BROWNWOOD, Texas - The transition from high school to college can be a daunting task for any freshman. Moving away from home for the first time and learning to be independent are things a lot of college freshmen must figure out how to do on their own. One thing college freshmen don't typically have to do is manage these different tasks, while navigation an injury and rehabilitation process that follows it; however, for Howard Payne University men's soccer player Connor Parker, this is what happened.
Parker, a freshman athletically, but in his second season at Howard Payne, suffered an injury right before the Fall semester that kept him out all of last season. "It was really hard, especially since it happened so soon before I got here," Parker said. "That first week on campus where I was still walking before my surgery but knowing that whole thing was looming was really devastating to be honest, but it gave me more of an ability to find courage and find it in myself because especially with the sport meaning so much to me, I kind of felt lost. It gave me an extra route to be more open about myself and find friendships with others."
Parker has been playing soccer since he was four years old, and playing soccer at a higher level has been a goal of his for a long time. It could have been easy for Parker to struggle emotionally going through his injury and the rehabilitation process, but he credits men's soccer head coach Brandon McGibeny and the rest of the Howard Payne men's soccer program, as well as King Physical Therapy for reassuring him that he would be able to make it through this difficult period.
"Coach McGibeny, Coach Redding and a lof of my team mates were helpful and big influences on me. A lot of them had seen me during our camp in the summer beforehand, so there was a lot of comments beforehand of, 'Oh, we can't wait for you to be back and see where you can come back to and the level you will be at,'" Parker said. "As well as Kings PT, where I was doing my rehab, they were all so helpful and really encouraging that whole time to make it feel like I can get through this and there was light at the end of the tunnel."
Howard Payne's first game this season was an away trip over to Longview, Texas to play LeTourneau University. Parker said on the bus ride over that Coach McGibeny informed him he would be the Jackets' starting center forward. The Yellow Jackets lost the match 1-2, but Parker said that experience just felt more special to him knowing he was fully healthy and getting ready to fulfill a lifelong dream.
"I've been through those away days before," Parker said. "But it just felt that much more special knowing I was going to get minutes on the field that time. Not only to be able to get that moment on the field, but to start on the field, and it to be a game where I could really try to take control of was really nice. To be on the field for the first goal we scored, even though it ended up being a loss, the real team bonding we got on that first goal was really amazing."
Going through a journey like this can cause different emotions. For Parker, it was no different. Parker mentions that he struggled with losing confidence. One thing that really helped Parker restore his confidence was this season when the men's soccer team traveled to Pennsylvania.
During this time, the team was able to bond as a group and find their first two wins of the season. The Yellow Jackets beat Penn State Berks and Penn State Brandywine by a combined score of 9-1. In the match against PSU-Brandywine, with the Yellow Jackets winning 2-0, Parker doubled HPU's lead after scoring his first two collegiate goals.
"Going through the injury, I felt like I was losing confidence in myself and didn't know if I still had it," Parker said. "To go on that Pennsylvania trip, where we had a really good game two days before hand, and to build that advantage against [PSU-Brandywine] and finally get that goal and also the second goal, was a boost of confidence that allowed me to make more control and be more of myself. When we came back home and played St Thomas, I felt more of myself and more at home."
Although Parker didn't get to develop his game on the pitch during his first season at Howard Payne, he was able to develop his emotional maturity and leadership skills that he hopes one day he will be able to implement by leading the Yellow Jackets with the captain's armband.
"To be able to watch from the sideline last year taught me a lot," Parker said. "Not just what we want to do on the field, but where our players were at and what our mentality was. This year our biggest shift was our mentality. It felt like a team that wanted to be here more and wanted to fight, make every game like it was our last.
"I would like to be able to lead this team and hopefully one day have that captain's armband. I want to be the guy where the team can look at and say, 'where can we find the strength with you'. I want to be that guy for the team and hopefully find us some championships in the near future."
