Tuskegee University women’s soccer coach Emanuel Stephens and men’s soccer coach Matthew Tarpley have more than 33 years of combined coaching experience, but this year they entered unfamiliar territory. In February, Tuskegee University announced it was launching its first-ever men’s and wo men’s soccer programs in the university’s 145-year history, putting Stephens and Tarpley in charge of building the programs from the ground up. More than a dozen of the student-athletes who are going to represent Tuskegee University’s soccer programs met with The Atlanta Voice to talk about their journey. Photo by Tabius McCoy/The Atlanta Voice Stephens brought HBCU coaching experience after previously serving as the head women’s soccer coach at the University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff. Tarpley spent years coaching at the high school level before most recently serving as recruiting coordinator at Faulkner University, an NAIA program in Montgomery, Alabama.  Although each coach took a different path to Tuskegee, their rosters share a common thread. As Georgia natives, Stephens and Tarpley leaned heavily on their home state while assembling their inaugural teams. Tuskegee has 24 players with Georgia ties across its men’s and women’s soccer programs. The men’s team includes Tripp Bailey, Ashton Chambers, Toree Davis, Zach Egeston, Zackery Farley, Cayden Foster, Semaj Harvey, London Sebastian Hedge, Cameron Hendrix, Hudson Lindie, Kingston McDonald, Stanford Redd, Landon Sampson, and Christopher Turner, all from Atlanta. The Golden Tigers also signed Langston Laifang of Milton, Layth Patterson of Douglasville, and Matt Usury of Jonesboro. The women’s team features Georgians from across the state, including Brayden Adams of Marietta, Syrai Bryant of Smyrna, Za’Keya Charles of Fairburn, Jaida Gipson of Senoia, Nina Hooten of Marietta, Jaela Pace of Lithonia and Kamilah Smith of Johns Creek. Though Tuskegee University has played football and men’s and women’s basketball for reversions, soccer will be a new sport at the Alabama-based school. Photo by Tabius McCoy/The Atlanta Voice For Tarpley, Metro Atlanta has long been one of the country’s premier soccer hotbeds. During his playing and coaching days, he routinely saw the area’s depth of talent firsthand. After moving to Alabama in 2012, he attended the Border Wars tournament in Auburn, where eight Alabama boys teams competed against eight Georgia teams in a round-robin format. The Tuskegee Golden Tigers are part of the SIAC, a Division II collegiate sports conference. Photo by Tabius McCoy/The Atlanta Voice “Georgia always won on the boys’ and the girls’ side,” Tarpley said. “Atlanta is the spot for high school soccer. Tons of really talented, athletic, skilled players in that Atlanta area.” After accepting the head coaching job and putting together Tuskegee’s schedule, Tarpley traveled throughout Georgia looking for the top talent competing in showcases. While Tarpley intentionally made Georgia a recruiting priority, Stephens said his roster came together more naturally. “I don’t think it was strategic. It just happened that way,” Stephens said of having seven Georgia players on his team. For many recruits, the opportunity to be part of history made Tuskegee an easy decision. Photo by Tabius McCoy/The Atlanta Voice One player who helped jump-start Tarpley’s recruiting efforts was Bailey. The Heritage High School graduate from Conyers immediately contacted Tarpley after learning Tuskegee was starting a men’s soccer program. He scheduled a campus visit and soon committed. “The main reason I wanted to come here was to be a part of the first year of the team and make history and be a part of something,” Bailey said. “It’s cool to see HBCUs get into soccer. A new wave is going to start. I’m glad we’re the first one, but other schools are going to start picking up on it too for the culture.” Bailey’s commitment quickly created a ripple effect among his Heritage teammates and players from Gwinnett Soccer Academy. After he committed, several teammates, including Davis, became interested in Tuskegee and eventually joined him. “It’s about five of us that played high school together and a few others that have played club together,” Davis said. Photo by Tabius McCoy/The Atlanta Voice Recruiting players such as goalkeeper Cameron Hendrix on the men’s team and Jaida Gipson on the women’s team also came naturally. Hendrix, a Carrollton High School graduate, comes from a long line of Tuskegee alumni. “My mother and grandparents went there, so I’m like the third or fourth generation,” Hendrix said. “I’m just excited for the season and ready to get after it.” After her senior season, Gipson had no plans to continue playing soccer. She was already planning to attend Tuskegee, where her parents met as students. “With the soccer program coming up at my parents’ school, it was just all perfect,” Gipson said. “They are so proud of me.” While Tarpley built much of his roster through high school recruiting, he also turned to the transfer portal, where he found goalkeeper Jonathan Smith. Smith rediscovered his passion for soccer after playing the sport on and off since he was 7 years old. He spent his freshman year playing football at Fort Valley State before deciding it was time for a change. After talking with his father, who played professionally in Nigeria and worked at Atlanta Stadium during the World Cup, Smith decided to give soccer another chance. “I realized soccer was the sport I truly love,” Smith said. Tuskegee also appealed to Smith academically. Having earned his pilot’s license four years ago, he was drawn to the university’s aviation management program. Despite taking a year away from soccer and having only one year of experience as a goalkeeper, Smith believes his ability to learn quickly will allow him to succeed. “The sky is the limit for my talent,” Smith said. “If one year is what it took for me to get eyes from colleges, what am I going to do in three or four years? I might end up playing MLS.” The women’s team also blended high school recruits with transfer portal additions. One of its most experienced players is junior forward Za’Keya Charles. Charles hopes to bring resilience to the inaugural team. She spent her freshman season at Grambling State and her sophomore year at Auburn University at Montgomery before transferring to Tuskegee. She also persevered through two ACL tears and a torn meniscus during high school. “I’m an adapter,” Charles said. “I know how to adapt to any situation. I’m just here to make my mark.” The men’s team opens its inaugural season with an exhibition against Enterprise State Community College before making its regular-season debut against Auburn University at Montgomery on Aug. 22. The women’s team begins with an exhibition against West Alabama on Aug. 21 before hosting Edward Waters at Cleve L. Abbott Memorial Alumni Stadium on Aug. 29. Both programs will also be featured in the docuseries Unveiling History, which chronicles the inaugural season of Tuskegee University’s first NCAA men’s and women’s soccer teams. 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