Welcome to another soccer down here, one v one For this one, we head back to Jack's. I was almost a poet and didn't know it because and I don't know, Stacy, if folks warned you about my studio space.
They did. And I'm really happy to see our scarf in the background then amongst all the others.
Yeah, and there's like two hundred or something scarves, and everything's had to be reinforced by the way shower, the multiple rack shower rods. Those have become the saving grace for all of these. But yes, we are not here to talk shower rods and scarves. We're here to talk about one scarf in particular because Sporting Jacks is named Stacy Belong, their first head coach of the US Super League women's side. Congratulations, Has it been the whirlwind you anticipated?
Yeah, it was quite overwhelming. Actually, just the attention that you know, the club's been receiving and all of the messages and calls and social media and text that I've got since the announcement has been really really overwhelming, but really exciting at the same time.
So your phone has officially blown up, as the kids.
Say, yes, yes it has, and feel very humbled, but a lot of people, you know, they show an interest in soccer, and obviously they know that that's my identity, that's what I love doing, and they're really proud and really excited for what's to come.
Associate head coach at Vanderbilt before you come down there to Jacksonville, so you know about it just means more in this particular footprint. The first question that I like to ask coaches when they step into a new position is why now? And so I guess it's two parts. Why and why now? Go from Vanderbilt to be a head coach in the US in the USL, in the division one super.
Yeah, that's a great question. I mean, every coach wants, you know, to continue to professionally grow, They want to continue to elevate their career, and they want to take chances when they come available. And not that I was expecting it, but after conversations with Mark Orbiton and just learning a lot about what this club has to offer and what its ambition is and what its vision is,
it really excited me. And although I was, you know, really really happy where I was at Vanderbilt, it was it was just a dream come true and it was just something that I wasn't expecting, and I felt like, you know, I, you know, I just wanted to be a part of that ambition and that vision of the of the Jacksonville team.
How much staring in the mirror and alone time and staring out into vistas and looking out over the Tennessee River did you take before you made this decision?
Yeah, I mean you obviously could relate here because I just was. It was one of those where you know, you'll be really really sad to leave what you have, and it's the fear of the unknown as well, but then there's that level of excitement of what could come and what the future looks like. So there was a lot of decisions I had to make in my head and whether it was going to be the right decision.
But I don't regret that decision for one minute. I think this is going to be a really exciting future for not only myself, but for the community of Jacksonville and the club itself.
Stuff you know about in the Southeastern Conference, it doesn't matter what sport we're talking about, but it's always crudencies and that is the official spelling of it. Cr O T I N apostrophe, it's crudencies and a lot of others. Folks will sit there and say, yes, it's recruiting and all this kind of stuff. It's cruting down here in the South. What you know, obviously it had to have been humbling to have been cruited yourself. But now the process starts for you about your crut and what you've
got to do to assemble this squad. What's what's in your mind when it comes to assembling what you and Mark and everybody there want to put together at Sporting Jacks.
Yeah, I've been really fortunate to have Mark by my side within this process. I mean, he he's been getting after it from the moment that you know, he was announced, and so we've been working together as well as Becky Burley. She's a good resource to have obviously, you know, a legend in the state of Florida, very well known, very well connected. So between all three of us, we've been
trying to, you know, make connections and talk to agents. Obviously, I'm very familiar with a lot of the the players within the US just being familiar with the college system. So is Becky and and so you know, we feel like we're building something, and we're really excited. We've already got some players signed, especially here in the US, and then some from overseas, so we're starting to put it together and it's starting to really come along now.
And you've spent time here in the Southeast outside of Vandy. You were up in one of the I think one of the underreported and underrated hot beds of the sport up when you were spending time at the University of
North Georgia. Then you get to go out to West Georgia and Carrollton, so you've seen the sport grow in the Southeast, and I think that I'm hoping I'm not spilling any intel here, but I think that you probably are in a position better served where you can go to a Gainsville and you know what you're looking for.
You can go to West Georgia, and I mean that in West Georgia, not just the University of West Georgia, but you know those pockets where there is talent that might be overlooked or underappreciated to help build this process. I think that might be a built in advantage for you.
Yeah. Absolutely, John. The market is great there in Atlanta. I mean there is a large pool of players. There's
some really top high level clubs within that state. And I did a lot of my recruiting during my time when I lived there for about twelve years, so I became very familiar with that particular area of the city, north and west and south, and so it was you know, with the amount of connections that I built there and network networking that I did with the club coaches, I can see obviously there's a lot of talent coming out of the state, and yeah, it was very, very fruitful
for me when I was recruiting there for the colleges that I worked for.
How would you describe yourself as a coach, whether it's demeanor, philosophy, What are folks getting into when they see when they see you on the touch line there for sporting jacks, who are they getting as an individual on and off the field.
Well, I think immediately they probably would sense my passion for the game. You know, I've lived and breathed the sport all my life, and so I have such an investment in it borderline consumes me at times, but you know, it is my passion and it is what I do. It's my livelihood. So I think that's the first thing that they would see. I'm an energetic person on the field, intense competitive, but I'm also compassionate at the same time, and I know that I can relate to players very well.
I did actually try and prolong my playing career as long as I could, and I think what helped me was becoming a little bit more understanding of players needs and whether that's physically or emotionally, just because I was going through it as a player but also was coaching at the same time. So I think that prolonging my career made me a better coach but also helped me
become a better player. But I think all in all, can nexted me with the player's mindset for as long as possible, So I understand the compassionate peace too.
When you look at your CV, it's silverbacks, Mona Valo U and GUWG. So you've seen the sport grow in the Southeast. What has it been like, say, over the last ten years, to see the sport explode to where it is where there are opportunities.
And I'm going to go ahead and use air quotes.
In the atypical soccer markets where when something happens and it explodes, folks on the outside who may not know they're shocked, but everybody who's on the inside were like, no, we knew this going in. What's it been like for you to see the sport grow here in the Southeast for the last decade plus.
Yeah, I mean, I think it was a matter of time. It always had the potential because I mean I think the US national team are very proven and they were the ones that were, you know, set in the standards and be in the model for the rest of the world, and so it was a matter of time for the sport to continue to evolve and to blow up as
big as what it is. And now you've got the NWSL obviously you know, well established league, and now the USL has created more opportunity for women to become professional, which is fantastic. So I think just the league itself starting up last year is a sign of what's to come for the women's game, and I think the future looks really promising for women's soccer.
We all have those to do lists, and I've got to do lists all over the place, and you know, I have legal pads and calendars and things all over the joint. When it comes to your to do list, for things that you have to do there at Sporting Jacks. Is it on a Google doc, Is it on a spreadsheet, is it on a legal pad, is it on a binded notebook we had when we were in high school?
Or is it on one of those big white boards that's got the the eraseable you know, you sit there and you take your fingers and you can erase it and you figure it out that the dry erase boards. It's like six feet by eight feet long or something like that, hidden after the side. As you and I are talking, where is your to do list? A? And what do you think the next thing that you can cross off of that to do list is as you build there at Sporting Jacks.
Yeah, that's a great question, John, Well, my to do list on a daily basis is a notepad and paper, and I feel like it grows quicker than I can accomplish things. Yeah. See, I'm old school as well, just like you. And if it's there in front of me and I can physically cross things off on way to do list, I feel like I'm being productive and accomplishing what I need to accomplish. When it comes to the team, when it comes to you know, building what we're trying
to build. There's going to be a whiteboard in front of me so that I can see those names on the board, and I can see positionally where we're at and what we need. So I think, like you know, in terms of having something visual in front of me, is where I tend to navigate towards. But definitely on a daily basis, there is a notepad and pen in front of me, and like I said, the list does grow every day.
Stacy Belong, the new head coach for the women's division. When USL Super League team at Sporting Jacks dropping by for a one v one, I know that you are looking for a specific kind of individual to come in, not just that we'll fit philosophically on the field, but philosophically off the field. With what Steve Livingston, the ownership grew Mark Warburton and you want to have representing Sporting Jacks.
What kind of individual are you looking for to make sure that when you hit the ground running in the community and on the field, that you're hitting it with the right notes.
Yeah, I mean they're representing something bigger than themselves, right, So although they are trying to grow their careers as a professal. We're representing sport in Jack's and we're trying to be good representatives of the community in Jacksonville and be role models to the young young ladies in Jacksonville that want to aspire to be like them. I think that that's really important because now you know there is a platform, there is a pathway from the youth level
up to the pros. They can come to games, they can be a fan, they can have idols on the team, they can wear their names on the back of their shirts. And to build just that sense of community within Jacksonville from this one club, I think is huge. So of course they've got to have the talent and the competitiveness, and they've got to fit the profile that we need in order to be competitive, and they've got to have they've got to meet the checklist of you know, tactically,
they've got to be good. They've got to be technically good. They've got to be physically good in order to be able to be competitive for the league. But at the end of the day, we want them to represent with integrity and high character so that they can they can represent right in the community.
What is the most and I don't know I imagine you have unlimited international minutes so you can dial back home whenever you want. I know that you probably have international texting as well, so that you know that your phone bill doesn't blow up like mine does.
I don't know if you use WhatsApp or what have you.
What's the most random reach the I guess the most random reach in that someone has given you since you have been named head coach down there. I mean, did someone like reach out on what'sapp from like Neptune or something? You know, what was the most random person or group that reached out to you about Hey, congratulations, I need to talk because I've got some players or I'm a player and I want to talk.
Yeah. I mean, there's definitely lots of unknown numbers coming up on my phone now that are reaching out, and it's mostly agents and companies that are trying to, you know, make me more aware and educate me on the play that they have. So that's a little bit more of what I'm seeing right now. But I know that we're getting great visibility from from across across the pond because my family have been tuning in. They're learning a lot about Sporting Jack's. There's been a lot of Google searches.
My friends from home, my former teammates that I played with, are all across the world, so everybody's kind of now I guess a little bit more educated and informed about who's Sporting Jack's.
Are Are there Sporting Jack's flags hanging in Suffolk as we speak?
There will be soon. They they're demanding a T shirt. They need some swag apparently, so I guess I've figured out my Christmas list.
Yes, you're going to the store and you're like, Mark, I need this and this and this and this and this. Now that's how I figured it's going to be. It is going to be a sporting swag holiday season, no doubt about it.
When you know, do you even have an office yet?
Yeah? Actually, Mark took me to an office space, so there will be an office for me, and I do have a key, so he did as much as cut a key for me and show you, show me where the office will be. So I did get a brief tour of that, which is good. So I understand now what I'm looking at and I have a place to go to every day when I physically get down there.
Does your card key work in Mark's office or does Marx work in yours or is it just like, no your card keys over there, don't don't come into my office.
Yeah, I think it's I think we have all access to everything, so there's no secrets in that office space.
When when you were taking the tour and when they were giving you the grand tour of Jacksonville on the vision of everything, I imagine it was a time to go over to you and F and look at Hodges and then they took you and introduced you to the youth side of things.
What I don't I'm not going.
To use the word gravity, but just the important and said this gig and what it means to be a part of building something. What was that tour like for you to understand what you were getting into here.
Yeah, I mean, first of all, we're super appreciative of you and F providing their facilities to us. I'm actually long term friends with Eric Faulkner, who is the head coach there, and I know that he is helping, you know, with this whole excitement, enthusiasm and drive behind behind this club, and you know right now he can't do enough to help us. And you and F have been really welcoming and They've shown great hospitality, their field is in great condition.
It's going to be a great space for our fans to come and watch games. And I know that the team behind it, the staff, the ticket sales, everybody is working really really hard to get this off the ground and to really make it a big community thing. And I think that partnership with you and F has really helped, because you know, it's also bringing in their student body and making them more excited and gaining level of interest
within the game. I mean, we're there in Jacksonville where it's a you know, it's been driven by the Jags, you know, like that they are a NFL culture in Jacksonville. But I think that right now we're getting a lot of attention and I think that we're educating people there with what's to come, and there's a lot of excitement.
So even being down there for a few days last week, the drivers that were driving me back and forth from the airport were really, you know, really interested in hearing more about it, and they said that they were to come to games. So I think that they're ready for this. The community are really excited and thanks to UNF, they are going to provide a top notch facility for us until we get one of our own.
Well, And I think to your point, I think that here in the Southeastern United States, a lot of folks have been able to take that college football mentality and the fandom and the fur or that they have for their particular teams, and they had now applied it to the new franchises in soccer in their markets. And you see it basically is a college football fan vibe that is translating to those who are being introduced to the
sport for the first time. And I mean you look at you look at markets like Nashville and Atlanta and Charlotte and you know in Birmingham and you know, Statesboro and whomever. But they're translating that college football noess and turning it into college they're turning it into professional football if you TBOL, and you're seeing just that energy that's there from the college football fan coming forward in the Southeast.
Yeah. Absolutely. I mean you take Steve Livingstone for example. I mean, he works in the NFL and that he is a you know, a lifetime fan of Celtic back home, and so you know he's working in the football franchise, but big fan of soccer and so still tuning in to the results back home and watching games, you know, the Celtic games, and feeling the rivalry between them and Rangers. And so when you take someone like that, you know
he has a passion for both both sports. But I think it's always been within him to try and get a soccer team off the ground, and he's accomplishing that right now. And he's a brilliant businessman man and a really passionate guy. And everybody is grown in the same direction as Steve and we're ready to go.
So have you been in the middle of the Celtic and Rangers smack between Steve and Mark yet?
Yeah, there's been quite a few comments so far, so I think that that will continue.
I just have this vision of you kind of navigating and referring between old firm days and things like that.
Yeah. Yeah, no, they've they've definitely shared their opinions on it. But it's good, Banter, It's really good. I mean you can just just feel that rivalry just between the two of them. But but now it's great, Benter.
What's next for you on the list? What's next on the legal pad?
Well, I have to sell a house, buy a house locate. But but yeah, all of the big things in between that I am going back to see family and also deliver some Sporting Jack's goods to them so that they can represent in England and put us on the map over there. But when I get, you know, get into Jacksonville physically and permanently. You know, we've got the w League team that's going to be playing in the summer,
so I'll definitely be present for that. But we've got to we're to get prepared for July one, which is when we start pre season. So we're still obviously putting the team together and signing players and talking to players on zoom calls and talking with agents and doing our due diligence there. But you know, it's a daily grinds John, and we're ready. We're trying to get prepared and be ready to make a statement in this.
Season, looking forward to it.
The new head coach for the division when USL Super League team and Jacksonville at Sporting Jack Stacey Belome Stacey, thanks for dropping by.
Don't be a stranger.
You know that the carpet is yours and the our card keys work anytime, so you can come in and crash and let us know what's going on down there at Sporting Jacks. Thanks for dropping by for a one B one.
Thanks John, I hope to see you at some games this season.
You got it.