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Winter 2014, vol. 2
From the
Staff
Letter from Tim
pg.1
OFC Today
Talk About
Good
What’s
Ahead
ODP - Regionals
State Cup
Tournament Recap
Winter YDP pg.2-3
Achievement Award
Coaching Honors
Giving Back
pg.4-5
Winter Camps
College Search
College Recruitment
Leagues
pg.6
Did You
Know?
Q&A
US Club
Photo courtesy of George O’Connell
Cultivating a passion for the game while developing character in coaches, players and parents.
Omaha FC • 14706 Giles Rd. • Omaha, NE 68138 • 402-896-4420
Follow us!
pg.6
From the Executive Director
Omaha FC Members:
The holiday season is upon us. It is the time of year to be thankful for family and friends. At Omaha FC,
we are very appreciative of the hard work and dedication of our families and players, of our coaches and
managers/volunteers and of our staff and Board members. In addition, we also want to thank all of our
sponsors! It is upon this dedication from ALL of our members and staff that made 2014 such an incredible and successful year, on and off the field! The success was not just limited to league, tournament and
State Cup victories of ALL of our teams but academic achievements and community outreach. Thank you
Omaha FC!
Although it is cold outside, things are heating up inside at OSC for Omaha FC. Recently, John O’Sullivan,
the founder of the Changing the Game Project (www.changingthegameproject.com), who spoke at our
Club in August, returned to Omaha FC for a very unique purpose. John is a part of a brand new coaching,
parent and player education company called The Drill Book (www.TheDrillBook.com). Currently a website for hockey coaches, players and families, The Drill Book will launch their soccer and baseball versions
in January 2015, which will be free to all coaches, parents and players. The Drill Book provides coaches
with the latest training tools, as well as a team management, scheduling and communication tool for parents and players too. Their goal is to transform the youth sports environment by making it not only more
enjoyable, but a better learning experience for all involved. We are thrilled that our players were able to
participate in these initial stages. The Drill Book soccer team was led by John. Also accompanying John
were Brett Jacobs, US Soccer staff instructor and an MLS Cup Champion coach with the Colorado Rapids
in 2010, as well as Joe Long, Head Coach at the University of Calgary (Alberta, CA). The three coaches ran
our players through a series of small sided games and activities based upon The Drill Book’s philosophy
that the game is the best teacher. We are looking forward to release of the soccer version on www.thedrillbook.com in January 2015!
Late this fall saw Omaha FC Select players begin to finalize registration with US Club. A different youth
soccer organization than USYS, US Club will provide our players with additional team and individual
playing opportunities such as US Club’s National Cup and Id2 program. The greater roster flexibility and
individual player mobility within US Club will eliminate a lot unnecessary paperwork for our dedicated
managers and coaches. We are looking forward to taking full advantage of this new relationship as we roll
into the new year!
Thank you for all that you do for Omaha FC. Have a great holiday season!
Respectfully yours,
Tim Bennett
Omaha FC Executive Director
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OFC Today
Competing with the Best
Congratulations to Madison Henry of our Omaha FC U17 Girls Elite team and John
Hansen, Jr. on our Omaha FC U16 Boys Elite team. Each were selected to the 18-man
ODP (Olympic Development Program), roster for Region II. In representing our
13-state region, they trained within the ODP system of coaches and trainers and
competed against top players from the other three regions in the country. Maddy
spent 7 days in Boca Raton, Florida at
the Spanish River Athletic Park and
suffered only one loss in the Interregional event. John competed in Casa
Grande, Arizona and helped lead
Region II to a 2-0-1 record in his
Interregional event. Congratulations
on shining at the highest level!
Madison Henry, OFC U17 Elite
John Hansen, Jr., OFC U16 Elite
Winter YDP Records
Each winter OFC offers a number of camps
and training sessions available for all of our
players. The Nov/Dec YDP & Recreational
Winter Indoor camp had a record 292 players
participating. The winter sessions are
designed to give our players extra touches on
the ball while improving different elements
of the game: dribbling, passing, receiving,
finishing and more. Session 2 starts in
February.
Tournament Accolades
Just this fall OFC teams have traveled from Omaha to Laguna to Tulsa
to Phoenix to Chicago and more. Tournaments are more than just the
games. They’re opportunities for teams to compete outside their normal
zone of competition and see how they compare to teams from other
areas around the country. They also naturally create great bonding experiences for players and parent alike. And, when multiple teams from
Omaha FC travel to the same tournament, sometimes you get moments
like this: This video shows our U12 Girls Elite running onto the field to
congratulate U13 Elite just after they won their championship game in a
shoot out. Click Here
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OFC Today
Taking State By Storm
State Cup is the biggest tournament of the year for our U13 teams and above. The best of the best play against each
other to earn the top honors in their age group. The 1st place teams earn a bid into the Regional tournament in
June, where they compete against the top teams from each state in Region II and hope of moving on to Nationals.
This past fall our OFC U15-U18 teams competed against the best teams in the state. Seventeen OFC teams competed in State Cup this past fall, by far the largest number of teams from one club. Through determination and hard
work our teams were able to secure the top spot for 6 of the 8 divisions and will move on to Regionals in the summer of 2015. Congratulations to all of our teams that competed and good luck to those moving on. We are so proud
of the efforts by all of our players and staff. A big thank you also goes out to our parents and families for all they do.
You are the backbone to what makes OFC successful.
OFC U15 Elite Boys
OFC U16 Elite Boys
OFC U17 Elite Boys
OFC U17 Elite Girls
OFC U18 Elite Boys
OFC U18 Elite Girls
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Talk About Good
President’s Lifetime Achievement Award
This past fall Pam Sweeney, OFC Club Registrar, received the President’s Lifetime Achievement Award from the Nebraska State
Soccer Association.
Pam has served on the state board, multiple league boards and committees. She will still be active in the soccer community, but she will be
leaving her position on the state board. Pam has served as Secretary on
the Board of Directors for Nebraska State Soccer for 4 years. She is one
of the first people to volunteer to help at other projects, committees and
events.
Pam has served for nearly 29 years in the Omaha soccer community.
Starting with Millard Star, then Arsenal and currently with Omaha FC.
Pam has dedicated her life for making soccer better in our community.
And has influenced the counting players. We are so proud to have Pam
as part of Omaha FC.
Raising Money for OFC Players
All-Summit
Coach of the
Year
A number of our coaches at OFC have affiliations
with some of our local colleges around the Omaha
metro area. Jason Mims, coach of U16B Elite,
is also the head men’s coach at University of
Nebraska - Omaha. In November, Jason was
honored with the All-Summit League Coach of
the Year award. The award is voted on by faculty
athletics representatives and sports information
directors from the seven competing institutions.
Click here to read more on Jason’s award and honors received by some of OFC alumni: ARTICLE.
Congratulations to Mims!
Lexi Zeiss, U9 Girls
Academy Gold player,
decided that this year
for her birthday she
wanted to raise money
for the OFC Financial
Assistance Fund. This
fund supports Omaha
FC families touched
by a tragedy, a job loss
or catastrophic illness. Allocation of the
Fund occurs through
a confidential application process where a life changing
event is the primary consideration, rather than family size
or income level.
Lexi along with the support of her U9 teammates raised
$1,000! Way to go girls!!
Anyone interested in contributing to the Financial Assistance Fund may contact community outreach coordinator
Christina Lewis at [email protected]
4
Talk About Good
Teams Giving Back
OFC players, staff and families have supported different events over the year. Here are just a few of the organizations that they have worked for this year.
Let us know how your team is helping in the community. Send your pictures and stories to [email protected]
U12G OFC Elite ringing Bells for the Salvation Army.
U11G OFC Elite show their support for breast cancer
awareness month and honor an OFC mom who is a
recent breast cancer survivor.
OFC Girls U14 Black volunteering at the Food Bank
for the Heartland on November 22nd.
U12B OFC Elite participating in a service project at the
Open Door Mission.
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What’s Ahead
Upcoming Events
Camps:
• Preschool Indoor Winter Session
• YDP Winter Camp 2
• Recreational Winter Camp 2
• TPD Session 2
College Recruitment
Beginning in early January, Omaha FC will begin to host college coaches
from around the state and country who are coming to scout for potential
student-athletes. Already for this year, we have the following coaches and
schools confirmed:
Arizona State University
Click HERE for details
(Pac 12 Conference)
Head Coach Kevin Boyd
Tournaments:
• Omaha FC College Search
- January 24-25 & February 7-8
• Omaha’s Elite Spring Tournament
Taylor Podraza Memorial
- April 24-27, 2015
(Mid-America Intercollegiate Athletic Association)
Head Coach John Maessner
Head Coach Bill Hempen
University of
Pennsylvania
(Ivy League)
Head Coach Darren Ambrose
University of
South Dakota
Futsal Session 2 - Details
YDP U5-U10 Spring
U11-U14 Recreational - Details
(Mountain West Conference)
University of
Nebraska-Kearney
Leagues:
Spring Registration:
Colorado State University
(The Summit League)
Head Coach Mandy Green
Did You Know
From the
Coaches
University of
South Carolina
(SEC)
Associate Head Coach Jamie Smith
Details will be announced shortly!
Ryan Kruse and Alex Mason are our two Directors Of Coaches and they’ll answer any question you may have. Click the
link as the guys have already addressed a few right here:
OFC Coaching Education
What is US Club Soccer
Over the fall we started finalizing our US Club affiliation for our Select
U13 and above teams. Many of you have been contacted to submit
information to your team managers. Because US Club is different than
the league we are already registered with, USYS, we need to submit
paperwork for each player again. The sooner we can get everyone’s
information in the system the sooner our teams can start participating
in US Club events. Please help support your TMs and get all of your
information into them. With your help we will have everything set up
and ready to go by the new year!
For more information on US Club Soccer, please click Here.
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OFC Character Standards