Dave Cosgrove has just led Pima to a third-place finish in the NJCAA men’s soccer national tournament. So, what now?
A new jet? New car?
A vacation somewhere, preferably with cold cocktails and warm sand?
Hours and hours to unwind?
No, Cosgrove is back on the road this week. He’s traveling to Las Vegas with his son to watch him play and to scout other players. What’s a program-best 21 wins when you’ve got bigger plans?
The Star caught up with the Pima men’s soccer head coach after the team’s most successful season recently ended.
It’s been less than a week since the season ended — where are you mentally?
A: “We’re obviously very pleased with overall season, but we’re all disappointed because we were so close. One or two breaks go our way and we could be national champions. But the reality of the situation is I’m leaving for Las Vegas to watch players, watch my own son play, and we’re recruiting and working through Thanksgiving.”
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When will you take some time to reflect on the success of the season?
A: “We talked about what we were doing while we were doing it. I tried to keep kids aware of the standards we were setting. We’re very aware of the standard at Pima and in the region. We were in the moment, trying to raise the bar a little further every day. Honestly, it’ll be about January when things are done with this recruiting class, with commitments locked up. Then we’ll be able to take a breath.”
Is that really a reflection that for a college coach, there really is no offseason? That the games are just a small part of the overall whole?
A: “That’s probably true of any coach from any successful program. Absolutely, for the sophomores, their situation is where do we go next, and we’ll help them. For freshmen, we have to take care of finals, be eligible, take a breath. I can only imagine its even worse at a higher level or a bigger program. Those guys never get to breathe. It just never stops”
Are you someone who gets very intense during the season and then wind down, or are you even keel all year long?
A: “Yes, there is a wind-down period. I used to go straight into coaching club soccer, used to do high school. In 1999, went to nationals and had a high school varsity game to coach. Next six weeks we’ll finish up this class and then the winter is my break. Right now, my other job, the Tucson Soccer Academy, half the club is in high school, so we only have 500-600 kids to deal with instead of 1,000.”
After this run of success do you feel like you’re working harder or better to get these results?
A: “After last year, getting to nationals, that was a really special group — 10 of those kids I’d been coaching since they were 9 years old. So it was very rewarding, to watch these kids come along for 10 years, win in club, high school, and now junior college. I felt, we had a great run. What a way to end. I never saw this year coming. I knew we’d be good, but thought we’d have a lot to replace, that things went our way last year that wouldn’t always go our way.
“A lot of things have to go well to get to nationals. We made it in 1999, then 12 years later in 2011, then again in 2014. Now, two times in four years, and now three out of five, and now that we’ve done it back-to-back, there will be a unique pressure, that quite frankly I don’t know how to deal with.
“Given the resources and competition, quite frankly, I can’t even wrap my hands around it. Every team we played has dorms, international players. That happens within our own conference. The resources, player pool, we have nothing even close to it.”
What is the common thread between these last three tournament teams?
A: “I’ve reflected upon that a lot lately and three things stick out in my mind, why have we, if you will, peaked: One is the facilities. Moving down to Kino (North Stadium), having those facilities, it’s the best junior college complex in the country. Locker rooms, clubhouse, training room, game field. Athletes love that. That stuff matters to them.
Next thing is the coaching staff, which has been stable, and developed a working relationship. There’s just been great chemistry. My assistant coaches do a lot of primary training within our program, put together technical sessions, scouting. Between the assistants, they did a great job of taking that off my plate.
The final thing is support from Pima. (Athletic director) Edgar Soto gets the props, but he’s responsible to the president of West Campus, whose responsible to other people, and those people have been very good, supportive, stable. Every chance Edgar can, he says yes to whatever were asking for.”
