Daviess County’s Sam Glover is set to play soccer at the collegiate level after he signed with Auburn University at Montgomery. The forward played his final season of high school soccer this past Fall where he found lots of success and silverware with the Panthers.
Glover led DCHS in goals with 16 and tied for most assists on the team with 11 and was named to both the All-District Team and the 3rd Region All-Tournament Team. Glover helped lead Daviess County to not only their 10th district title in a row, but their 10th regional championship as well before making it to the Sweet 16 in the state tournament.
Playing soccer at the collegiate level means everything to Glover, he said. He acknowledged that not everyone gets to get an education while also playing the sport they love, and he considers himself blessed, he said.
“To have the opportunity to play at the next level means everything to me,” he said. “Not everyone gets to continue playing their sport at the next level as well as get an education while doing it, so I am unbelievably blessed for this opportunity.”
Glover’s choice to sign with Auburn University at Montgomery stemmed from his previously built relationship with Warhawks coach Matthew Thorne. Glover attended an I.D. camp in Louisville where he was placed into Thorne’s group. The two took a liking to each other and Glover decided that AUM was his destination after being invited out to Thorne’s I.D. camp at the college.
“The main reasons I chose to play AUM was because I liked the coach and the environment at AUM,” he said. “I met coach Matthew Thorne at a Louisville I.D. camp. In the 2 days I spent there coach Thorne was the coach of my group and we took a great liking to each other. I thought his coaching style and personality were amazing, and I knew I needed to keep in touch with him. I did and he invited me to his I.D. camp at AUM, and after that I knew I wanted to go there after seeing AUM in person.”
Training in preparation for his first college season will be different compared to his training for high school soccer, he said. Gover plans on focusing on his conditioning as well as training with Owensboro United and players who have experience at the collegiate level.
“My prep for college soccer is definitely gonna be different from high school soccer,” he said. “I know the conditioning at that level is way higher than what I have experienced, and I know I need to focus on getting in game shape by running long distance, sprints, and game like scenario conditioning. As for the soccer part, I plan to train with a local Owensboro United team and train with older kids that have experienced what it is like to play at the next level.”
I plan to study in business especially business marketing
Glover will be a ways away from Owensboro as AUM is located in Montgomery, Alabama. While at the college he plans to study business with a focus in marketing. Being away from home is something that both excites him and makes him nervous, he said. The thought of meeting new people in a new environment is something he looks forward to, but he knows he will miss his friends and family here in Owensboro.
“I am nervous and excited about going so far away from home,” he said. “I’m nervous because I don’t know anyone down there and I know I will miss my family and friends. It isn’t any quick drive to see them, but I am excited to meet new people and have a whole new experience in a new environment.”
With his time as a high schooler ticking down, Glover said that he will miss high school sports because his time with the Panthers produced some of his favorite soccer memories.
“I loved high school sports and everything about them,” he said. “I truly loved my time at DC. Those memories probably were some of my favorite soccer memories, and I will miss it.”
