After 21 years at Davidson, coach joins mammoth soccer association.
In searching for a chief operating officer earlier this year, the Capital Area Soccer League (CASL) asked the top college coaches in North Carolina for advice. As Charlie Slagle read the job description for the new leader of the 12,000-player organization, he said to himself, ôWell, IÆd be the person IÆd recommend!ö
So he did. That is why the popular coach of Davidson College will leave campus Aug. 1, head three hours north to Raleigh and take the reins of one of the most ambitious soccer associations in the country. CASL organizes games, tournaments, camps and seminars for players age 4 through adult. Its youth side runs from recreation through elite. And it employs a full-time staff of 25.
Slagle knows soccer administration. In the early 1990s, he helped persuade the NCAA to bring the menÆs Division I national championships to Davidson, a tiny institution 20 miles north of Charlotte. At the same time, he was building the WildcatsÆ program.
In 1992, the first year Davidson hosted the final four, the Wildcats were there ù as a Cinderella team. Since arriving in 1980, he was named Southern Conference Coach of the Year seven times.
The Binghamton, N.Y., native loves competition and coaching, but college soccer is changing. A school like Davidson ù with tough academic requirements and limited athletic scholarships ù finds it difficult to compete with the big powers. The administrative challenges of running CASL appeal to Slagle.
CASLÆs full-time employees include seven coaches, director of coaching Jay Howell, general manager Diego Munoz and more than a dozen other men and women who handle registration, scheduling, referees, fundraising and the monthly newspaper. With over 60 fields, CASL also employs a full-time groundskeeper.
ôMy staff will be my ears, eyes and fingers,ö Slagle said. ôIÆll be the mouth and the face.ö
One of CASLÆs primary challenges is fundraising. There are North Carolinians willing to donate 100 to 150 acres for fields. Developing and maintaining fields, however, takes money. Slagle will pursue corporate sponsorships and monitor profitability from the six tournaments it organizes annually.
Public relations is also an important aspect of the job, which should suit the gregarious Slagle.
Slagle said that realtors use CASL to sell potential homebuyers on the area. But he believes many people in the soccer community arenÆt fully aware of CASLÆs achievements.
ôThis is one of the most impressive organizations in the country, but people tend to focus on the things that donÆt work, or the few mistakes that do happen,ö Slagle said. ôI donÆt think thereÆs another program in the country that covers the full range of soccer, from a developmental 4-year-old to a fully developed 45-year-old. Will everyone always be happy? No. But IÆll try to make sure everyone is always treated fairly and professionally.ö
Slagle looks forward to leading an organization that boasts tremendous prestige, but he will miss the day-to-day contact with committed college athletes.
ôItÆs impossible to know all 12,000 players personally,ö he admitted. ôI can try but I wonÆt be able to. I guess IÆll just have to deal with groups of people, rather than individuals.ö
(For more information on CASL, click on www.caslnc.com)
by Youth Soccer Letter editor Dan Woog