Creating a Culture Shock

By John Rohde // SoonerSports.com

A noticeable spike in soccer comes whenever the World Cup is staged, and interest in the United States intensified significantly during this summer's competition in Brazil with record ratings in television, Internet and social media.

Like any dedicated soccer coach in America, Matt Potter wants to change his sport's culture and the World Cup provides an opportunity every four years.

Perhaps that helps explain why Potter and his Oklahoma soccer team have had such impeccable timing so far this season.

Off to a 5-1-2 start, this year's Sooners already have surpassed last season's victory total and they've done so while competing on what could be considered a vengeance tour.

(This season), it just flows. It's a good team feeling. It's hard to put into words how much of a difference (Coach Potter) has made with our program. The whole coaching staff has.
Molly Richey

Last season, OU lost 4-1 at Oklahoma State, lost 3-0 at Florida, lost 1-0 at No. 2 Florida State and then lost 5-0 at home against North Texas.

This season, on their home turf at John Crain Field, the Sooners beat the Cowgirls 2-0, beat the No. 6 Gators 2-1 and again lost 1-0 to the No. 2 Seminoles. Then came a heart-thumping 2-1 double-overtime victory over the nemesis Mean Green in Denton, Texas, where OU tied the score with 38 seconds remaining in regulation to force overtime.

This blazing start lifted the Sooners to rankings in three of the nation's major soccer polls, including No. 19 in the latest NSCAA rankings. This is the program's best start since 2005, when the Sooners jumped out to an 11-1-1 start, but won just two of their final seven matches.

OU finished just 4-13-1 last year, which was Potter's second season. There was some luck involved, most of it bad. The soccer gods have been much more considerate to the 2014 Sooners.

“They've been a lot nicer to us so far this year,” redshirt senior defender Molly Richey said with a laugh, “but we also put in a lot of hard work. With hard work you seem to get a lot luckier.”

Quality opponents have tested that fate, but a demanding non-conference schedule is standard fare for the Sooners under Potter.

“To be the best you have to play the best, and we've done that,” Richey said. “It was nothing new to us, playing those teams. Not only have we been on the right side of luck, in most cases we've been the better team.”

The tide turned with the 2012 arrival of Potter, who was born in Mere, England, played for the Under-19 English National Team and at West London College and also professionally for the Watford F.C. in Hertfordshire.

Potter previously coached at Scottsdale (Ariz.) Community College (2002-03) and at Washington State (2003-11), where he set or tied 25 program records with an 88-69-26 mark. He took WSU to three NCAA Tournaments and the 2009 team finished ranked No. 18.

"When we started the search, we evaluated which programs around the country had developed consistently successful teams," Oklahoma athletic director Joe Castiglione said. "Obviously, we wanted to try and find the total package from character to teaching, motivating, recruiting, talent evaluation skills, strategist and program builder. He was a perfect fit for us."

Potter said he isn't necessarily trying to change OU's soccer culture. The goal is to “imprint your vision or your philosophy.”

“Now we feel like we're starting to get that return, that reward, which obviously has been felt by the returns we've had so far this season,” Potter said.

We feel like we're starting to get that return, that reward, which obviously has been felt by the returns we've had so far this season.
Matt Potter

Potter's vision goes beyond the field, as Castiglione can attest to.

"Matt Potter is more of a program builder than just a coach of women's soccer," Castiglione said. "The culture he is creating is centered on the mission to develop into more of a complete person by the time they leave—not only a successful soccer player."

Make no mistake, his players are all-in.

“We love him,” said midfielder Abby Hodgen, a fourth-year senior out of Mustang High School. “He's a very smart soccer coach. He knows what kind of girls to recruit. He knows what he's doing with us. You could tell he knew what he was doing at Washington State because he turned that program around, and now he's doing it at OU. He's just so smart.”

Richey said she felt like a stranger on her own team before Potter arrived.

“Before he was here, personally I didn't feel as involved with the team,” Richey said. “Whereas this year, it's like, 'Wow, everyone loves everybody.' There are no issues. It's full of energy. He brings a comfort level. It just flows. It's a good team feeling. It's kind of hard to put into words how much of a difference he's made with our program. The whole coaching staff has.”

In terms of building the school's soccer culture, construction of the $5.7 million OU Soccer Complex was an impressive start. The Sooners' current project is to build a winning attitude.

The school's soccer program began in 1996 under coach Bettina Fletcher. The Sooners played just two home games and finished 1-13 that inaugural season, with the lone victory being a 3-2 triumph at McNeese State in the season finale. The following season, the Sooners joined the Big 12 Conference and went 2-14 overall (1-9 in the conference play). Fletcher coached one more season and departed with an 11-36-0 record.

Randy Evans coached from 1999-2007 and amassed a far more tolerable 78-79-16 overall record, but was just 30-51-9 in Big 12 play. Nicole Nelson coached from 2008-11 and went 29-46-4 overall and 11-24-3 in conference play.

In their first season under Potter, the Sooners finished 7-9-4 overall and 3-3-2 in the Big 12. The most logical explanation for the dip to 4-13-1 last season was the departure of Renae Cuellar, the 2012 Big 12 Offensive Player of the Year and a First-Team All-District selection.

“Goals were hard to come by last year,” Potter explained. “The year before, we were fortunate to have a world-class goal scorer in Renae. We didn't have a proven goal scorer last year. To be perfectly honest, I felt like we were as competitive or more competitive last year than the year before. From the outside looking in, it would probably look like we took a step back. But from the inside looking out, we were very pleased with the progress of the program.”

Coach speak from Potter? No doubt, but he also understands that wins matter most. “We know we're in a results industry,” Potter said.

Ask Hodgen and Richey about what transpired last season and, like Potter, they find a silver lining in all that suffering.

Hodgen: “You knew everyone was there for the right reasons last year. We just couldn't finish games. It wasn't working out on the field, but it was definitely one of the better teams I was a part of at OU.”

Richey: “We turned up on the wrong side of luck a lot of times last year, but it allowed us to grow together and it was a necessary year.”

Potter is making full use of his monstrous 29-player roster. By classification, the breakdown is 11 freshmen, 12 sophomores, three juniors and three seniors, but Potter believes all classes are created equal.

“When any girl joins the team, he doesn't look at you as a freshman, sophomore, junior or senior,” Hodgen said of Potter. “He calls us all 'valued team members' and he wants us all to feel part of the team. Everyone's equal and I think that helps a lot.”

Castiglione agrees: "He has worked hard to value the players he has over the ones he's trying to recruit. This has helped him create the culture and foundation upon which the future success would be built."

To a certain extent, that equality extends to the team's overall talent. In the 19-year history of the program, no one recalls the Sooners ever being so deep.

“We have extreme depth this year,” Hodgen said. “We've never been able to have players come into the game and have the impact they have now. Teams don't really know what to do when he sub players in.”

This “extreme” depth spreads the minutes throughout the roster and has helped keep the Sooners fresh in the four Friday/Sunday doubleheaders they already have played to date. “When you come to college, you can't play two 90-minute games each weekend and get through the whole season,” Hodgen said. “You won't last.”

Richey quickly agreed and added, “This is definitely the first year we've been able to go deep into our bench. Our level of play isn't going down when we put players in. It's only getting better. It's been a challenge to the coaches to pick a starting lineup. Everyone right now is capable of having a starting role.”

Consider it a culture shock.

About John Rohde

John Rohde is a respected name on the Oklahoma sports scene and will provide regular features for SoonerSports.com. Voted Oklahoma Sportswriter of the Year five times, Rohde has covered OU football and basketball, the Oklahoma City Thunder, OKC/New Orleans Hornets, Dallas Cowboys, Texas Rangers, the Final Four, Masters and PGA Tour. He spent over 26 years for The Oklahoman, serving as a columnist and beat writer. He can be heard on 107.7 The Franchise, the flagship station for OU Athletics weekdays from 5:30-9 a.m.