BLUEFIELD –Opening Day is at hand for Bluefield University Men's Soccer. The Rams open the 2023 season Wednesday evening against the Washington Adventist University Storm at the East River Soccer Complex at 6:00.
The Rams are under new leadership this season. Former BU soccer player and alumnus Gabriel Blakman takes over after Alex Smith left Bluefield for the short trip to Concord University. Blakman, a 2020 Bluefield graduate, has assisted the team the past three seasons and is poised to take command with the largest roster the Rams have had in many years.
"We are excited because we were able to bring a lot of talent, a lot of skill, not just with the players coming back, but with the players coming in from different parts of the United States, different countries," Blakman said.
The Rams have 16 returning players and will look to their captains for leadership. Jake Mendoza is a Graduate Student in his fifth year, Drake Cullens and Gabriel Santos are traditional seniors, and Adam Gymnander is a junior.
"We will look for our captains to lead not only on the field, but off the field," Blakman said.
Off the field for the Rams is as important as their activities on the field. Blakman believes team bonding leads to success.
"It (bonding) is pretty much the biggest thing that should happen before any game. We had a lot of team bonding during preseason," Blakman said. "We are going to have a couple of more (bonding events) in the next few weeks.
"It's huge because we should be able to know who we are off the field, to relate that to on-the-field activities. The best thing is to know what happens on the field, stays on the field. If we have any arguments on the field, we know that we are friends. We know we are brothers off the field."
Blakman is beginning his eighth year associated with the BU soccer program and he has developed his unique philosophy toward coaching.
"As a player for four years I was able to get some philosophies from three different coaches, and as an assistant coach two more," Blakman said. "I have four or five coaches I have watched throughout my college career, and I am picking a little bit from everyone. For me, the main philosophy is to be a mentor for players on and off the field."
Blakman, a native of Ecuador, sees his time at Bluefield as a positive as he is familiar with the school, its faculty, and staff and as such he can help his players off the field as well as on the pitch.
His words to students and fans are "We are a big, improved family on and off the field. We are experiencing growth with people from different parts of the world. We are a big family, players hanging out with different players each year. It's hard sometimes to do with a big roster, but the last four weeks we have been on campus makes me feel comfortable we will not have any problems off the field."