Only 20 years old, Simley boys coach Cian Pearson is believed to be the youngest varsity soccer coach in Minnesota history. His age ranks as the second-most surprising part of his résumé.
Pearson never played a minute of high school varsity soccer.
He said his father "paid about a thousand dollars" so Pearson could join a club soccer team at age 12. But he "never even played, really. And so that got scrapped."
Pearson, a goalkeeper, played junior varsity throughout his Park of Cottage Grove career but didn't develop outside of the high school season.
"High school is more a consequence of club soccer," Pearson said. "That's kind of how it feeds in. So I could never really develop. I just didn't have that sort of support."
Still, he joined the team at Dakota County Technical College for one season and then launched himself into coaching. What he lacked in terms of playing time and opportunities as a kid has informed his coaching approach. Pearson holds a National C License through U.S. Soccer Federation and coaches the U17/U19 boys soccer teams within the Eagan-based Wave Soccer Club.
"We all play the same system on our teams," said Pearson, a junior varsity assistant at Simley last season. "So there is a pathway if you play well enough and if you have a good enough attitude. The ability to move up is empowering to all players on all our teams."
Pearson turns 21 in September, but his Spartans delivered an early present. A 3-2 win Aug. 26 at Apple Valley counted as his first varsity victory. The result validated Pearson's optimism despite a 5-3 loss at Rochester Century two days earlier. The starting group against Century contained eight sophomores. They built and then lost a 2-0 lead but never quit battling.
