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By Kevin Hampton |
Oregon, Dec. 22, 2003: Summertime for Robbie Findley isn't much different than for any other student. He spends his time lifting weights and hitting the gym for a few hours of hoops with his buddies. For Findley, that means trying to shoot over Mike Bibby or dribble past Shaun McDonald.
Findley, a freshman forward on the Oregon State men's soccer team, grew up in Phoenix, playing sports with his cousins Bibby, now with the Sacramento Kings, McDonald, a former Arizona State star receiver who catches passes for the St. Louis Rams, and current UCLA basketball player Ryan Walcott.
"They'd go to the gym, and I'd work out with them all day," Findley said. "Usually we'd go get lunch, (and) play basketball after. We'd always be together."
When the cousins weren't on the basketball court, they hung out and played video games or made a visit to the mall. While Bibby, Walcott and McDonald were pursuing basketball and football careers, Findley's sport was soccer. The cousins gave him their full support.
"When I was in the gym, they'd always be pushing me to lift, get big, get strong," Findley said. "They were always there for me."
Findley said he is very close to Bibby and spends quite a bit of time with the former University of Arizona guard and his friends during the off-season. Findley said he was not surprised when Bibby landed in the NBA and is looking forward to making the trip to Sacramento sometime soon to catch a game or two.
"He worked real hard," Findley said. "He'd be in the gym almost every day for almost the whole day, just working out, shooting shots and getting better every day. I knew he was going to do it."
Findley's father, Rawle, introduced him to soccer when he was old enough to run around. Rawle Findley played the sport while growing up in Trinidad. He came to New York with his wife-to-be, Vanessa, and moved to Phoenix to pursue his career in computers after they married.
"He just took me out one day and gave me the ball and from then, I guess I liked it," Robbie Findley said. "I stayed with it.
"He's always giving me tips and stuff. Because he's been around a while and he knows the game, so I'm always taking tips from him."
Knocking the ball around on the soccer field came easily to Findley, who quickly developed a passion for the sport.
Once he started club soccer, Findley was playing year-round and had no time for other sports, much less a job.
He landed a spot on the Sereno Golden Eagles club team, which finished second in the nation last year. Findley was selected as an all-region player.
When OSU coach Dana Taylor took a look at the Golden Eagles, Findley's whippet-quick moves caught his eye.
Findley's speed and skills also attracted the attention of New Mexico and Kentucky, but he wanted to play in the Pacific-10 Conference and was impressed with the team Taylor put together.
"(There are) a lot of cool guys on the team, so I figured it would be a good place to go," he said. "They make me feel like I'm family around here."
Taylor said Findley's athleticism, quickness, ball skills and scoring ability combined with a strong personality had him high on OSU's list.
"We like great attacking players," Taylor said. "We like guys of character, and his family is awesome, his mom and dad. I got to know them really well in the recruiting process, and they say the apple doesn't fall far from the tree. He is a person of great character and ethics."
Taylor said he envisions Findley as the type of player who will be very difficult for opponents to deal with because he can play different styles.
"He's so quick that he can get in behind you with his speed, so a defender has to watch that," Taylor said. "Yet he is able to play underneath, and so some players have to play underneath because they may not have the next gear to get in behind. But he can mix it up through the course of the game. He ... utilizes his athleticism in those situations."
Findley is second on the team with six goals and has helped the Beavers to a 10-4 record and a No. 14 ranking.
His goal is to join his cousins as a professional athlete.
"I hope to play professional soccer. That's my dream," he said. "I'm working hard at it, so hopefully it comes true."