In January of 1998, Jose Rivera was named Georgia Boys

Soccer Coach of the Year. He has been involved with the Peachtree

City Lazer program for the past three years and was with the

Fayetteville Lightning program for 10 years before that. All in

all, Jose Rivera has accumulated 23 years of coaching experience.

He has played the game since he was a boy. Last September,

Coach Rivera won the Regional Boys Coach of the Year and in

January of this year, he was awarded the National Boys Coach of the

Year award.

As a boy, growing up in Honduras, he had no formal

coaching. He learned the game from players on the Honduras

National team, the men would train the boys and the cycle would

continue. The children would learn by watching and emulating

the players. They would develop their skills in sandlot soccer games.

It wasn't until Jose went to college at Louisiana State University

that he had his first formal coach. They did not have an NCAA

soccer league, but rather the Delta League consisting of

intramural teams. Jose transferred to the Florida Institute of

Technology for his final two years of college.

He began his coaching career with the Orange Park Soccer

Club in Jacksonville, Fla. and from there he went to the Prince

William Soccer Association in Va. He continued playing, started

refereeing and, of course, kept on coaching. In 1985, he and

his family moved to Georgia and he began his 10 year stint with

the Lightning program in Fayetteville. For the last three

years, he has been the coaching director for the Lazer Program,

coaching and training players of all ages. He also works with

the Olympic Development Program with the U-17 girls.

"For me, watching the kids develop as players and sharing

my love of the game with them is what it is all about," Rivera

said. He continues to see players of his play with college programs

and win numerous accolades. Some of his previous players have

children in the soccer programs now. The Lazer program has

grown from seven teams to 23 with Coach Rivera as the coaching

director. This year, on top of coaching a team or two, he will also

be the technical director for the Lazer program, as well as

working with the ODP program. That means that he will be

assisting other coaches and helping teach the skills that the players

must learn.

Coach Rivera holds all USSF licenses up to the 'B' license

as well as an NSCAA regional diploma. He was recommended

for the awards he won by many of his coaching peers and players.

Everyone who has ever known or played for him knows of his

great sportsmanship, his superior technical knowledge and his

deep rooted love for the game of soccer. The result of all this is

that he gives that same love to all of his players for them to pass

on. The award he won was justly deserved but his real reward is

being able to continue doing something he loves.

"It was awesome to win the award," Coach Rivera said.

"I was asked to speak and I was completely flabbergasted."

So much of Coach Rivera's time is dedicated to soccer, that his

family chipped in and got him a separate phone line and space in

the loft.

He continues to work as an air traffic controller and plans to

retire in three years, but he knows he will still be coaching after

retirement. "I don't know what I'll do," Coach Rivera said. "I go

to work to rest from soccer."

His advice to aspiring coaches is to, "love what you coach,

always remember who you are coaching and when players

give 100 percent, they will win and have fun."

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