Alan Babbitt: Welcome to the Hope College Athletics Orange and Blue Podcast. My name is Alan Babbitt. I'm the Sports Information Director here at Hope College and it's been a blast this summer to talk with some of the special people we have here at Hope College where there'd be administration, staff, student-athletes coaches, and get their insights on what's going on in their world, their sports. But also, what's going on here on campus and all the great things, whether they are searching for, striving for competitive excellence, or also for transformational experiences as well. Our guest for this episode is David Blahnik, the men's soccer coach heading into a second very exciting and competitive season. We'll talk a little bit more about that and what's coming up, but welcome to the Orange and Blue Podcast David.

David Blahnik: Thanks, Alan. Happy to be here and I appreciate you as always.

Alan Babbitt: Even though you're preparing for games this fall, summertime is a time for camps and a very popular item on the Hope College campus and Van Andel. Soccer Stadium is camp season. I know you and women's coach Lee Sears work hard and create just an outstanding different stretch of camp. Tell us about camp season.

David Blahnik: We're not completely done but we finished up with our big ones last week, honestly, last week was our residential camp and that's rising seventh graders. So those boys entering seventh grade all the way into 12th grade and there and they're on campus and they're staying in the dorms and it's such a fun time, it's a really fun time. We had just over 340 kids last week, so it's a lot of fun but it's also a lot of making sure we have everybody, walking from the dorms crossing, the street things of that nature. We call that our residential camp. We try to make that just a really fun camp. Yeah, the idea is yes, we want to make you a better soccer player and we have the specific soccer things with that and laid out throughout the day. But we really just want parents to drop their kids off Monday, they pick them up Thursday and they just had an awesome time. Not only on the field but in the dorms and whether they go swimming in the pool, just playing outside at night, or in between practices. And, I feel like this year went really well. And we've had some really, really good feedback. So that was fun. But also, my staff helps with that. Connor Fowler is my director of that camp with me and we just feel like the next day we joke. What time did you fall asleep? Thursday night, and I think he said he fell asleep at 5 pm and got done working at three. but it's a lot of fun. We do. I know the girls team is currently doing their residential camp this week. So, Coach Sears is kind of going through that right now this week and then we kind of run the day camp together which is awesome. The day camp is for the younger kids. They're not staying overnight, school time. let's say 9ish to 3:30 ish and Co-ed. We had nearly 400 kids for that and the third week of June and just an awesome time, and I know we'll talk a bit about myself, my son's 9 years old, and to me yesterday, he said, Dad can we do another week of day camp? And, it's a great way to get kids of all ages on campus and on Hope's facilities and learning the game but also just kind of growing up on our campus and in Holland, which is awesome and something that's great for us. And then we do two to three just individual id camps this summer. Those are three to four hours Max but those are the ones where it's like high school kids that really want to try to play soccer at Gope or maybe you want to get a feeling that's one thing I always say to the campers you're checking us out as well, and those are a bit more intimate. we cap them at 50. We try to charge very little because we're not trying. We want every kid to have the opportunity if they want to play soccer or try to play soccer. If we want to make sure they at least have that opportunity. So we've finished those out and then next week we have our goalkeeping camp. So we're calling it summer saves. And once we're done with that, we'll be done for this summer's session of camps.

Alan Babbitt: I would say one of the things in my time here, my 10th year is sports information director and I covered Hope College for 15 years and all between newspapers, but particularly the soccer camp, the tradition probably now is parents who participate in this camp now, wanting their children to be able to participate in and get hopefully the same enjoyment. They did, that's got to be a thrill to see that the generations come through and enjoy the camp again, and as parents now and when they were campers before,

David Blahnik: 100%. And yeah, I mean, Hope soccer camps have been a staple not only in West Michigan but in the Midwest for decades. I have been happy to kind of take over the take on the baton for some of that. but what the previous coaching staff and Coach Sears have done for years is just there's a reason kids keep coming back. it's not because of me or it's not because of anybody else it's because of Hope College. It's because of Holland Michigan. There is a reason that people keep coming back and we look forward to hopefully, even making it even better next year, which will be great.

Alan Babbitt: You talked earlier about your sons. You have a unique perspective, as not only a soccer coach but as a soccer parent and having two young boys Cohen and Breck learn the game and obviously a supportive soccer mom and your wife, Karalynn, just talk about your family story.

David Blahnik: I would love to, we've had a bit of a unique story on how my family got here, but my wife and I just celebrated our 15th year of marriage this year. And we have a nine-year-old son named Breck and an almost five year old son who wants to act like a five year old but he's named Cohen. Breck will be entering fourth grade this year and Cohen will be in young five. He's got one more year until he goes to kindergarten but it's a lot of fun if you ask me this question again in five years and they're 9 10 and the high school I'll probably answer differently but we're still kind of trying to figure it out I think coaching is one of those unique things where It's difficult but awesome to be a college head coach and have a family a lot of time spent with others but at the same time, my nine-year-old thinks it's the coolest thing in the world being around the guys and being at things of that nature. Those I think are unique experiences that it's like, Hey we're doing this. So let's make it a fun and unique forum and then just always try to balance that but they love it. My son's over at Hope Tennis Academy right now doing their summer session with my niece, and my four-year-old's there watching, and any time he sees an anchor and there's Daddy's hope, he loves that stuff. So we just try to make the most of it but it can definitely be a challenge. but we love the community, I think that was part of it. We are living in this community before I came back full-time to Hope and it was one of those where we were sitting here going. Yeah. You want our kids to go to Hope, whether I'm working here And so, when the opportunity arose, it was a no-brainer for us, we'll figure it out. Obviously, I was a full-time coach Prior, so we had been through it a little bit. but it's something that you try to figure out. I don't think any head coach who's married has the perfect way of doing it but we try to make the most of it for us. My wife is a local kindergarten teacher here in West Michigan. She's involved in the community within her school district as well. So we try to make the most of it. And again, if you ask me again, a couple of years, I might tell you Yeah, maybe we could have done this a little differently, but we try to be super intentional. Let's just put it that way, very intentional with the time that we do have together.

Alan Babbitt: In no matter the coach, I mean, the spouses, just critical and obviously, you guys work together to support each other, she might have peak times that you're a little less than that's kind of, I imagine the secret. I mean, just how valuable is she just to be able to help you guys do everything that you're wanting to do for your boys?

David Blahnik: It's unbelievable. And my wife was a college athlete and that kind, my wife's born and raised in Michigan and went to high school here in Michigan, and she played college tennis, so she's played a college sport. She gets it in a sense. and I do laugh though because us being a full sport and she's a kindergarten teacher. So the first month of kindergarten is difficult. Probably our two most difficult times of the year in regard to time management are the same times for us and the start of kindergarten for her. So we just joke or just like, Hey, let's always give each other a little bit of grace and we always have both of our moms on call. They know, hey, late August, or early September. We need a little bit of help for those weeks but we try to make the most of it.

Alan Babbitt: I would imagine two at least, maybe a little better this summer is that you're going into your second year instead of your first year when you're just trying to get settled I almost imagine. In May you were named head coach and then busy right into the season. How do you feel going into the second season? Is there anything that's that different? Okay, we got this, kind of sort of figured out and then I know how to move forward. I mean there's just whether you're an athlete or a coach that first to a second year, there can be some things that hopefully it would be a little bit into a rhythm.

David Blahnik: It's a massive difference, I just say you can, I don't know if I'd say, I don't know for are ever fully prepared, but fully prepared as much as possible, I joke I know where the light switches are now, those types of things, But no, it's been great to be able to have kind of a full year to figure out what we want this team to be for this year. Yes, it takes some time to build a program in a culture that could take a few years. But that doesn't mean we can't win and be successful right away, And I believe that we can win and be successful this year. We don't need to wait a few years. I also felt that we could win and be successful last year and we had moments where we were because of that or we were having very successful moments but just figuring out the consistency of it. I know the guys know me now was able to bring in, I'm sure we'll get to about a large recruiting class of incoming, freshmen and transfers and a lot of intentional conversations and just being able to make sure the goal for me, for the guys, was that when they went home this summer, that they fully understood what we wanted from them when they returned in August and they had some say in that I was having individual meetings weekly with the guys all second semester and again to feel that. So as far as from a coaching perspective, we feel really good about where we're going to be here and what just about a month, and in fact, our first practice is on August 19th. So in a month from today when we're recording this, we feel really good about it. And I think also just from all the little stuff matters is not just the soccer, this wasn't my first time being a coach and actually, my first head coaching job, I got the job in June, so I have kind of been through the ropes of a short prep before which definitely helped me understand. That there's only so much I can control in this time frame and so to kind of get myself a little bit of grace so that I'm not stressing out over things that are just out of my control, and really being able to then concentrate my effort and energy on the things that I can control in a short time frame. We feel fully prepared. I mean, if you would have interviewed me last year, you probably would have seen much more stress on my face than you do right now. So honestly, it's exciting right now. I'm really excited to get after it in a month. So

Alan Babbitt: And it was a very competitive first season too, because I think your overall record, a little deceiving, was six ties. I think for the first time we didn't have overtime determining, it was 90 minutes and regulation, but you guys were right there. What did you learn from that? 

David Blahnik: It was probably I'd say 15 years of college coaching the most unique year. I've had incredible highs and I wouldn't say incredible lows but just that's what's funny about the game of soccer is the ties. And as I think you briefly mentioned that it was a new rule last year. golden goal overtime and I could do a whole other episode just on that alone, so I won't go into it. But it was unique because, I mean, if you look at it on paper, I think that we had one of the more difficult non-conference schedules probably and open in soccer history taking into effect. Not just the level of teams with the travel, we were traveling to wash you and St. Louis on a week on a Tuesday or Wednesday, those types of things, which then affects class and sleep, and practice. And so, stepping away from it and seeing it. I wouldn't say that. It was ideal, but happy at the same time. Fortunately guys like (Tim Schoonveld) our athletic director texted me. after I'm one of those guys where I want to win. I want to go to overtime, and I want to try to win And I feel like a lot of those six ties or draws. If they can use some soccer lingo, I really feel like at least three or four of them in overtime. I feel like we may have gotten a result and we might have lost one or two of them, too. I'm not gonna pretend we don't, but I think there's some certainty there and, I think we started out With four straight drawings. Yeah, we were zeros here. So we just kind of felt like, But all four of those teams were either preseason, ranked or ranked at some point, very difficult games with returning teams, that had played together for years in our first practice as a team was, 10 days prior and so, stepping away trying to understand that wow for being a completely new team, in a sense style of play and culture and those types of things, for us To only give up three goals and four games. Again, some of the best teams in the country and not lose any, it's not the end of the world, we can work on and get better at and so we tried to keep that perspective but there were times after some of those ties where it was and you remember every missed opportunity we're like my goodness. But the guy stuck with it. I think it's one of those things where we can take some of that into this year's team. We were able to take it into the offseason and into what we're telling them we think they need to try to work on in the summer when they're working on their own, things of that nature.

Alan Babbitt: A college program at the Division III level is not just about soccer. Although that's a big part and a big enjoyment, you're also preparing leaders in whatever field they choose to go into. What would you say are some of your kind of bedrock things as you work with this men's soccer program that you want to instill in your student-athletes?

David Blahnik: I think that. I was at owing you for 12 years six and a half as head coach and then I went into the business world for a couple of years full-time, and coached part-time. And I think coming back into full-time coaching I think it's made me a better coach because I've gotten a different perspective on things. And I felt this way even at ONU, but I think one of the things I really learned from ONU. You were like, if you want, the ultimate goal, I do. I want to win championships. Absolutely. That is we want to win championships, but I believe we can win championships and in a sense that can happen aided by our concentration on the more important things that they can coexist and they can align together and that's, trying to create the best college experience. For every single person that I asked to make arguably the biggest decision of their life which is to come to college and play soccer for us. And so I feel like, this isn't today that I don't want to view it as they are lucky to come to play for me. I want to view it. I feel lucky that I get the opportunity to try to help them have the best experience and become the type of man that they hope to become. So, what I kind of view and say is, if you want to be different or you want to have a special program, then you need to be really good at your craft. And what I mean by that is if we want it, I tell every single one of our players whether they're extremely religious, or not. If you want to play soccer here, you should have a greater purpose. you're greater purpose whether it's helping others or something like that. It shouldn't just be a self-centered experience that you want. And so, if we want a team to notice us, a team that we play, or maybe a parent in Ohio who's never seen Hope College before. If we want them to notice something a little different about us as maybe, a man or people or a team, then we also need to be really good at soccer for us to be noticed first if that makes sense. so it's the idea of, let's be the best soccer team, but not for selfish reasons. Yeah, we want to win and that's fun so we can really be something you need that we could stand out. So then maybe others can see a different side of us and on top of that, I've taken a few things away. I've been blessed to now work under two athletic directors, including my athletic doctor at ONU, Gary Newsome, a former college football head coach, and just a great guy. I got to work with him towards the end of his career and one of the slogans he had for us at ONU was winning championships, developing champions and I really like that I was the idea of we want to win on the quarter on the field, but the idea of we're not just winning trophies, we're developing People off the field as well, and then something, I actually have it on my wall here. Our athletic director here, Tim Schoonveld, came and spoke with the team last year around preseason, maybe a week or two into it. And something that resonated with me was we talked about being men on purpose and I think that kind of goes with what I talked about like we wanted we want to be slightly different yes, we want to show up and want to win soccer games, have fun at college, but we really on the field in the locker room in their life, as a son, as a boyfriend, as a part-time worker at the cafeteria whatever it Have some purpose there. And, I think it's my job to kind of help hate that. And then I think about the last one I've talked a lot about with. The guys just recently are as Alan knows and some people who know, we had Malcolm Gladwell here and I listen to President Scogin's podcast with him. He talked about the idea of running towards challenges and that really resonated with me. I was laughing. I was actually running while I was listening and I really like that. I like the idea of we want our program to be something where you're running towards the challenges: on the field, off the field in the locker room, and all those other areas I thought about. So when somebody leaves here as a hope grad that they really are able to go and in a sense conquer whatever they want to conquer in their life going forward.

Alan Babbitt: Obviously soccer has been a significant part of your development. When did you first start kicking the ball around and take will kind of go through your journey as a soccer player before you became a coach when the game you get the bug?

David Blahnik: I think I'm in a unique generation of soccer people. I was born in 1984, so I'm 39 right now, so I started playing when I was four or five, it's popular around here it's AYSO. Then I got into travel in the 90s and I'm telling you traveled in the 90s, now there are 10 travel teams in it, it was like here's the one team within a two-hour drive and grew up around Chicagoland. I played for a club called NWI United, which was in northwest Indiana. It was really the only option and I had a great time playing for them. But again I mean I am helpful a little bit with the club world here in West Michigan. There are at least a dozen clubs just here in West Michigan alone but really grew up at a time where soccer was new to being somewhat popular for youth sports, did not have a lot of experienced American coaches, and then now it's become one of the more or most popular, right? I've kind of been able to see it from myself to my son is a nine-year-old playing and I would say I was always pretty good at it. I like being active. I like running around and I played competitive baseball as well. And honestly, I was probably a little bit better of a baseball player than I was a soccer player, but I love soccer. I loved running around, I love that. I could be more involved with the actual outcome whether that was good or bad. Those were even as a young boy, if we lost I wanted to be able to say I could have done this better, And I feel like sometimes: I love baseball, I played baseball. I feel like so sometimes if I wasn't the picture, I only got one ball hit to me, I just feel like bothered me that I couldn't have a bit more control over trying to help, like I said, win or so that was kind of always a bug and it really just came down to, soccer honestly was a means for me to go to college and then I played it all the Nazarene where I ended up coaching just outside of Chicago and then I honestly wasn't even sure I wanted to coach right away. I don't think many 20, 21-year- olds are "I want to be a full-time coach." I think that's rare It might be happening more now, but it ended up being I wanted to get my master's, and being a grad assistant and getting my MBA was, I had to help coach and I just got the bug and realize that I did not have the best college playing experience, not just soccer but the experience that time of life where I'm just trying to figure things out and was an entirely, sure what I wanted to do and then I realized that I think because of that experience. I feel like I have a little bit of a purpose that maybe I can help guide some others or help them have the best experience possible and soccer has been A great means for that.

Alan Babbitt: Do you have maybe going back to high school or AYSO days? Do you have a favorite memory of a favorite goal or a favorite moment? You roll out to Breck or Cohen to say when your dad was your age, this what I could do and just the humble dad brag that we have to do just to keep the kids in check just a little bit that they don't know everything.

David Blahnik: Yeah, there's a little bit. I will say probably The best school ever scored was in a high school JV game, It's like, four PM and, I think our moms were, the only ones there probably, and this diving header. And I look around and I'm just my mom and I are the only ones who I think care about that so that one wasn't as cool. But I did have the opportunity to be a part of a pretty cool European summer team and got to go to Sweden and Denmark and play what was called the Gothia Cup. and against I think there were 60 to 70 teams just in our age group from all over the world and we were able to make to the quarterfinals and that as I think of 17 at the time team called the Chicago Eagles. And I think that they said the furthest an American team has ever gone and that was really cool experience. I have some videos from that, I will say my high school highlight tape is on VHS. So I think if I tried to show that to my son, I'd have to, find an old VCR somewhere. I don't know where that is, but I still try to knock it around a little bit with them quite a bit actually, and I think as long as I don't try to run, I might be able to impress them a little bit but the moment I gotta get some cardio and I might lose all respect that. My boys have for me.

Alan Babbitt: Any sport can be a transformative opportunity, How do you think soccer can be when it's done, right? For a young man, or a young woman that plays the game to really make an impact on their life. Where do you see soccer, in particular, can do that?

David Blahnik: Yeah, absolutely kind of from a holistic perspective, I think soccer is good in the sense of, like I said, you're very involved, getting into kind of just the black and white of it. it's one of the best cardio sports you can play as well. So I think it's obviously good for fitness or good for getting our nine or our young kids to fall asleep a little earlier at night, but the team aspect of it. it's unique in the sense of it's a very tactical sport. like I said I grew up in a time where my dad didn't grow up playing soccer but he supported me. But he'd be the first to say it when I was young, I don't really fully understand what's going on and as you kind of grow through it here and Premier League's becoming more popular, you can realize that it's very tactical, there's a lot going on there. So from a perspective, transformational for life is, our guys know that they need to come for soccer. You need to come in shape, it's not really like Hey you can just get back in shape and preseason. So it holds them to a daily standard of personal fitness and which then turns into as anybody knows it, generally the more fit you are and we're working out the better, you feel the better, your mentality is, things of that nature, your perspective changes. And then I think one thing about being in a team sport is that you're forced to win and lose together and I think one of the things that I really try to keep my perspective on is being a leader and what I mean is when you're winning, it's easy to be a great head coach or assistant coach or team captain or it's easy at that point. But where do you use the real transformational learning whether it's a coach or parent you teaching an intern probably is when the mistakes or the losses happen, right? And so I really I'm extremely competitive but I try to remind myself, Look forward to the mistake that's made in practice today or look forward and I know that can sound a little silly but I think you get what I'm saying, that's where we can then become better and different if that makes sense. So, I'm big on trying to teach our guys the same with my sons, there's only so much we can control, I'm a big control to Controllables guy but be prepared, and then don't be surprised when something doesn't go right because, what do they say? The definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again, expecting a different result, right? So that's I'm always like, I tell you, I'm 39, I've been a part of thousands of games. I've never been a part of a game as a fan, spectator, or player where the refs are perfect. So why are we surprised when a mistake happens? And then the same thing with them. Hey, I've never seen a player play a perfect, 90 minutes, so let's be prepared for it. And let's be slightly different than what everybody else or what's normal if that makes sense. So I think trying to use soccer in that sense, which then I think helps prepare them for mistakes that happen as husbands fathers workers anything along those lines where life isn't easy. But if you prepare for it, I think you'll stay ahead of the class.

Alan Babbitt: I would say especially soccer. I mean, you have a bouncing ball that you talk about controllables, it may glance off a defender's hind leg or whatever, and in a soccer game where it's like one goal, could be scored the entire game and you may get three scoring chances, it's really a game that much as you control, you can't control most of it.

David Blahnik: Absolutely then I think also just being an outdoor sport we can have whatever game plan we want and then Mother Nature can say I'm gonna throw you a curve ball. Here's wind in your face and rain and all those things and again like I can't I kind of like that. Keep saying your toes but I do joke sometimes with our indoor sports coaches that hey, you don't have to worry about making up contingency plans that you'll never actually use for the weather. 

Alan Babbitt: Talking to you and as well as really, some of the great coaches we have here, It's not a one-person deal in order to be able to connect with your players whether alone as far as soccer plans. But then beyond that as well. I know you have a great coaching staff, that's assisting you again this year, just talk about them and what they mean to this program.

David Blahnik: They're invaluable. couldn't do without them. And I think that I was fortunate when I was a young assistant coach. I was a grad assistant under a gentleman named Justin Crew, now is a women's head coach at Goshen College but he really put his time and effort into me making sure I had what I needed. And so I've always tried to do the same with whoever my staff is. So currently here at Hope I have Connor, Fowler is a Hope men's soccer alum and he's a local teacher for Holland Public Schools and I mean, Connor just bleeds, Hope Blue and Orange and I mean what more can you ask for again? He's another guy who grew up coming to camps, played, and is now working in camps. He was invaluable for me and a lot of ways, he's a great soccer player and a great soccer mind, but he's just an amazing man who just kind of knows his way around Holland and Hope College as well, which has helped me as at times not being a hope alum. but he does a lot for us with our camps and he's just, phenomenal Corey Miller's kind of been my go-to guy for 12 13, and 14 years, Corey played all that Nazarene. Got to know him there when I was an assistant coach and then Corey. Spent seven or eight years playing, professional soccer. I was a phenomenal player and, finished playing a few years ago for Indy Eleven, just down in Indianapolis and qhen Cory was first, a pro, the seasons were a bit different in the league that he played in. And so, his season would end around fall season and he actually came back to ONU and we kind of helped me out. And I didn't have money to pay him, but I would pay him with, Nike soccer gear and subway lunches. Unfortunately then I once Corey stopped, playing professionally, was able to hire him and work with him at the business job that I worked at. And he also married a Michigan girl. So he actually lives even before helping me out at Hope. They moved to West Ottawa (district) just north of here and he's just invaluable to me as he's been there, done that guy. So the guys respect him. He was at a high level. He was an academic All-American soccer player so he's a great student, he's a great player, he played pro, and I think what's the coolest thing about Cory, never talks about playing pro or Where's pro stuff? I'm the one who does, it's, I probably there, so he's been there done that type of guy, with our guys, when Cory speaks her gives a pointer on the soccer field. They listen, but I think what's most important is Corey is just an amazing man. He's an amazing husband, he's an amazing father. And so it's important for, guys like him and Connor for our guys to see that. Not just that they know what a soccer ball is. But these are guys that you can talk to it, you can call in the middle of the night. If there's an issue, those types of guys, Zach Reardon, a student assistant helped out last year's, just tremendous smart guys. Currently as one more year of school here, but I mentioned earlier about not, a lot of young guys don't know if they want to be a coach. That Zack has wanted to be a head coach. Even I think, as an 18, 19-year-old who has already started the coaching licensing process it's probably further along on that than most coaches are at 25 years old. So, He's invaluable when it comes to scout and things of that nature. And then, I am excited to a kind of announce that Chris table and we'll be joining our staff. Chris Taborn will be coming over from Davenport as our goalkeeper coach and Chris, I actually started coaching Chris when he was in eighth or 9th grade in Chicagoland, he started coming to my goalkeeping academy and then he ended up being a four-year starter for me at all of it and answering university. So, I've known Chris for a long time and he was fortunate enough he came over to be a GA for Davenport women's and is heavily involved in the West Michigan youth scene and is coming on staff. Chris is another guy that I know, he knows me, but the guys will respect him, and he's one of the best goalkeeper coaches in my opinion. So a great asset for that as well.

Alan Babbitt: It's getting hard not to get excited. We're getting closer and closer to when you guys report on August 19th and then three straight home games to open up the season, including the opener against a powerhouse in Ohio Wesleyan on Friday. September 1. Tell us about your schedule and kind of what you see I mean you look at it obviously the MIAA is a challenge in its own right. But I still see some very strong programs higher Wesleyan, Elmhurst Chicago, Rose Home, and Wabash to DePauw. You are playing some really strong non-league schedule. Again, how do you shape that up for this team and the opportunity?

David Blahnik: It's a bit of a challenge scheduling and MIAA I think with us just being slightly maybe of a smaller conference. So trying to find, there is almost an art to scheduling it with what you can control, And so for us, it's trying to find those matches that will, prepare us for league play. But then also prepare us for hopefully, strong postseason play without doing too much, I think you've seen it. I would say I've been around the block just long enough to see some mistakes that I made in scheduling the past seemed some mistakes that maybe some younger coaches make too easy of a schedule. So then they go almost to the extreme the other way and all that plays a role in the culture of the team and the recruiting classes, and things of that nature. And so, I feel really good about our schedule. We have a lot of great challenges, last year One thing we learned was that these players were gone too much, they missed too many classes. They got back late too many times which I said, then affected Them in class the next day, which then affected them in practice, which then maybe affected our game, So I'm trying to be intentional to make sure that first and foremost, the guys are our Hope students. They're in class and they're able to do that. They're able to get, hopefully, eight hours of sleep.

Alan Babbitt: As much as college kids do.

David Blahnik: So, I know Ohio Wesleyan, I think was one of the toughest music played last year in, has been for a long time. So to open up with them is a tremendous challenge. It's always a battle, we tied them on their home field last year, which was one of those on paper, good ties, but there 's gonna be a battle and we have tremendous respect for them and they have tremendous respect for us. They're just a hot physical team, regardless of what their record is at the end of the year, they could be undefeated or not. they will be a game where you look back and go, all right? This is a national tournament-type game, whether it's September first or October 1st or November first, then say St. Norbert, fairly certain they were a tournament team two years ago, so they're coming off of that. Local on the cornerstone. Any time you're playing a local team. It always means a bit more, You just kind of throw records out the window. We're all recruiting the same guys. there will be people at our game one of their tickets goes to Hope the other corners you get it. So it just becomes kind of a fun game rather than trying to go to Chicago at least once or twice a year, so Elmhurst is a good one. I've known Coach DiTomasso from my time in Chicago and they're just a tough team, on the road which will be good. Then we are playing all of that as a non-league game as well just to make sure we can get an extra game. League games are just their league games, they're tough, no matter what. Even though this will technically not count towards the conference standings and then the big one, the returning, national training national champs, it's coming to us on a Friday night, I love that we're doing that one on Friday night. The hope would be that we can have a kind of practice stadium. we're not competing against maybe a home hopeful game or anything like that on a Saturday. And that can just be a fun game of, hopefully, arguably one of the best games and NCAA Division, three throughout the country, and then we got a quick turnaround with Rose Hulman the next day Rose Hulman is always competing to be a top 25 National Tournament. Team tough team to beat and very organized. And then we have Eureka College head coach Ryan Woodside, former Hope men's soccer player, who is bringing his team over so it's gonna be fun to have him come back and bring his team up. And then at Wabash at the DePauw very similar to us in my opinion, very tough Top 25 caliber teams on the road, getting off the bus will be great challenges for us. We feel really really good about our schedule, as it should prepare us to be successful in October and November. While at the same time, making sure that our student-athletes are having the best experience possible here at Hope as well as both as students.

Alan Babbitt: Then lastly obviously the schedule is one attraction for fans. They want to come out and see a high level. What kind of soccer are you guys aiming to play? What would you say fans can expect to see this season?

David Blahnik: I think that they are gonna see the goal for me which the guys have heard me say a million times and I've been consistent with it is consistency. I think that Hope men's soccer last year, a great result than a frustrating result, things are that nature. I think that some of my past teams that found success, some of my championship level teams, it wasn't because of skill, but it was because of consistency. we never really lost the games, we shouldn't. It's so we could always compete in the games that were tough. If that makes sense. The expectation is that Hope men's soccer fans are just somebody who came to our game and watches us is that they should feel that this team left it all out there. They did it in a way that was respectful and that they were fun in the attack. They worked all together. It was clear that these guys enjoy playing together and are on the same page. I think the goal for me is things you can say in front of opposing teams, our goal is to average 16 to 18 shots a game which I feel if you're doing that, you should then be averaging three goals again which I find exciting. As a coach, my teams have always been extremely disciplined on defense, low goals against average. We're gonna go forward in the attack, but then if we're in a vulnerable situation, our guys are mature, making decisions and my ultimate goal is a coach in those situations a fan may or may not notice it is that they don't see or hear me. I'm not trying to control it from the sidelines that our guys are prepared and they're the ones doing it. And so I can sit and they and they can and they're the ones doing it and putting out a good product. So disciplined fun, attacking soccer, where the guys look like they're having a lot of fun together and really messing and gelling together.

Alan Babbitt: Awesome. Looking forward to it. Always exciting, whether it's a Saturday night or midweek, there's a pretty cool place to be at Van Andel Soccer Stadium. We look forward to an awesome fall. So, thank you, David, for joining us on the Orange and Blue podcast, we'll have another episode in our summer series. Got some exciting things coming up and pretty soon. We're going to be talking about soccer results as well. So thank you, David.

David Blahnik: Thank you, Alan, and fire up Dutch.

Alan Babbitt: Let's go and yes, thank you for listening to the Orange and Blue podcast. We will, if you haven't yet, please subscribe or share. It's got some catch up on some great episodes already this summer, Kevin Wolma, our new athletic director for student wellness and compliance and Angelique Gaddy-McElveen Athletic Director for Philanthropy. Just some awesome people. So catch up on those and we'll see at a Hope game very soon. Have a great day, everyone.