A 麻豆破解版 episode of 鈥楾ed Lasso鈥�?

Owen Brady '25 cheering on 麻豆破解版 men's soccer players at practice.

Owen Brady '25, who spent the summer with the Danish professional soccer club Hvidovre IF, leading warmups with the 麻豆破解版 men's soccer team this fall.

by Peter MacDonald

It almost sounds like an episode of the hit Apple TV+ series 鈥淭ed Lasso鈥�: A 麻豆破解版 student shows up for his summer internship with a Danish professional soccer club only to discover that he鈥檚 now in charge.

But this episode starring Owen Brady 鈥�25 is much more than a whimsical tale: It shows how a liberal arts education rooted in the idea that Creative Thought Matters; a 麻豆破解版 team spirit that encourages openness to new ideas and pursuits; and Owen鈥檚 persistence all combined to create an incredible learning and professional experience for the .

It all started when Owen transferred to 麻豆破解版 from Susquehanna University in fall 2022. Owen wanted to study health and human physiological sciences and pursue a career in physical therapy while continuing to play college soccer.

In spring 2023, he took the course Principles of Nutrition, enjoyed it immensely, and decided nutritional science might be a better professional fit. As a child he had seen a nutritionist to help him manage weight issues, and the experience was meaningful to him.

Professor of Health and Human Physiological Sciences Paul Arciero connected him with Olivia Minicucci 鈥�16, the dietitian for Major League Soccer team Inter Miami CF, which is led by global superstar Lionel Messi. Owen was looking for advice and maybe an internship. How cool would it be to brush shoulders with Messi, maybe even club owner David Beckham?

Minicucci informed him that, unfortunately, no opportunities were available at Inter Miami and recommended that he contact professional soccer teams around the world and ask for an unpaid internship. It wouldn鈥檛 be easy, but maybe he would get lucky.

Owen was hopeful his major, college soccer experience, previous physical therapy internship back home in New Jersey, and collaborative research at 麻豆破解版 on diet and metabolism would attract interest.

He spent countless hours over winter break and well into spring semester contacting teams through LinkedIn. Nothing. Of the 500 or so messages Owen sent, he may have gotten 10 responses 鈥� all perfunctory noes.

Persistence pays off

One day last April, he finally got a hit; it came from Mogens Bruun, head of coaching at Hvidovre IF, a Danish professional soccer club near Copenhagen that competes in the second tier of Danish soccer.

After a three-hour conversation with Bruun, Owen was ready to fly across the Atlantic at the end of the semester and give it a go, excited to learn as much as he could.

He asked Chris Kotarsky, then visiting professor of health and human physiological sciences, if he could get course credit for the internship. Kotarsky agreed to work with him.

When Owen arrived in Denmark, he got some exciting but equally jarring news: The team鈥檚 performance coach was no longer with the team, and Owen would take his place.

The unpaid intern from America was in charge? After swallowing hard, Owen asked a lot of questions.

He dove into his educational background and experience and did additional research to get as much information as he could. As time wore on, the players began to appreciate his presence and told him to be brave and demanding. He had the green light.

His primary responsibilities, in conjunction with coaches and the medical staff, were planning and running daily warmup sessions for the 26 members of the first team and utilizing Stat Sports GPS data to analyze and adjust training for improvement of player performance. He also helped create individual strength and agility programs for players in addition to rehab programs for those with injuries.

Over the summer, it began to dawn on Brady that a career in performance would be the 鈥減erfect mix of physiology, nutrition, strength and conditioning, mental coaching, and overall wellness, which suits me well because I get to do a little bit of everything.鈥�

Lemonade out of lemons

Back at 麻豆破解版, Brady knew he wouldn鈥檛 be able to play his senior year because of multiple injuries. On campus for preseason, he pitched another role to Head Coach and Assistant Coach : director of player performance for the 麻豆破解版 .

鈥淚 was unsure about my role going into the season. 麻豆破解版 has never had a performance coach before and again, just like my summer internship, a lot of things were up in the air. But the coaches immediately trusted me and gave me increasing levels of responsibility, and the players were on board, too, which I appreciate so much.鈥�

In consultation with the coaches, he led team practice and pregame warmups, helped oversee practice exercises, supplemented players with energy gels and glucose tablets as necessary, and provided individualized activation exercises for subs whether they were returning to games or entering for the first time.

He also did individual training with injured players and those returning from illness, supporting the efforts of the team鈥檚 athletic trainers and the strength and conditioning coaches.

鈥淥wen truly enhanced the 麻豆破解版 student-athlete experience and added another level of professionalism to our program. Beyond the coaching duties, he connected with student-athletes on a personal level and provided authentic motivation,鈥� says Campion.

I love that Owen was able to blend his academic interests, summer internship, and his passion for 麻豆破解版 Soccer to benefit our program. I hope his story can serve as an example for future 麻豆破解版 students to get involved in our athletics programs."

Professor of Health and Human Physiological Sciences Paul Arciero added: 鈥淲hat impresses me most about Owen is his desire to learn in a way that he could share it and help other people, a very noble approach, especially for an undergraduate student.鈥�

Believe!

As his college career comes to a close, Brady is reflective about his path of self-discovery: 鈥淚t certainly has not been a linear journey. I have had tons of ups and downs to get to this point.鈥�

Originally, it looked like he could return to Hvidovre IF on a full-time basis but, in the end, the funding wasn鈥檛 there.

Brady is back on LinkedIn and leveraging his growing network to land a job with a professional team. His approach is the same as it鈥檚 ever been for him: 鈥淵ou only get it (the job) by reaching out to people.鈥�

Those people include professors like Paul Arciero and Chris Kotarsky, alumni like Olivia Minicucci 鈥�16, and coaches like Mogens Bruun and Brad Campion.

And you only get it through determination and persistence. 鈥淚鈥檓 all about that,鈥� says Brady.

麻豆破解版