At the beginning of the year, the new Frederick Douglass High School, still being built on Winchester Road in Lexington, named Omar Shalash as its first boys’ head soccer coach.
Shalash, currently a teacher at Edyth J. Hayes Middle School, played and coached at Tates Creek High School under Coach Bo Lankster. He was with Tates Creek as a coach for three years, ending in 2011, and he last coached soccer at the high school age level for Commonwealth Soccer Club in 2014.
Soccer in the Bluegrass recently sat down with him for a Q&A on his expectations for his FDHS program in the 11th Region and his thoughts about soccer in general. This Q&A has had some minor edits for clarity, but is virtually verbatim from a 20 minute discussion.
On preparations, so far:
We’ve had one official organizational meeting. We had quite a few people show up to it. I didn’t do a good job of getting the word out. But we’re going to hold off just like Coach Adkins and do a bigger informational meeting once club season starts to dwindle down.
I’ve spoken to a lot of people at our schoolwide Frederick Douglass meeting in regards to what’s going to be offered at the school. A lot of people have approached me about that.
The buzz is here. Everybody’s excited about it. Some people are still unsure – are they leaving their school? Are they coming here? I’m letting them decide that for themselves. If they want to know something about our program, I’d be more than willing and happy to explain it, but I’m not going to be overbearing. I will respect their choice. I know Henry Clay and Bryan Station have programs that they are very proud of and I don’t want to kind of undermine anything in regards to that.
We’re going to hold off, until probably a month to have another (organizational meeting), then have an official ‘welcome, this is what you need to have,’ (meeting).
On when workouts begin …
We’re going to start non-mandatory conditioning here soon. We’re just trying to find a location. I’ve been in conversation with some people around (Edyth J.) Hayes. We’ll probably use Hayes’ facility, probably get some portable goals and whatnot.
What’s your vision for Frederick Douglass soccer?
One of my number one things with Frederick Douglass soccer is development on and off the field. I want the best in the classroom and I want that to be able to translate onto the field. We are going to be committed to one another: a group of brothers. A group of brothers is something that was established when I was coaching at Tates Creek High School and when I was playing at Tates Creek High School, as well. I just feel like that sense of unity, that sense of ‘hey, we’re the first guys to ever put on these jerseys, you know.” Let’s embrace one another. Let’s better each other. Let’s push each other. It’s all about hard work. It’s all about dedication. It’s all about commitment.
The No. 1 thing that we’re going to do is when we officially start, it’s nonstop. We’re going to continue on throughout the offseason, and once we’re able to get on the field, people will be able to get a better understanding of what Douglass is going to be about. What’s our routines? How are we going to prepare for practices? What’s going to be our M.O. for games and whatnot.
My No. 1 thing for Douglass is development: making sure that every single kid that comes to try out for our team gets better; every day they’re getting better through practice and in games. One thing that I’m having a lot of kids come up to me and asking at Hayes is ‘hey, can I try out for your team? I’ve never played soccer before.’ And that’s something that I’m falling in love with. I want every single kid that wants to be a part of it to come out and try out. Be a part of this program. You know, if you have the drive to get better, then we’ll make you better. If you want to play soccer, we’ll teach you how to play soccer.
I want to get a coaching staff that is committed to the student athletes. I want a sense of belonging for our program to where that they know that they’re loved no matter what, regardless of the minutes they play, the goals they score, the assists they make, it’s going to be team first, team first, team first and on the field and off the development.
On playing in the buzz saw that is 11th Region soccer …
Lots of people have told me, ‘Welcome back to high school soccer, you get to play in the toughest region!’ But the good thing about it is I’ve played in the toughest region. I’ve played in the toughest district, as well. This district we’re in with Henry Clay, Bryan Station, Scott County, Sayre … these are very good teams that year in and year out they put their players in position to do well.
Region 11 is very intimidating. Simply because it’s so diverse. The parity of our region is unmatched by any region in the state. When I was in high school, soccer wasn’t the main thing in Lexington. In the past 12 years, … soccer has become the No. 1 sport in Lexington in regards to competition level in my humble opinion. I do believe we’re a soccer town. I do believe that the teams like Woodford County, the team like all the teams in our district – Henry Clay is a powerhouse. Paul Laurence Dunbar is our first regular season game. I love that. (Todd) Bretz is a very good guy at what he does and his program is top of the line. Embracing that obstacle of having to compete with these teams that are powerhouses and have been around for lots of years, I think that’s what Frederick Douglass is going to be all about.
I would say some coaches would be pretty intimidated. I’m ready to fight. I’m ready to jump right into it and like ‘we’re just as good as you guys.’ Now, we might not be as old as you all, but I think embracing that challenge and being able to play against those teams is only going to make our team successful, regardless of the wins and losses. I’m excited for the obstacle of being in the toughest region. It’s going to be fun.
Shalash’s cousin, Jamil Shalash, is the head coach at Collins in Northern Kentucky. He invited Douglass to play in a preseason event …
I think we’re scheduled to play Trinity for our first ‘official/non-official’ game. (Playing) Trinity and St. X schools will be perfect for us to know where we’re at when we get to these teams we’re going to be playing in our region. I’m looking forward to the challenge, definitely.
On his background …
“I’m a Tates Creek product: elementary, middle and high school. Everything I have learned throughout this journey has been through the experiences of Tates Creek. I didn’t play college. Maybe I could have. Maybe I couldn’t have, but I pursued coaching as soon as I left high school. Playing at Tates Creek, we’re still brothers. We still talk to one another. Not as much as we used to, of course. But being a part of Creek Nation has allowed me to be a better teacher and, most importantly, a better coach. Bo Lankster: the best soccer coach I’ve ever been around my entire life. He groomed me as a player. He instilled a lot of values I still have in myself and what I do with my students and with my players. Coaching under him and Allie Tucker and Jordan Parker and those guys that run the girls program, a lot of things that I saw in that program I will implement in my program.
Our boys program at Creek was very successful. My last year at Creek we, the JV team, lost two games all year and we won the city championship. One of the coaches had set up a city tournament for us. I’ll never forget that night. We played a FIFA tournament. We had a JV championship game under the lights. We grilled out ribeye steaks, which isn’t the best meal to have before a game. But we went out there and we beat them. … Those are memories, like, I still play indoor soccer with those kids. They’re not kids anymore. They’re more my friends, now. They still refer to me as coach, which makes me feel pretty old. But what I’ve learned at Tates Creek is to always embrace my surroundings, always embrace the people around me that want to make us better. One thing that he (Lankster) did that I really enjoyed is whenever he was giving the girls a pep talk, Coach would turn to all of his assistant coaches and he would ask ‘what is you’re take? Do you have anything you have to offer? Did you see something that I didn’t see?’ And that’s something that I do in everything. I do it for teaching. I do it for volleyball, I do it for basketball. They prepared me for this obstacle and I’m very grateful to have crossed paths with them. Now, it’s taking what I’ve learned and incorporating it into this new Frederick Douglass High School.
On how hungry he is to get back into soccer …
Let’s just say I was starving. When I first found out there was going to be a new high school, I started thinking what’s the opportunity? This would be a once-in a lifetime opportunity. To be able to implement things that I’ve been able to do with other coaches around Lexington and make it my own and start this rich tradition at Frederick Douglass was something that I didn’t expect to happen. But it did. And I’m very grateful for the opportunity that they gave me. I know there are many people that wanted to be in the situation I’m in right now. So being very gracious and hungry is the word. I’m ready to go right at this and tackle it head on. Embrace the challenges of being in the toughest region. Playing against the hardest competition in the state. I would consider Lexington to be a powerhouse in every sport, but for soccer you have a team competing for a state championship every year from our city.
A lot of people have said, ‘You guys are going to struggle this year’ or ‘you’re going to be so young.’ I’ve not thought of that whatsoever. To be honest, the kids are a little intimidated. You go to a program, you normally have five to 10 guys who are your seniors, guys that you rely on. They are going to be asked to be leaders as freshman and sophomores, whoever joins our program. Me putting them in the best position is what I’ll do, but we’re not afraid of anybody. We’re ready to go right at every single team and compete. We’ll match their physicality of the game. … I’m all about being strong enough to (say) ‘hey, you’re No. 1 in the state? We don’t care. Show us that you’re No. 1 in the state. We’ll show you we can fight against No. 1 in the state.’ (That) kind of mentality. Being able to have this opportunity to establish this culture of soccer at our new school is something I will forever be grateful for. All the people that vouched for me, all the people that took a chance on me, I’m hoping I make them proud, most definitely.
On how he thinks club soccer fits in with the high school game …
This is a serious topic that we have in Lexington and in every soccer town. I played three days of club, and it was more because of finances. I just wasn’t able to. My parents weren’t able to take me to practice. We didn’t have the means to do that. So, I was literally a product of high school soccer. And I tell my parents that I’ve met, because that’s the same question that they ask, ‘Which club do you want them to play for?’ ‘Are you going to be one of those people that if you don’t play for this club, you’re going to hold that against them?’ These are real and saddening questions simply because that should not alter anything that happens in high school soccer.
My personal opinion on this is high school soccer, yes (club) really does help you in regards to offseason training and being active year-round. But what I’m doing with Frederick Douglass soccer, when our field is open to me and my program to go whenever we want (we) are going to be club soccer for them. They don’t need to go spend thousands of dollars to get extra sessions and be on these travel teams and play against these travel teams when we can compete against each other and embrace this just like football does. Football is year-round. They do winter training. They do spring training and then it’s time for football season.
For Frederick Douglass soccer, if you don’t want to be a part of club, you have us all year long. I will never, ever be one of those coaches that says you have to play club soccer or you’re going to see consequences from not doing it. I’ll never do that. Because I know if you have a good high school coach and you’re surrounded by their pure intentions to make you better, you will get better. I was a really good soccer player when I was younger and I transitioned to the basketball and football stage and then I went back to what I loved, soccer, in high school. Coach Lankster taught me so much, and showed me that I didn’t need to go and play these clubs. …
The one thing that we’re going to be doing, and I know other schools do it – but it’s hard because (players) tell you ‘I have club practice, I have a club game;’ (I will never say ‘don’t play club and come and join us) – but what we’re going to do is when you’re not training for club, you’re training with us. If you want to make this your life. I can make it your life. This is what I’m married to. This is something that I’m going to make sure every one of my players, parents, community know: If you don’t want to do club, I’ve got your back. I will teach you everything that you can do on your own, stuff that you can do within our program on our field, with our our goals, with our facility. We have weights. We have goals. We have turf fields. We have everything that club has to offer. The only difference between us and club is it’s free.
I know that what I just told you is not going to sit well with a lot of coaches, but in reality, like, I’m not going to sugar coat anything. This is a real issue that some families have to deal with: where they cannot afford club. You have a charge of $800 to be a part of club. Then you have to pay an assessment fee. Then you have to go to these hotels … I mean sometimes it’s just inconvenient. So, what I say for club? I encourage it. Of course, I would love for you to go and play with other kids from within Lexington and out of county schools. Of course! That’s fun. That’s something that’s going to make you better. But we’re making this: Frederick Douglass soccer. This is 24 hours a day, 365 days a year. You want to embrace us? We’ll embrace you. You want to be a part of it? You’re a part of it.
I know (in middle school) we have over 25 kids that play club in middle school. They would love to represent their schools in middle school, just like basketball, just like football, lacrosse. They would love that. But, unfortunately, the only kids that (are able) to do that are the ones that don’t play club. And it’s not affiliated from within Fayette County. It’s a YMCA thing where people do it, but the numbers are very low. And they’re not committed to what they would be committed to as a club. But that’s something that I really hope middle school does embrace soccer. I hope that maybe the club teams will work with middle school on that.
LFC and CSC have been around for a long time, Bluegrass, they’ve been around for a long time. They do develop. They do make kids much better. They do put the kids in school and bring out these college coaches. But we can do that as well at our high school. I can reach out to coaches. My connections might not be as top of the line as some of these club coaches that have been doing it for so many years.
Final thoughts …
Frederick Douglass soccer is my club. I know what high school soccer can do for kids at this age and what it can do for communities. We’re Douglass, and we’re going to be different. We’re going to try to make our program a top of the line program, but it’s going to take some time. Going back to what you originally asked me about just the Region 11: We’re going to turn some heads in year one. I know I’m talking the big talk. I get it. Some kids are like, ‘you’re crazy.’ But at the end of the day, if you instill the mentality in your players that they’re just as good as the other team on the other side of the field, they will rise to that occasion. It’s called the ‘Kentucky Effect’ (in college basketball). When you play Kentucky, people play their best. That’s what we have to do, night in, night out. I know the guys that I’m bringing on staff and I know the guys that are already telling me that they are playing for us, they are ready to embrace that. Now, we just have to implement it and jump right into.
