This week Dylan Sheehan '09 was the clear choice for The Herald's Athlete of the Week. The forward has scored in every game the Bears have played this season, including the tying goal against then-No. 5 Santa Clara University in the season opener. Sheehan was named Ivy League Player of the Week for his effort (two goals and one assist) in the Adidas-Brown Classic and has not showed signs of cooling off since. His most recent accomplishment was putting in the winning goal Tuesday against St. Francis College for his Ivy League-leading fifth tally. The Herald caught up with Sheehan to talk sports, jerseys and PlayStation2.
Herald: How did it feel to start your season with wins against Santa Clara and Fordham University?Sheehan: It was kind of surreal, really. To have a game lined up like that, against a top-five team, kind of sets up a good situation. Basically you go in as the underdogs, and the only way you can go is up. To do as well as we did, and to have as many people there as we did, it was quite the experience. I guess to score a goal on top made all of it much more enjoyable.
Can you go through how you scored your goal against Santa Clara?Well Friday night, going into the half, we were down 1-0 and we were all optimistic. Nobody panicked because we had out-played them in the first half, we just had to finish the chances. So when David Walls ('11) crossed the ball over, I knew it was probably going to be one of the last chances I had. I just got my head on it and luckily it found the back of the net. It was good to score early in the second half.
What is the biggest difference you see in the team this year as compared to last year?I'd say the biggest difference is how we've incorporated the freshmen into the team. Now there isn't a big division between upperclassmen and underclassmen. I think the new team-oriented approach will go a long way towards the strength of our season.
Why do you think soccer is so unpopular in the U.S. compared to the rest of the world? I think it has started to catch on, but I think one of the issues is that soccer isn't as commercially friendly. The game doesn't stop and so the media, mainly, doesn't have as much time to advertise, and so the sponsorship isn't so great. When you think about American sports like baseball, football and basketball, there are breaks every couple of minutes. With soccer, there are 45 minutes straight without anything.Even the NCAA, when they broadcast games, takes a TV time-out 22 minutes into each half. Also, people are just stuck in the tradition of the original three or four sports, but I think you will see a dramatic change with players like (David) Beckham and others coming over, and it already has started to change a good amount.
How long have you played soccer?Since I was four. It's been a while.
Who is your favorite soccer player? Cristiano Ronaldo, he's pretty sweet. (Manchester United) is my favorite team too, so it helps out. Unfortunately, he just head-butted a guy in the first game of the season and was suspended for three games, so I haven't had a chance to see him very much this year.
Do you try to model your game after his?A little bit, not really. I'm kind of a different player. He's fast, skillful. I'm more opportunistic. I take my chances as they come. I hold the ball and probably pass a lot more than he would.
What is your favorite international team?England. My grandfather was from England, but its been a rough couple of years, making it to the quarters (in the World Cup) and then never winning it.
What do you do when you're not playing soccer?Well, Winning Eleven. That's a big one. It's a soccer game I play a lot of with the guys a lot for PS2. I'm president of SAC, the Student Advisory Committee, so that's gonna take up a good bit of time. I'm trying to stay on top of everything, it's a tough balance with athletics and academics.
Have you ever played FIFA for Xbox 360? It's incredible.Not as much as Winning. You're either a Winning guy or a FIFA guy. If it weren't for Winning, I'd probably have a much better GPA. And I'd probably be a lot better at soccer.
What did you do this summer?I'm from Canada - Halifax, Nova Scotia. So I played club soccer up there and worked at Deloitte, a consulting firm. I got a taste of the working world and realized I have to take advantage of college life. It was hard.
Why number 10 for your jersey number?Well, my number was always nine or 11, but the jerseys were too small so I just went for it. The guys make fun of me a lot actually because 10 is supposed to be the big playmaker, but it's been alright, I guess.
