By Kyle LoJacono
FC Tampa Lutz Rangers is less than two months old, but the first soccer program ever in Lutz is already drawing hundreds from around Hillsborough and Pasco counties.
“It’s a great facility we get to use at Oscar Cooler Sports Complex,” said Rangers founder Mike Connell, of Lutz. “It’s a perfect location for the people of Lutz and Odessa who have never had a soccer program and we’re getting kids from Land O’ Lakes and Wesley Chapel too.”
The park has been around since 1975, but until its expansion Aug. 14 there was no room for soccer. Now the Rangers have plenty of practice and game fields.
Land O’ Lakes High boys soccer coach Mark Pearson, of Lutz, is coaching the boys U8 Academy for the Rangers, which is a program for kids just learning the game.
“I’ve been coaching at Land O’ Lakes High for 15 years, so it was a no brainer to start coaching here too,” Pearson said. “I like coaching the kids at this level here because it’s a nice break from coaching high school. It’s a different kind of mentality from the pressure of getting the kids good enough to make the playoffs to teaching these kids the basics. It’s a nice change.”
One of the players in the academy is Driss Belhassan, of Lutz. Belhassan said he likes playing soccer because he gets to run around with his friends.
Connell is coaching the U11 and U13 boys teams for the club. Derek Walters, of Land O’ Lakes, plays on that U13 team and he cannot get enough soccer.
“I’ve played since I was 6,” Walters, 13, said. “Soccer is like my life. My dream is to play soccer when I grow up and I love playing here in Lutz.”
Walters has also played for Hillsborough County United. He said he likes playing at the new Lutz fields because it is closer to his home and because of the coaches.
“The coaches are just so much better,” Walters said. “They know exactly how to make us all become much stronger players.”
Connell said there are 11 competitive teams for players ages 8 to 15 and 25 recreational squads for ages 5 to 16. There are 280 children signed up, while another 18 men from around Lutz and Odessa make up the Rangers men’s team. Connell said everyone on the adult team is at least 40, but that is not a requirement to join.
“It’s special to have so many people interested in soccer here,” Connell said. “We have a lot of families in a 15-mile radius all coming here to play soccer because we have the right goals for the kids … We want them to be the best while having fun playing soccer. It’s not about how good they are the first game or after the first year, but when they leave the program at 15-years-old.”
Connell also runs Unlimited Motion Soccer Academy in Wesley Chapel at Sports + Field. Biko Claxton, of Wesley Chapel, is one of Unlimited Motion’s coaches and also helps the Rangers players get better at their speed and agility.
“It’s a great way for me to give back to another community and spread the love of soccer,” Claxton said. “If I can get more people playing soccer here then I’m getting the job done as a coach.”
The current season for the Rangers runs through the end of February. There will be another season starting in April. For more information on the Rangers for interested players or coaches, visit www.fctampalutz.com.
“I’m hoping these kids stay in love with soccer and get to high school to make them really strong in soccer,” Connell said. “In a couple of years I’m hoping our high schools will each have state championships. That’s when I’ll know the program is really working.”
