Tales From the Trail by MatchPlay

Hi I’m Scot Cooper and this is the Tales From the Trail podcast by MatchPlay.  In this episode, Justin Chezem, head coach of Christopher Newport University men’s soccer and I welcome Pat McStay of the ECNL’s Heritage Project and the Richmond Strikers.  Along with his duties at the Strikers, Pat has taken on the role of developing the Heritage Project which connects youth soccer players i...

Hi I’m Scot Cooper and this is the Tales From the Trail podcast by MatchPlay.  In this episode I welcome Jack Rasmussen, the Founder of the Caddix Cleat Company.  This innovative to cleat utilizes small movements in the studs to prevent non-contact injuries.  Jack and his dad took an idea and made it a product through research, trial and error, and ingenuity.  This is a fascina...

 Summary Justin Chezem, head coach of Christopher Newport University men’s soccer and I Brian Plotkin, head coach men’s soccer coach at West Point, discuss the unique recruiting process and player development at the United States Military Academy. He highlights the importance of finding players who are not only talented in soccer but also have the right mindset for the challenges of West Poin...

Hi I’m Scot Cooper and this is the Tales From the Trail Podcast by MatchPlay.  In this episode I welcome Allen Hopkins, Jr.  Allen had a long career through college and professional soccer.  He went on to be a sports broadcaster, which is a great story he shares and now is the Executive Director of Black Players for Change, which is comprised of Black MLS players, staff, and coaches...

Hi I’m Scot Cooper and this is the Tales From the Trail Podcast by MatchPlay.  In this episode, Justin Chezem, head coach of men’s soccer at Christopher Newport University and I welcome Steve Swanson, the long time head coach of the University of Virginia women’s soccer program.  Steve discussed his time with the women’s national team, being a part of two World Cup wins, developing great...

Eric Manuel of www.expertmindsetcoaching.com discusses developing mental toughness through consistency.

Hi, I’m Scot Cooper and welcome to the Tales From the Trail podcast by MatchPlay. In this episode Chris Norris, the head coach of the College of William and Mary men’s soccer program and I welcome one of his former players, Will Smith. As you will hear, Will made the most of his opportunity as a student-athlete on the field, on campus, and abroad. Among many other highlights, he went on to co-foun...

Hi, I’m Scot Cooper and welcome to the Tales From the Trail podcast by MatchPlay. In this episode Justin Chezem, head coach of Christopher Newport University men’s soccer and I welcome Ryan Martin, the head coach of USL side, Loudoun United. Ryan has worked with great soccer minds and that developed his coaching style. He discusses lessons he learned from his influences, how he evaluates players a...

Eric Manuel of www.expertmindsetcoaching.com discusses the importance of challenging yourself as a habit to develop mental toughness for life and sport.

Hi I’m Scot Cooper and welcome to the Tales From the Trail Podcast by MatchPlay. In this episode I welcome Nacho Lerech of CSA Becas International. Nacho discusses his journey from Argentina playing for a large club, Boca Juniors, to finding his way to college in the United States. He finished at the University of Vermont and began working for CSA Becas where he helps international students find a...

Hi I’m Scot Cooper and welcome to the Tales From the Trail podcast by MatchPlay. In this episode Justin Chezem of Christopher Newport University men’s soccer and I welcome Brett Teach, head coach of Mount St. Mary’s University men’s soccer, Michael Callahan, men’s soccer assistant coach at George Mason University , and Lucas Paulini, assistant at Virginia Commonwealth University men’s soccer . The...

Hi I’m Scot Cooper and welcome to the Tales from the Trail podcast by MatchPlay. In this episode I welcome Rafael de la Vega, founder of SALT, which is solving the smelly cleat problem. Their innovative cleat bag prevents odors from permeating into your bag, car, home, and anywhere else you keep your cleats. Rafael’s entrepreneurial story is inspirational, it was great to meet him and discuss his...

Hi I’m Scot Cooper and welcome to the Tales From the Trail Podcast. In this episode I’m joined by Chris Norris, head coach of men’s soccer at the College of William and Mary. We welcome one of his former youth players, Mason McKnight. Mason discusses his recruiting story and how he arrived at the decision to attend Lycoming College. His first semester and season at Lycoming left him wanting a diff...

Eric Manuel of Expert Mindset coaching continues the discussion on Mental Toughness

In this episode I’m joined by three fantastic guests. Chris Norris is the head coach of William & Mary men’s soccer and with him are 2 of his former players, Josh West and Chris Albiston. Josh West is an assistant coach of men’s soccer at Villanova University and brings great insight to the current college soccer landscape. Chris Albiston graduated from William and Mary and went on to law scho...

In this episode, Justin Chezem, head coach of Christopher Newport University men’s soccer and I welcome Kelvin Jones. Kelvin is the UPSL Head Coach, Crew 2 Assistant Coach, and Assistant Director of Player Development for the Columbus Crew. Additionally, he was the assistant coach for the US Men’s National Team U17 side that played in the recent U17 World Cup in Indonesia. We discussed the recruit...

In this episode I welcome Matt Lawrey, the academy director of Atlanta United and Chris Norris, the head coach of men’s soccer at the College of William & Mary. This is a wide ranging conversation that explores the MLS Academy process, the development of a professional mindset whether headed to the pros or to play for a college program. All of the aspects discussed are the same at the MLS acad...

In this episode, Justin Chezem and I welcome back Michael Meese, student-athlete at Trinity University and Augie Cooper, student-athlete at the College of William & Mary. We discuss some of the successes and challenges they faced during the season and what they have coming up in the next year. I’m sure a lot of what they have to say will resonate with most student-athletes. Thank you to Cheese...

In this episode of Mindset Monday Eric discusses the ins and outs of developing mental toughness. Summary In this conversation, Scot Cooper and Eric Manuel discuss the concept of mental toughness. Eric explains that mental toughness is an umbrella term that encompasses various aspects such as resilience, coping with stressors, and bouncing back after losses. He introduces the Four Cs model of ment...

Hi I’m Scot Cooper and welcome to the Tales From the Trail Podcast by MatchPlay. In this episode I welcome Jimmy Conrad. Among Jimmy’s many nicknames are Conradinho and Your Favorite US Men’s National Team ex-player. Jimmy’s shares his experiences growing up in an environment that created grit and resilience, fighting to live out his dream of playing for UCLA and winning a national championship. H...

Hi and welcome to the Tales From the Trail podcast by MatchPlay. In this episode I welcome Olympic Judo hopeful, David Terao. David was an All-American wrestler at American University with a foundation in competitive judo and jiu jitsu. He went on to compete as an adult in wrestling and jiu jitsu at the highest levels. He made the decision to go back to his roots in judo with the hopes of competin...

Hi and welcome to the Tales From the Trail podcast by Matchplay. In this episode I welcome back former #1 pick in the MLS draft, Omar Salgado and his former teammate Jay DeMerit. As an experienced player and captain of the Vancouver Whitecaps, Jay helped a teenaged Omar adjust to life as a professional soccer player. They reflect on their experiences as professionals and together as teammates. Oma...

Eric Manuel of expertminsetcoaching.com discusses the intricacies of intrinsic motivation.

Hi and welcome to the Tales From the Trail podcast by MatchPlay. In this episode I welcome the assistant coach of men’s soccer at Villanova University, Josh West and welcome back Chris Norris the long time men’s head soccer coach at the College of William and Mary. The guys remember Josh’s recruiting story and playing career for Coach Norris. They then move into recruiting in today’s youth soccer...

Hi and welcome to the Tales From the Trail podcast by Matchplay. In this episode I welcome Dr. Brad Miller, a licensed clinical psychologist, who has spent over 20 years helping youth and adult athletes grow their ability to control their performance anxiety and stress, to persevere and improve their overall sports performance. Brad played soccer at Wake Forest University and shares how his experi...