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PHU Coach Growing Along With Team

Will Return To Collegiate Alma Mater As Coach Of High School He Won 2002 Title With As Player

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By Eric Horchy | The Suncoast News

Published: February 19, 2009

TAMPA - In as sense, Alex Delgado's soccer career will be coming full circle Friday evening.

The second-year Palm Harbor University boys soccer coach has guided his team into the final four of the Florida High School Athletic Association playoffs held at the University of Tampa.

What makes the moment extra special for Delgado has multiple layers – and with maybe a little déjà vu added.

For starters, PHU (Class of 2003) and UT (Class of 2007) are the coach's high school and collegiate alma maters, respectively. He played soccer for both.

Adding to that foundation of connectivity, Delgado, as a junior sweeper, helped lead the 2002 Hurricanes to the school's first-ever boys state championship.

And where did Delgado and his high school teammates hoist that title trophy in '02?

The University of Tampa's Pepin Stadium.

The same pitch that he would later play on as a Spartan and now coach on as, once again, a Hurricane.

Leading up to Friday evening's match with Coconut Creek Monarch, Delgado has been letting the majority of his boys in on the feelings that come with winning a title and about the opportunity that's in front of them.

"I just wanted them to understand," he said. "The biggest thing is that I want them to feel what I felt to be a state champion and to do it in front of a home crowd like we'll have on Friday night."

PHU seniors may be the only ones who understand those emotions. The Hurricanes won their last title in 2006 when they were freshmen. A number of others remember the following season's playoff run, but that team fell short in the finals.

Growing Together

After a two-year hiatus from the final four, this Hurricanes team now has its own chance to add to the ever-growing PHU history. The opportunity also comes during a year when the Hurricanes were, at a point, not anticipated to still be standing today.

Following two tough defeats during holiday tournaments, one being in its own Hurricane Watch championship game to rival East Lake, PHU began to find its identity and stride, Delgado said.

"That's when it finally hit them," he said. "And ever since, we've been on a roll. You can tell. We've played some big-time games against big-time teams and these guys have matured so much from then and even from last year."

During the 2007-2008 season, Delgado's first at the helm, PHU was knocked out of the playoffs in the first round at Jesuit High. It was the earliest exit for any Hurricanes team since 2001 when PHU failed to qualify.

Delgado said that while last season was a great year, he can easily sense the marked growth of the team and of himself as a coach.

"You could see my inexperience as a first-year coach and the inexperience of some of our players," he said in retrospect. "I was a little unprepared for the end of last season. I can honestly admit that as a coach. But this year, I was telling some of my buddies and the alumni that this team could be something special. We have the personalities and we have talent all over the field from the seniors down to the freshmen."

One Year, World Of Difference

Using the lessons learned from last year's inexperience both on the field and the sidelines, the Hurricanes now find themselves just 160 minutes of game time away from a height some may not have thought possible 12, or even two, months ago.

"I've been working so hard to get these guys to believe that it's not just one or two players, but a team, that's going to get them however far they go," Delgado said.

An integral key to the success has been the stepped up approach of PHU's senior class. Earlier in the year, Delgado said he challenged the elder statesmen to grab the reigns and take on more responsibility. After initially questioning their willingness to do so, Delgado has since witnessed the group flourish in the role.

"I've really got to give it to my seniors," he said. "They've been the ones to lead the way. I'm so proud of them for getting here and with the job that they've done. Now we've got one left on Friday and hopefully that last one on Saturday."

With success on Friday, the Hurricanes will move on to play the winner of Freedom-Niceville and Delgado will have a chance to grab a piece of another PHU state title on the turf of Pepin Stadium.

It's like déjà vu all over again.

Eric Horchy can be reached at 727-815-1071 or ehorchy@suncoastnews.com.

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