Olympic hopeful laughs off comparisons his play confirms
The comparisons, Adin Brown says, are ridiculous, and he wants to set the record straight:
No, he is not the second coming of Kasey Keller.
(For one thing, the U.S. Olympic qualifying team’s star goalkeeper is bigger at 6-foot-5, possesses greater technical capacity and is – says Clive Charles, who has coached both – further along than Keller was at 21.)
Brown just laughs. Mention Charles’ comments, and he can’t hold it in. “What was he smoking?” he chortles. “That’s quite funny.”
He can’t, and won’t, take it seriously.
“I mean, what do you say to that? He’s considered one of the best goalkeepers in the world. … You really can’t look at [comparisons like] that. You look at it, and it’s like, wow, that’s a great compliment, but, I mean, why make comparisons like that? I haven’t done anything yet.”
It’s just a matter of time. Brown, say those who should know, is the complete package, a combination of impressive physical qualities, a strong mental game, superb technique and a growing tactical sense. His best performances produce astonishment.
“I’m working with a lot of very good goalkeepers in the national team program,” says U.S. goalkeeper coach Peter Mellor, who has worked closely with Brown for two years. “For his age, in terms of technical and tactical ability, he’s the best I’ve ever worked with.”
Everyone who’s seen him, whether during his time at William & Mary (where he was a three-time All-American), in his first three MLS games (Colorado traded up to grab him with the third selection at the SuperDraft) or with the U-23s, concurs.
“I’d be happy,” he said, “if I just came close to living up to expectations.”
Internal struggle
Not everything in the nets has come easy for Brown, and the toughest challenge had nothing to do with stopping shots or corralling crosses. His emergence as a promising goalkeeper prompted a philosophical quandary with which he could wrestle his entire career.
Brown is a Christian Scientist, and among the religion’s tenets is a disavowal of medical treatment – believers leave illness and ailments in God’s hands.
“The first time Clive ever yelled at me,” Brown says, “was when I didn’t go in and get [prescribed] treatment. He said that was the realities of the profession. If you want to be on the field, you have to be healthy, and if you’re not on the field and something comes along that’s better, you’re going to be replaced. That’s just the nature of the game.
“That clicked – something clicked in my head, and I said, you know, I’m probably going to have to compromise some of my beliefs to be a professional athlete. But I know God will respect that decision and not love me any less.”
“We discussed it for 10 seconds,” says Charles, who would have considered “very seriously” leaving Brown off his roster if he’d refused to accept treatment. “I told him that there’s going to come a time when people are going to be paying him a lot of money to play soccer, and he’s going to have to make a decision. If he needs to take medication to get well quicker, then that’s the world he’s going to go into, and he’s going to have to act in a professional manner.”
“We’ve discussed his religious beliefs, and while we respect his beliefs, he had to understand that part and parcel of being a pro player concerns injuries and how you take care of them,” said Colorado coach Glenn Myernick. “If he’s being paid to play professional soccer, he has to find the right balance between his beliefs and what is best for his club.”
It was, and wasn’t, an easy decision. Brown spoke at length with his parents and with his grandmother, secured their support and made the decision that he would accept medical treatment when, during his career, it was required.
“I really don’t have problem with it,” he says. “If I have to do something, I make the decision at the time, and I know I’ll make the right decision, and I know God will understand.”
Are there treatments he would not accept? “I really don’t think about it. I just take it day by day.” What if he needed knee surgery? “I take it day by day. … I’m not sure. I’d have to determine that at the time, what the right decision would be.”
Brown was a four-sport athlete while growing up in Pleasant Hill, Calif., but it wasn’t until his sophomore season at William & Mary that the depth of his potential became evident. The next spring, he got his first U-23 call-up, and the real work began.
With Mellor and his goalkeeper coach at William & Mary, Kevin Doyle (now with Penn State’s staff), Brown improved his footwork and flexibility, worked on his distribution, and began to demonstrate that he was a special talent.
The comparisons with Keller followed.
“One of the things I think my dad did a good job with in bringing me up,” Brown says, “is that don’t care what people are saying, whether it’s bad or good. Keep a level head. …
“I’m just starting my career. Who knows what the future will bring? You can’t hold a candle up to me yet.
“You’ll just have to wait.”
by Soccer America senior editor Scott French