Freshman Making Moves in the Bison Attack

For nearly every incoming college athlete, there is a time of adjustment as they transition from high school to college.

Often, freshmen in college sports are regulated to smaller roles as they try to acclimate themselves to the nuances of the college game.         Every year, despite these obstacles, there are college athletes that develop quickly and are able to contribute significantly to their team in their first year. Freshman Phillip Borde of the Howard University Men's Soccer team is one of the latter.

Borde is part of men's soccer coach Michael Lawrence's first recruiting class. Lawrence, a Howard alumnus, became the men's head soccer coach in 2008. He was able to see the potential in Borde and saw him as a great addition to rebuilding the Howard soccer team.

"Evaluating him was very easy," Lawrence said. "After his first touch on the ball, you could tell that he was a Division I caliber player. He fit the mold of the type of players that we were looking to add to our program. His character, speed and decision making ability set him apart from the rest of his competition."

Borde, a psychology major from Ocoee, Fla. is living up to expectations, gaining a spot on the All-Conference First Team and winning the Atlantic Soccer Conference Rookie of the Year Award unanimously. Borde, who his coach describes as an "attacking midfielder that has a nose for the goal," led his team in all offensive categories including goals, assists, and game-winning goals.

Though Borde's natural talent shines through, he has made many improvements since arriving at Howard.

"As a soccer player my decision making on the ball has gotten much better," Borde said.

"The way we train has forced me to improve my quickness and movement off the ball. My fitness has improved tremendously, it's big difference from high school."
Borde is a professional caliber player and his performance speaks for itself.

Coach Lawrence still believes that freshmen as a whole can contribute as long as they have the right motivation.

"I am a strong believer that freshmen players can have a tremendous impact on any team that is in the process of rebuilding," Lawrence said. "The important thing is that they must have a good work ethic, positive attitude and a no quit attitude."

The playing field is not the only place where freshmen athletes can have difficulty making adjustments.

Making the transition from high school classes to college can also be trying. The travel, practice and responsibilities of being on a team can burden the workload even more for new students.

"Coach had us attend several academic and time management meetings in the academic reinforcement center which has really helped with organizing my time better," Borde said. "I try to spend at least 10-16 hours a week on my school work, some time it feels like time is moving so fast."

These improvements don't happen automatically. Many hours on the practice field are spent learning the system, improving endurance and learning the intricacies of the game.

Meanwhile, more hours are spent studying and making up assignments missed during the season.

This is not an easy job for a first year college student. Coach Lawrence recognizes this and gives each member of the team the attention they deserve.

"Freshmen players need to be shown a lot more patience and require more teaching," he said. "However, upperclassmen can function with just simple guidance, because they have been in the system longer, are more mature and have a better understanding of what is expected for them succeed at the Division I level. In other words, freshmen will have questions while upperclassmen will have suggestions."