Gibson enters hall of fame
Soccer was the only sport Shane Gibson cared about growing up in Chesterfield, England.
“Ever since I was little I always wanted to be a professional soccer player,” the former USI center forward said.
In England, students leave high school at 16, and Gib- son said there are no opportunities to play college sports.
Gibson will enter the 2016 USI Athletic Hall of Fame in February as a reflection of his success during his playing career.
His soccer career advanced when Gibson took an apprenticeship with a professional soccer team in England after he graduated.
Gibson said the apprentice- ship is a lot like an internship in the U.S.A team takes on a player for two years and then at the end decides whether or not they want to give them a chance to play professionally for their organization.
During the apprenticeship, Gibson was considered an amateur athlete, making him eligible to play for a college under NCAA regulations.
Gibson was still in England when Tony Colavecchia offered him the chance to play Division I soccer at USI.
“When I was trying to build the program at USI we were in transition from going from a Division II program to a Division I program,” the former USI head soccer coach said. “At that time, we really needed a player that would compliment the way I felt our team needed to play in Division I.”
At this time, soccer was the only university sport to have athletes playing at the Division I level, with every other sport in Division II.
Colavecchia said he knew Gibson was a good fit for the team right after he saw him play.
“He was a big-time player,” Colavecchia said. “He could have played for any Division I program.”
Whether he played at the college level or through an apprenticeship, Gibson said he just wanted to play.
He never imagined he would have the opportunity to go to college, and his degree from the university made him the first person in his family to graduate college.
I just wanted to try it out. I fell in love with the states, and I fell in love with the university.
— Shane Gibson
Colavecchia said the team was lucky Gibson had other ambitions outside of an apprenticeship.
Once he understood the opportunity to get a degree and play for four years, it suited him well.
Gibson played soccer from 1989-91 for the university and during that time he became the first men’s soccer player to be named GLVC Player of the Year.
Colavecchia said Gibson was tall and strong and, de- spite being a cliché, just an old fashioned center forward.
In addition to competing with individual prowess, Gib- son was a team player.
Colavecchia said he will never forget the after-game interview from the team’s first Division I game where Gibson gave all of the praise to a freshman player.
“He was a leader,” Colavecchia said, “but he also was a popular player that fit in and could communicate with all of his peers.”
At center forward, Gibson had the ability to get other players involved in the game and Colavecchia said he made other players around him look so much better.
After Gibson graduated with a degree in physical education, he stayed on a year to help coach.
He returned to England to play for various soccer teams before returning to the U.S.
He has since played for the Louisville Thoroughbreds and the Lexington Bluegrass Bandits, both of which are affiliated with Major League Soccer.
After he got married, Gibson moved into the construction business and now the closest he gets to a soccer ball is watching it on TV.
He said the whole experience of finding out he would be inducted has been wonderful because many people reached out to him and he is looking forward to seeing people when he comes to town for the ceremony.
Gibson said he was welcomed into a close-knit soccer community while at the university and he feels almost embarrassed to accept the honor because of the support he had alongside him.
“I feel very fortunate to get this honor,” he said. “It really belongs to the whole team.”
