Ive always had an unsettled feeling in my gut, like somewhere out there an awesome game going on that I was missing out on. As a child, I was a creative type with a big imagination. I spent a lot of time alone in my thoughts. Deep down below the surface, like an invisible undercurrent, there has always been an unsettling feeling of restlessness and existential doubt: What am I here for? What am I made for? Juxtaposed to this uncertainty in myself is a compulsive commitment to things I start, a relentless discipline to chase a thing to its end, and to never look back. Perfect stillness, or frantic aggression. Black or white. All or nothing.

I was born in California in 1989, and moved to NC in 1997 when I was 7 years old and never left. I was Homeschooled until my Junior year of high school, which was incredibly formative for me, allowing me to pursue areas of interest with more freedom than a traditional education. The downside was that I always slightly felt on the outside of things, never fully in “the group”, and never fully at ease within groups of people. I fell in love with learning (although I was behind in most subjects), reading (still can’t spell to save my life), the arts: playing piano, oil and acrylic painting, and athletics. My first introduction to soccer was at 11 years old in middle school, when I was invited to play on a homeschool soccer team (they were desperate for anyone with feet) so I said “yes, sign me up!” I fell in love with soccer immediately and never looked back. All or nothing.

At 15 years old I went to church youth group and met my Highschool sweetheart and future wife Cassidy more. She was the one. My junior year of high school I transferred to Wakefield high school so I could play school soccer which, let me tell you, was a culture shock. The Varsity soccer team and Cassidy were the only anchors during that time. I played club soccer at CASL for the 89 united classic (back when there were only two or at most three classic teams per age group…how times have changed) I got accepted into NC state university in 2007, but transferred out in 2009, as I had no idea what I wanted to do with my life, other than avoid student loan debt like the plague. I took a 180 degree shift and got a job as waiter while attending community college at Wake tech where I stayed for one year. In 2011 I transferred yet again to the College at Southeastern (now Judson college at Southeastern), and graduated with BA in Christian studies.

I married Cassidy in July of 2011. While wrapping up my degree, I was hustling making some side cash coaching two or three kids what I knew about soccer. Around this time, I collaborated with a high school acquaintance who also happened to be at Southeastern Seminary to start a soccer coaching company. He pitched the idea of calling it Soccer Genome. All in, sink or swim, count me in. I never knew I was embarking on an entrepreneurial adventure of a life time. I thought I was just teaching kids how to play soccer a little bit better.

With the exception of my wife and kids, Soccer Genome has been my life (for better and for worse). As any entrepreneur will tell you, the business you start is really just an extension of your self. This is what makes so much of the process of building a business so painful…it's all just a process of painful personal growth as you face your insecurities, your weaknesses, your pride, and your fear. Deep down there is something you need to bring to the world, to get out of your system, to put out there for people to see and experience. There are many days where no one shows, or not enough, or what you are offering falls flat on its face and is an utter failure. The doubts in your mind keep you from sleeping at night, and the strain of delivering something meaningful drains every once of humanity out of you by day. There are always a thousand and one reasons why you should quit, and that little voice creeps in and says “man, today is the perfect day to quit.”

But something in my gut would always churn at the thought of quitting. All in, no looking back, everything or nothing. In hindsight as I reflect on the last 15 years, and look ahead to the next 50, I think SG has been that space that has allowed me to be who I fully am, in all dimensions of my life. It is a place to play, to train, and to grow. Every day is just about getting one more chance to show up and chase a beautifully played game. To chase it with my loved ones, my family, my friends, my team. With the families who have been with us since 2011, and the new ones just starting in 2025. That’s what I am here for. That’s why I was made.