Marshall University Athletics
BOGACZYK: Herd's Gordon Kicking Through Obstacles
9/27/2015 12:00:00 AM | Men's Soccer
By JACK BOGACZYK
HERDZONE.COM COLUMNIST
HUNTINGTON, W.Va. -- There was a time when you would have said that Rimario Gordon's opportunity to play men's soccer for Marshall University approximated that of a snowball's chance in Jamaica - his native Caribbean island nation, not the Queens neighborhood in New York City.
But Gordon's special talents have arrived with Coach Bob Gray's Herd after two years at Northeast Texas Community College, where he was a junior college All-America first team selection on multiple squads in 2014.
Marshall doesn't get many All-America first team selections in any sport, but Gordon's story is about more than scoring 30 goals with 28 assists for one of the top JUCO programs in the country.
His journey began long before that, however, and it could have been derailed by any number of roadblocks. That he's a starting junior forward on the Herd roster and an MU business management major seeking an entrepreneurship minor is a testament to loyalty and a lot more.
Gordon, 21, emigrated to the United States from a hard life in Kingston on June 30, 2010. His father already had been in the U.S. for more than a decade. - "seeking a better opportunity," Gordon said. After his dad left Jamaica, Gordon spent 11 years as one of seven children with a single mom.
The tougher part came later.
A couple of years after Gordon moved to Houston to join his father, Herd assistant coach Thomas Olivier said father and son had a falling out. Gordon is reluctant to discuss much about that situation, although he still has phone conversations regularly with his mother in Jamaica.
"If two weeks go by and I haven't talked to her, I need to hear her voice," Gordon said. "My dad is my dad, and he gave me the opportunity to come to America for a better opportunity. It just is what it is."
Marshall came into contact with the 5-foot-10 Gordon through his club team, the Texas Rush. That club's coach, Dave Dengerink, formerly coached the Virginia Rush, where the Herd found and signed Travis Brent of Virginia Beach, who started for Gray's program from 2010-13.
"Dinger said, 'I've got a kid for you, but he's as much a non-qualifier as a non-qualifier gets," Olivier said. "We suggested he go to Northeast Texas Community College. We knew Donovan Dowling, the coach there. Donovan was just hired there, wanted to build a program, had plenty of money for junior college scholarships, etc.
"What happened at the time was nobody gave Rimario a sniff in recruiting. We saw him play for the Rush, thought he might be fine, a good player for us."
By then, Gordon and his father had gone separate ways. Gordon graduated from Elsik High School and said at various times he lived either with friends or one of his club coaches. "It wasn't bad," he said of his vagabond existence. "It wasn't bad at all."
His goal was to play pro soccer. It still is. First, he had to figure out his best route. And once he got to Northeast Texas, he was on the way ââ'¬Â¦ with one very large hurdle in front of him.
"How did I get to Marshall?" Gordon repeated with the lilt of his Jamaican accent. "The Texas Rush coaches, Dave Dengerink and Don Gemmell -- two guys I highly look up to. They're very close to Coach Bob (Gray). At the last Texas Rush game for me, Coach Gemmell asked me what I wanted to do and in America, a lot of people say education is extremely important. So I decided to go the school route if I had the chance.
"And at Marshall, Coach Bob and his staff ââ'¬Â¦ They placed me with the opportunity to go to a (NCAA) Division I school, a chance I'm really grateful for. From there, Coach Bob and I had a relationship ââ'¬Â¦ I'm not saying it was untouchable, but it was a relationship we built over the two years that had something to do with loyalty, I can say.
"He never left me out. With that kind of relationship, you have to bust your ass - if I can say that -- for that person every step of the way, and every day."
Olivier said Gordon committed to Marshall in the fall of 2013, during his first junior college season. And in 2014 he starred (18 goals, 10 assists in 23 games) for the nation's No. 5-ranked team, one that reached the 12-team nation JUCO tournament. Gordon and Olivier said others tried to sway the talented Jamaican, but ââ'¬Â¦
"I'm a loyal person and a lot of great schools came after me, but at the end of the day, being loyal is what counts," Gordon said. "Marshall came to me when other didn't. I remember the San Diego State coach said to me that you can't find young adults like me today, one that stayed loyal ââ'¬Â¦ That's just how I grew up. Stay loyal, don't lie, don't steal, like that."
But even when Gordon signed with the Herd, he was far from a sure thing for Gray's program.
"From last spring semester, intercession (in May) and Summer 1 and 2, Rimario needed the equivalent of 26 junior college credits to get his associate's degree and become eligible," Olivier said. "His last class, online, ended Aug. 13. We started workouts Aug. 11.
"Think about it - 26 credits is enormous in seven months, that's what he needed to meet progress toward degree. He wasn't able to play for first four or five days of practice while we got his transcript and he was cleared, but he made it ââ'¬Â¦ a tremendous accomplishment."
The previous summer, he played in the Premier Development League for the Houston Dutch Lions, scoring two goals with two assists. This summer, he had to put his best foot forward on his books.
"It was definitely tough, rough," he said of the academic need to continue his education and college soccer career. "At the end of the day, you can't do it without God and credit goes to a lot of people (at Northeast Texas) who didn't give up on me, wanted to see Rimario succeed, didn't want to see Rimario go bad. Coach Thomas (Olivier) gets lots of credit for his personal will to get me here.
"I will never forget all of that. The difference between my junior college and several other junior colleges is we didn't have study hall, tutors, didn't have that like we have here at Marshall, so credit goes to all the people who helped me, kept pushing me, told me to keep grinding. They never gave me anything; I had to work for everything and I'm proud I made it.
"That last day, I made it. It was a relief, a chance in life where I finally get to be a Herd soccer player, a D-I player and keep getting my education. Get to be coached by Coach Bob, a man who is a special individual and coach. And he has a special coaching staff. It was phenomenal ââ'¬Â¦ my favorite word to use in anything, a phenomenal feeling."
Gordon's recruiting list grew during his time at NTCC.
"San Diego State, Nebraska-Omaha, IPFW, Butler and more ââ'¬Â¦ UCLA called about me, if I'm not mistaken," Gordon said. "I think the biggest one that would have changed my mind from coming to Marshall University was USF, due to it being in Florida and there are more Jamaicans down there. But at the end of the day, Marshall stood out because of loyalty."
He has already scored two game-winning goals for the Herd, even while he finds the NCAA Division I game different ââ'¬Â¦ and at times perplexing. Olivier put things into perspective.
"Rimario is a good player because he is influential," the Marshall assistant coach said. "He influences how we play; he influences his teammates. He influences other teams, is a big influence on how they defend. He's a worry for other teams. But more importantly, he influences his teammates. He brings a kind of competiveness that is good for us.
"He's extremely passionate and emotional and sometimes we have to push that back a little bit - as his three yellow cards so far would demonstrate. He's learning that other teams pick on him and the referees don't always see eye-to-eye with him. So, he's learning there. He helps our team in a significant way and impacts other teams as well."
Gordon smiled and nodded when told of Olivier's analysis.
"The difference between junior college soccer and D-I is in junior college, you can get any international you want to get so that makes the competition extremely good," Gordon said. "In Division I soccer, it's very organized with lots of athletes.
"I think I can be way better in D-I because it's a lot of athletic players, and very organized, a system. Not to offend anyone, it's a lot of athleticism, but they worry about speed, not the game. It's more organized (in Division I). The coaches, they run it like it's a pro organization. They feed you information and then they sit back and it's your job to go out and fulfill and do good with the information they give you.
"The next thing is they like to get the main man out of the game, and that right there is like, 'Whoa! Are they going to concentrate on playing the game or are they going to concentrate on getting this guy out?' ââ'¬Â¦ It's been a long process for me, but at some point I will have to get it, because it will make or break me. I have to get it straight and I think I've started that in practice."
Gordon's soccer roots are deep, sown through anything but the kind of surfaces he now plays on for the Herd at Veterans Memorial Soccer Complex or on the Division I road.
"I like to say 3," Gordon said when asked when he first played the sport. "Organized soccer, I was 12 years old."
Told that's a wide age gulf, he confidently explains, "I played street soccer. That's where all the talent in Jamaica starts. That's where I picked up my skills.
"I played with no shoes, barefooted, playing on rocks. Find anything to kick. Right there, that makes you a different player from some of the players who have everything."
Olivier said Gordon "realizes the journey he's made has been a long one and hard one."
The Herd junior needed more than resiliency to get where he is today.
"It was rough, was tough," Gordon said of his history when asked if he's grown through his experiences. "Really, I wouldn't say 'growth,' because I've been a smart kid from Jamaica. I grew up with a single mom for 11 years.
"I always had to think for myself a lot, and sometimes not really thinking. It's like Coach Bob says, I like to overthink sometimes. Sometimes, that's not necessarily a wrong thing to do. But sometimes you do need time to yourself to just think about the next day, where you are going."
---Herdzone.com---
