Matt Mobley has committed to play soccer at NAIA powerhouse Berry College on a combined athletic-academic scholarship. He is scheduled to report to the Rome, GA, school for soccer training no later than Aug. 5.
“We are very excited about Matt coming to Berry,” head coach Richard Vardy said. “He is talented, intelligent, and has great character. His experience and ability to fill several different roles should lead him to have a big impact on what will be a young Berry team this year.”
Matt, born and reared in Plantation, FL, is the son of Vicki and Chris Mobley and the brother of Heather (Mobley) Mikes of Naples and Kit Mobley of Plantation. The five-foot-eight, 145-pound Mobley is versatile, having played every field position in club and school soccer since age 4.
“Berry is the place that best fits me,” Mobley said. “It’s a school that will further enhance my athletic and academic careers. I think at Berry I will be more than just a number.”
Berry, with a student body of 2,000, boasts the world’s largest campus, 28,000 acres nestled in the foothills of the Appalachian Mountains, 65 miles northwest of Atlanta and 65 miles south of Chattanooga, TN. Mobley plans to undertake a pre-med curriculum in a high-level academic environment offering a 13-1 student-teacher ratio, after achieving a 3.85 G.P.A. at Catholic college prep St. Thomas Aquinas High School in Ft. Lauderdale.
Mobley will be a legacy at Berry. His Georgia connections come from his father’s side of the family; father Chris was born in Augusta. Matt Mobley’s great uncle and great aunt attended Berry, as did several cousins. Matt’s grandmother, Elsie Williams Mobley, lives in Snellville, GA, as does an uncle, aunt and cousin. The late Earl Williams (Class of 1941), Mobley’s great uncle, served on the Berry Board of Trustees, was a past president of the Berry Alumni Association and received the President’s Award in recognition of his achievements as an alumnus. Williams passed away last June, but not before he counseled Mobley on the virtues of a Berry education.
U.S. News & World Report’s 2006 guide to “America’s Best Colleges” ranks Berry #2 in the South among comprehensive colleges that focus on undergraduate education. Berry also ranked third on the magazine’s regional "Great Schools, Great Prices" list and fifth in "Highest Graduation Rate." Additionally, the institution was listed among America's 367 "most interesting colleges" in the 2006 edition of the Newsweek-Kaplan College Guide.
The institution encourages a triplicate responsibility within education: academic excellence, student work and service to society, as well as emphasizing the importance of religion in life. Berry’s only futbol team plays soccer.
Vardy’s Berry Vikings finished the 2005 season 15-6-0 in the Southern States Athletic Conference, ranked #12 in the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics. Berry has made it to the NAIA National Tournament five times. The previous two seasons, Berry played into the semifinals of the NAIA national championships, losing in 2004 to the eventual winner and finishing ranked #6 in the nation. The team attained a #2 national ranking at the end of the 2003 season, its highest ever.
Vardy recruited Mobley out of Florida, a first for the Georgia school, after watching him train at the Atlanta Silverbacks-Mt. Berry College Prep Academy at Berry College in July 2005. The Vikings lost seven seniors at the end of the 2005 season – four midfielders, two forwards and a defender. The returning roster is comprised of four players from Germany and 12 from the U.S. – nine from Georgia and one each from South Carolina, Texas and Indiana.
“On top of his natural ability, what stood out most at the camp was Matt’s competitive spirit and drive to succeed,” coach Vardy said. “We know Matt will do well in all aspects of his college experience, but in addition we hope he will serve as a role model to those around him.”
“Coach Vardy is very personable,” Mobley said. “He knows the game and is able to relate that to his players very well. Berry has a very illustrious history and I hope to add to that.”
In February, coach Vardy announced two other signings: Hall McKinley of Atlanta, a six-foot-two defender who played for Marist School, the Alpharetta Ambush club team and the highly respected Concorde Fire Soccer Club, taking national runner-up honors in the Super Y League, and Mark Bloom of Marietta, a five-foot-nine midfielder who played for Lassiter High School, the Cherokee Redwings Soccer Club and spent five years on the Georgia Olympic Development Program team.
Mobley served as co-captain of his club and high school teams during the 2005-06 seasons. He also was captain of the regional champion St. Thomas cross-country team, for which he ran three years, and was named winner of the prestigious Matt Boddy Character Award as a senior. Mobley also ran track as a freshman and sophomore, competing in the 800 and relays.
Mobley plays club soccer for the Weston Fury (http://www.westonsoccer.net/wfscboysprogram/wfsc87to88boyspremier/index_E.html) in the highly competitive Premier League of the South Florida United Youth Soccer Association. Weston is scheduled to play in the Challenge Round of 16 for the Florida Premier State Cup Memorial Day weekend. Mobley usually plays outside midfield, but also has played center midfield, fullback and sweeper for head coach Alvin James.
The Fury is scheduled to play for the SuperClubs National Championships in July at Walt Disney World’s Wide World of Sports, qualifying by winning the Orlando regional last Thanksgiving. In March, Weston finished runner-up in the US Club Soccer Florida State Cup in Sanford, FL, at the park where the U.S. National Women’s Team trained for its World Cup championship.
In prior seasons, Mobley played for the Plantation Eagles U9-U13 and U17, coached by Roberto Mercado, and the Coral Springs Renegades U14 and U17 (playing up two years), for Lenny Taylor. Mobley alternately played forward, midfield and defense for his club teams. Mobley also trained under Richard Williams in the rigorous SoccerSense program in Plantation.
The father of Plantation Eagles teammate Eric Gant, David Gant, played soccer at Berry.
Mobley participated in the Florida Youth Soccer Association Olympic Development Program. His 2002 Team Florida squad, coached by Taylor, won the B pool championship in Region III, held in Tuscaloosa, AL, with teams from throughout the southeast. Mobley anchored the defense as starting sweeper.
Mobley’s scholastic soccer record is equally impressive. His middle school team, the Seminole Panthers, made it to the semifinals of the Broward County Championships and Mobley was named by his coach as Offensive Most Valuable Player.
His high school team, he St. Thomas Aquinas Raiders, won the Class 5A Florida state championship in 2004-05 and his coaches named Mobley as Defensive Most Valuable Player. The team finished the season ranked #8 in the nation.
He was a three-year starter for the varsity after playing junior varsity as a freshman. Mobley played midfield and defense for head coach Jobe Hughes and assistant coach John Walsh.
“Sports Illustrated” magazine a year ago named St. Thomas the nation’s #3 high school athletic program: “The school's best sport, however, is soccer. The girls' team was 29-3 this season and won the state title (the boys were 27-1-3 and won the state title), and the boys' and the girls' teams were ranked No. 1 in the nation in '97 and '98.” This year St. Thomas won its 12th consecutive Florida High School Athletic Association All-Sports Award, amassing more points than any school in the state, regardless of size, and its 22nd consecutive Broward County All-Sports Trophy.
