(From the annals of last year’s sports journalism class comes this feature on current UNC men’s soccer head coach Carlos Somoano. At the time, he was just the interim coach and wasn’t sure if he’d land the top position. This piece caught him in flux.)
Limbo
Carlos Somoano’s early dreams didn’t include Chapel Hill.
He spent his youth in Texas, the epicenter of American football. But while an entire state looked to the gridiron, Somoano and his friends traveled an hour and a half just for a few good hours on the soccer pitch. Everyone else called it a “sissy sport,” but Somoano was devoted. So devoted, in fact, that he made his way to a Division 2 program when college seemed like a distant possibility. So devoted that he played in Europe before suffering a career-ending leg injury. So devoted that he took his first job as an assistant coach for no pay, and his second for a mere $16,000 per year.
The Duke football essay project returns tomorrow, but in the meantime, here’s the wrap from the weekend.
-Check the scoreboard, baby! (Right sidebar.) Duke has its first point of the Erwin Cup, and it was well-earned. Visiting the #5 UNC Tar Heels, the men’s soccer team pulled out an incredible 2-2 draw. Luckily, Will asked me the day before the game what would happen in the case of a tie, and we decided that the difference in possible points earned would go to the road team. So in this case, UNC stood to gain 3 with a home win, and Duke would get 4 with a road win. The difference is 1, so Duke takes the point.
Riley Wolfe scored the game-tying goal for Duke in the 84th minute, and the Blue Devils are now unbeaten in their last five matches.
-UNC women’s soccer did a better for themselves, winning 4-1 at Miami. You can watch the goals here.
-Duke women’s soccer continued its incredible season, and Tara Campbell earned yet another shutout, in a 1-0 win over Virginia Tech. You can see the nifty goal, scored by Kaitlyn Kerr after a great headed pass from Chelsea Canepa, here:
Before getting to this week’s Optipessimism, I have to beat my own chest for a minute and explain to you, lovely readers, my commitment to Tar Heel football. Upon hearing that the night game against ECU would only be televised in my area on a channel called the CBS Sports Network, and I didn’t get it, I called up Comcast and asked what it would cost to just buy it for a day, like pay per view or something. I had to buy a whole “package” of sports channels for a whopping $5 a month, though the low cost meant I wasn’t too broken up about it (I know, I’m undermining my heroics statement). So I have officially spent real money now this season on Carolina football in absentia; and I promised not to donate any money to the program when they fired my precious Butch Davis! (I’m kidding. Seriously. Donating money requires, well, money.)
The reason I’m telling you all this is because part of the sports package included NFL RedZone. Which is, hands down, the most perfect sports channel for a football fan ever invented. It’s amazing. You literally miss nothing. I sat down at 1 PM on my couch on Sunday and watched, enraptured, for hours. I caught nearly every touchdown, almost all the important plays, and felt like I could carry a legitimate conversation about the flow of all 10 or so games. It’s incredible. And there are no commercials. My question: how the heck has no one done this yet for college football? (And ESPN Goal Line doesn’t count; they don’t cover all the games.) I can understand there would be some serious obstacles, namely:
It was heartbreak city last night at Koskinen Stadium, as Kelly Cobb hit two shots into the cross bar and #4 Duke was forced to settle for a draw with #7 Virginia. Post-game comments from goalie Tara Campbell (excellent all night), Cobb (strong but unlucky), and head coach Robbie Church:
Another positive from the match was Natasha Anasi, the defender who was on the end of every header and seemed virtually unbeatable on the ground. All in all, it was a very solid defensive performance for Duke, but aside from Cobb, the offense seemed to lack a little speed. UVA had an answer for every attack, and eventually it became apparent that the only way a goal was going to happen was if Cobb did something dynamic. And she almost did, twice.
Each week, contributor and new parent Joey will post his thoughts as he undergoes the transformation from fanboy to father.
I’ve got to confess: I wanted to start out with some great literary comparison that I could juxtapose for this entry. I thought about various novels, tales from religion, historical feats, and the like. I had the idea that citing some examples from any famous Coming-of-Age tale would help illuminate just where I’m going with this.
Then I realized that was stupid, fake, and probably wouldn’t really depict what I was trying to say anyway. So I’ll just get to the real story…
One of the main things that will be a refrain in this space is what I’ve had to give up or let go of, in order to make an honest attempt at being ready for fatherhood. I’m very aware that this phenomenon isn’t unique; everyone goes through it, and it’s going to be different for everyone’s own individual experience(s).
For me perhaps, there was no more significant and symbolic act of transformation toward fatherhood, than turning my man-cave into a nursery for a baby girl.
-The Duke women’s team is red-hot, but the men are entrenched in a year-long struggle. They started off ranked, but a series of close losses pushed them well out of the top 25. On the other hand, they’re now working on a 4-match winning streak in which they’ve scored at least four goals in each. Here’s video from their win against Presbyterian. Notice how the players don’t seem to celebrate even a little after a goal. Do they hate each other?
-Unlike Duke, UNC has had a dream season. They started off the year with a win over #1-ranked Louisville, and have lost just one game, a 1-0 road loss to Virginia Tech, en route to compiling an 8-1 record. Their last win, yesterday against #14 Old Dominion, should shoot them up even higher than their current #5 ranking.
I will be there for the second ever Erwin Cup match. If anyone attends, any kind of Erwin Cup sign will make the pages of this blog.
UNC field hockey player Elizabeth Stephens became the first athlete to score a point in the Erwin Cup last weekend, netting a double overtime goal to give UNC a 1-0 field hockey win over Duke.
Since the match took place in Chapel Hill, UNC earns 1.5 points. The current standings are:
UNC: 1.5 Duke: 0
For more information about the Erwin Cup, a year-long athletic competition pitting Duke against UNC, read here:
Well, well. The first Optipessimism feature after a Carolina loss. I don’t have the lack of attendance to complain about since it was the first road game, so let’s get right to it.
Story. Of. The. Game.
Optimism: After a truly miserable half of offensive football, Renner seemed to clean up a little bit and settle down. In general, Renner wasn’t asked to do a whole lot throwing downfield. That’s about it for optimism. Of course, the week after I gush over Renner’s potential he takes a step back.
Pessimism: This was undoubtedly Renner’s worst game as a Tar Heel. His stats weren’t terrible – 17 of 25 for 204 yards , 2 TD’s and 2 INT’s – but this is one of those cases where stats don’t tell the whole story. Both of Renner’s picks came at particularly bad times, both when UNC had momentum off takeaways of their own. Both were especially bad decisions in a game filled with them; Renner’s first interception was thrown into quadruple coverage. I didn’t even know someone can have quadruple coverage on them. Renner looked extremely young in this game, often running scared out of the pocket and taking a lot of sacks he probably could have avoided.
History is about to be made, my friends. W.A. Erwin is about to ride Tobacco Road again, screaming his pioneering head off. In case you’re not schooled, the Erwin Cup is a brand new competition pitting Duke and UNC athletics against one another in a year-long battle. Points are accrued for rivalry wins, ACC titles, Final Four appearances, and National Championships. The sports are weighted according to importance, ensuring that this is the best and most accurate measure of the rivalry to date. For more info, read up on:
Tomorrow afternoon, at 1pm, it begins. UNC field hockey takes on Duke at Chapel Hill’s Henry Stadium in the first ever Erwin Cup set-to. Points are at stake, baby! The eyes of the world are on us!
If anyone happens to attend this match, or any other, you can achieve instant Tobacco Road Blues notoriety by taking a picture yourself with a sign at the game. It can be home-made, elaborate, or purchased. All we ask is that you have the blog name written somewhere along with the words “Erwin Cup.” Take a picture, send it along, and I will post the hell out of it and write some complimentary words. And you know what? I’ll also name the match after you. BAM! I can do that. Limited time only. Get it while it’s piping.
Am I expecting any blog readers to attend a field hockey match on a college football Saturday? Not necessarily. Am I willing to be surprised? Fuck yes necessarily. So willing. So willing that I just willed myself a daydream about field hockey. At least it started off that way. Turned into a daydream about me and an angry Abe Lincoln beating up some State fans in a parking lot. But there was like a minute or two of field hockey, I swear.
Come Monday, we should have a sweet page for you with a running tally of the Erwin Cup score courtesy of William the Intrepid (Site Designer). After that, we’re straight grooving for the year.
Second-to-last thing: the good folks at Grantland are letting me write a College Football Spectacular every Thursday. It’s a preview of the weekend ahead, it’s fun to write, and I would dearly appreciate y’all’s support. Triangle Prophets coming later.
Last thing: I discovered this song yesterday, and I’ve listened to it basically on repeat. What a chorus. Happy Friday, free souls.
