and I couldn’t agree more on, on the right fit stuff. Uh, it’s, it’s one of the things that, that I always like to talk about. And luckily you’re, you’re, you’re maybe the third or fourth interview I’ve had, uh, today and everybody’s kind of said the same thing about Oh, okay. About finding that right fit and it, and it really is important.

Uh, we wish you and the staff, but like I said, best of luck and, uh, we’ll, we’ll, we’ll keep an eye on you and hopefully well, well, First or second in the Mac. We’ll see if the that’ll have. Okay. All right. All right. Thanks Coach. Take thanks so much for having, we appreciate it.