The University of Rhode Island
Department of Journalism

Journalism major is living his dream

March 23 , 2004 -- Perek Bellah, who was born in Lagos, Nigeria, is a senior journalism major from Syracuse, N.Y. He is scheduled to graduate in August. He wrote this story as part of an Independent Study project.

Almost all my life I have dreamed of playing professional soccer. From a young age, I already had a blueprint in my mind of how to achieve that dream. When I stepped on the field for the first time with an organized team, I knew my dream had begun.

I clearly remember my first soccer tryout; I was 9 years old, and I was trying out for the under-10 team of the Gladiators soccer club in Omaha, Neb. I had yet to play organized soccer.

During the three-day tryout I did very well and I remember saying to myself, "Wow, this is what I want to do for the rest of my life."

At the tryout, I dominated! The best part about it was that I didn't feel any pressure because it was a tryout and I was having the time of my life. I couldn't imagine doing anything else. I had fallen in love with soccer.

I made the team and was a Gladiator for three seasons. Then my family moved to Syracuse, N.Y., where I joined a new club team. Varsity high school soccer was next; I made the team in the eighth grade. Five years of success with both my high school and club teams earned me a full athletic scholarship to the University of Rhode Island.

Suddenly, it seems, it was my senior season at URI, and I knew that we needed to have a good year if I were to have any chance of playing soccer at the next level.

At the beginning of the season, the team was not very successful (we won only four of our first 13 matches). Part of my blueprint was a memorable senior season, but at the rate we had started, the season wasn't looking too good.

My teammates and I rallied around each other and started to give it everything we had.

We finally started to string together some wins (six of our last seven matches) and found ourselves as the fifth seed in the 2003 Atlantic 10 Championships.

This year's tournament was to be held in Virginia, at the University of Richmond's First Market Stadium. I knew that the only way for us to make it to the NCAA championship tournament was to win the A10s and earn the automatic bid.

In my mind I knew that I needed to get myself to the biggest stage in the college game in order to get the attention of professional scouts. Even though we had taken the scenic route to get into the conference championships, we knew that we had nothing to lose as the fifth seed and believed we were capable of winning it all. But nobody could have guessed what was going to transpire in Richmond.

The conference championships were Nov. 13-16, and what happened then were, without a doubt, some of the greatest moments of my college soccer career.

As the fifth seed, we were set to play the No. 4 seed University of Dayton Flyers in the quarter-final. Personally, I felt good about that match-up because we were the underdog and we had been defeated by the Flyers earlier in the season. The pressure was all on them.

So "my boys" and I knew we had nothing to lose and we could just go out and do our best. On that cool Thursday night on the University of Richmond's campus, we were dressed in our traditional navy blue kits, white trunks and navy blue socks. Dayton came out in their all-white home uniform. Both teams were ready for battle.

Throughout the first half, we had majority of the play. We felt confident going into the locker room at half time with the match having no goals. As I walked toward the locker room, I took a quick look in the direction of the Dayton players; most of their heads were down. After seeing that, I knew they didn't want to know what was going to happen in the second half.

I opened the scoring early in the second half to give our side a deserved 1-0 lead. I picked up a loose ball about 25 yards away from the Dayton goal, turned on their central defender and slotted the ball to the far post, past the outstretched right hand of the keeper.

That goal meant a lot to me because it was the first time I had scored against Dayton in four previous occasions. As I saw the ball about to hit the net, it was almost as if it were going in slow motion. I didn't know how to react; all I knew was that I had given my team a reason to believe.

We were playing brilliant soccer and never allowed Dayton to get back into the game. We got our revenge and held on to win 2-1. Now there was a buzz in the conference tourney. The other teams were worried about our stellar performance and were worried about facing the Rhode Island Rams.

Our next date was with the regular season co- champions and the No. 1 seeded University of Richmond Spiders. Again, we were confident. On Oct. 3, during the regular season, we had tied Richmond 0-0 in Kingston, so we believed it was possible to win the match, even though it was a daunting task.

At the end of that first meeting, one of the Richmond defenders, Eric Dutt, had said, "good game fellas; we'll see you at our place." Both teams envisioned the two teams would meet again and now the time had come for a colossal rematch.

When kick-off arrived, the temperature was in the mid- to low-40s with a slight breeze. Richmond, the higher seed, wore their all-white home kit, and we were wearing our lucky visitors' navy blue and white.

As the match started, Richmond had the majority of the early play. They were coming at us in waves, and I didn't know how much longer we could hold on. Playing a solid team at home in an elimination match is a very difficult job, but my boys and I stuck together and started to fight back. After the first 15 to 20 minutes of the first half, we finally adjusted and began to play our style of soccer.

Before I knew it, we went ahead with a late goal in the first half from Mo Keita. The pro-Richmond crowd was stunned.

In training sessions during the season, everyone knew that Mo was a good header of the ball. So when Mo struck first blood for Rhody with a powerful header off a corner kick, we all knew that was how it was supposed to happen.

The second half was a real battle, but we gave it everything we had and fended off the Spiders until the final whistle. I remember very clearly that when the final whistle blew, I said to myself, "Wow, this is meant to be. Just one more match!"

We had reached the final and were set to play the No. 3 seed, the Temple University Owls. It was going to be the second time in two weeks that we had faced this same Temple squad. If there was any indication from the first meeting, we knew the final was going to be a classic because we had a 3-2 thriller in Kingston that went in our favor.

Before kick-off I told myself that we may as well just shock the conference and win it all because we had come too far to come in second. Everything we had accomplished would have been for nothing if we didn't win the championship. I also knew that I needed to get my team to the NCAA tournament because we all needed to experience it and benefit from it.

On the Sunday of the A10 final, it was a cool 50 degrees with a bit of rain, not bad for the middle of November. Once more, we were wearing our visiting navy blue kits and Temple was wearing their red and white striped tops, red trunks and white socks as the home team

Temple got off to a dream start. Being a defensively oriented team, what the Owls wanted to do was get an early goal and then defend their lead. And that is exactly what they did -- for a little while.

We found ourselves trailing for the first time in the championships. Because we were a young team, I didn't know how we would respond. Everyone on our side felt that we were not being out-played and knew that we could come back. We did.

Less than five minutes after Temple's goal, we drew level through a brilliant free kick by my co-striker, Sasha Gotsmanov. When his perfectly placed free kick sailed over the wall and into the bottom right hand corner of the goal, I rallied my teammates and said, "It's time for us to take control of the game." That is exactly what we did. We started to play a lot better, even though Temple continued to make it difficult for us.

As the match went on, time became more and more of a factor. With about 15 minutes left in the championship, we got our first lead. Keita scored again, this time from 25 yards out on a rocket of a shot. When that went in, I believe everyone in the park knew that Rhode Island was going to win. Even Temple knew. It was such an emphatic goal that it killed off any belief that the Temple players had. While celebrating Mo's goal, I could see a lot of the Temple players drop to their knees.

But just when there was still enough time for the Owls to find an equalizer, yours truly found the insurance goal with about 10 minutes left in the match. I latched onto another loose ball at the edge of the area and eluded two Temple defenders. After that I found an onrushing keeper in front of me. I cooly slipped the ball underneath his body into the near post and was off screaming for joy. By scoring my twelfth goal of the season, I had helped seal the championship for my side.

Winning the Atlantic 10 Championship 3-1 over Temple was without a doubt the greatest feeling I had had on the soccer field -- up to then. Little did I know that a lot of things were going to go my way in the very near future, and an even more profound soccer memory would be mine.

While celebrating the championship with my comrades, I learned that I was selected as the 2003 Atlantic 10 Tournament Most Outstanding Player. Receiving that award was very special to me, and for the tournament to conclude on that note was truly a dream ending for me in Richmond.

By winning the Atlantic 10 Championship we earned the automatic bid to the NCAA tournament. In the NCAA selection show we drew a historical rival in the University of Connecticut. Not only were they an old rival but they are known as a national college soccer power. We knew that we had our work cut out for us, but we were full of confidence and ready to hit Storrs by storm.

The day before the NCAA opener I was feeling good. Reaching the biggest stage in college soccer is something that most players never get to experience, so I knew that what my teammates and I already had achieved something special.

Going into the match vs. Connecticut, my boys and I once again were relaxed and felt that we had nothing to lose. We had been going against the odds this whole time, so we felt that we should do what we could to try and keep it going. We were the road team for this first round, so we wore our lucky navy blue kits again. Unfortunately, Connecticut had a bit too much for us. We ended up losing by three goals to none. We fought really hard, but that was just not enough this time around.

And then it hit me: My college soccer career was over.

After returning to campus later that night I was pretty sad. I really didn't want the season to end the way it did, but it was out of my hands. I started to think about what was next for me and my soccer dream. When I reached the kitchen of my house in Narragansett, the answer was waiting for me on the table.

I picked up two letters, one from Boston and the other from Chicago. The letters were from agencies interested in representing me. In my blueprint, I knew I needed an agent, but I didn't know that it was going happen like this.

A few days later I called the agency in Boston and got some more information about how they felt they could help me. Over the Thanksgiving break I didn't go home because it was too far to drive for just two days. Instead, I decided to take a little road trip to Boston.

When I got there, I met with David Williamson and Justin Clark, who took me for lunch and explained in detail how they would help me. After a few hours, I think it is safe to say, both parties were impressed with how everything went.

I knew that this is the way I was supposed to go. But before I made my final decision, I spoke to the firm in Chicago. I was not feeling as confident with them and I also didn't like the fact that they would be so far away, so made my decision a lot easier. After a few weeks of conversing with my family, I decided to sign with Williamson.

As soon as I signed with his firm, professional clubs started inquiring about me. Teams from the A-league and some MLS teams were interested in me, and my agent was hard at work trying to get me the best situation.

The Rochester Rhinos, Richmond Kickers, Virginia Beach Mariners, Syracuse Salty Dogs and Milwaukee Wave United all said that if they got the opportunity to select me in the 2004 A-league Draft, they would.

Before I knew it, draft day -- Dec. 17 -- had arrived. Coaches and my agent exchanged last-minute telephone calls. The draft was scheduled to start at 3 p.m., but because it was not televised, I just had to wait for my agent to call.

As the minutes went by, I did all that I could to keep myself busy. I did some homework, watched some TV and took a nap. I really didn't have any feeling about things; I was just trying to wait patiently.

When the news came, it was even better than I had hoped for. About 5 p.m. my agent called to say that with the tenth pick in the entire draft, the Rochester Raging Rhinos had selected me. I was speechless. My dream of being a professional soccer player was about to become a reality.

Not only was I selected tenth overall, but I was chosen by arguably one of the best A-League teams. Rochester has the best attendance in the league (averaging 11,000 a game) and is scheduled to enter the MLS in 2005.

As I am writing three months after the draft, I still can't believe what has transpired in my life. Having your dreams come true is an amazing feeling.

After being selected by Rochester, I had three weeks to prepare for a professional combine in Cocoa, Fla. Some MLS coaches were to be in attendance. So from being ecstatic about my professional career beginning, I was right back at it getting ready to perform -- but as a pro athlete for the first time.

Getting a chance to go to Florida was awesome. I had never been there, and when I arrived the weather was fantastic: warm with a nice slow breeze. Everything was lush green and the sun was beaming, I was so excited to be in Cocoa, Florida.

I was at the combine as the "property" of the Rhinos, so I knew that I had to perform at a very high level. The fact that there were about 200 players there didn't bother me. I knew that I was just as good as the next guy and if I played to my personal best I would have no problems.

The first day of the combine was a short training session that allowed us to get familiar with the players we were going to play with and the coach we were assigned to. I worked with coach John Trask from the club D.C. United in the MLS.

The next few days, all we did was play soccer, and I played very well in all my games. I dominated as if I were still wearing the Rhode Island kit. I was doing what I was accustomed to doing and I was scoring some wonderful goals. I was really pleased with my efforts and I think all the coaches were pleased with what I had to offer. I felt that I was arguably the best player in my position at the combine.

Right after the end of the combine I had to return to Kingston for the second semester of my senior year. Since the combine, I have been invited to a few MLS combines. I think coach Trask said it best in my evaluation of the weekend: "Perek has as much potential as any player at the combine. Needs to continue to refine his game in all areas, and if willing to do so, could have a GREAT future."

So now all that is left for me is to finish my college days and then head to Rochester and start what I hope will be the first of many professional soccer seasons. With the first major part of my blueprint complete, I must work twice as hard to reach and complete the next step of my dream.

If you have questions for Perek, you can e-mail him.