When I committed to App State, I was devastated that the soccer program had been cut. I did not know much about the program, but I loved the sport and looked forward to attending college soccer games. I grew up in Durham as a Duke fan, and I spent many nights with my dad at Koskinen Stadium watching Duke play. I heard a saying: “The better the football, the slower the game moves.” College is the perfect middleman, just talented enough to be incredibly entertaining, but games are fast-paced and chaotic, and there’s always jeopardy. As I began to look into why it was disbanded, I was confused and found myself with more questions than answers.
This article answered many of my questions. It told the story of App State Soccer’s origins, successes, and eventual disbandment. The most surprising aspect of this story was the successes and popularity that App State Soccer once had. The article tells the story of cup runs, player of the year awards, trophies, and dominating conferences. I was amazed to hear the stories of App State upsetting prestigious college programs like UNC. Additionally, the level of the players App could recruit you would not expect. They had Olympians playing college soccer in Boone, NC.
What made this article so intriguing is that its story feels so far away, almost as if it were in an entirely different period. It’s hard to imagine Kidd Brewer filled with fans cheering on their soccer team as football dominates the headlines here. Yet, it was just years ago that all of this was the case. This makes the downfall such a wild story. It happened so quickly, and a program that was so distinguished seemed to be swept under the rug and became a forgotten piece of App State history.
