In January of 1998, Jose Rivera was named Georgia Boys Soccer Coach of the Year. He has been involved with the Peachtree City Lazer program for the past three years and was with the Fayetteville Lightning program for 10 years before that. All in all, Jose Rivera has accumulated 23 years of coaching experience. He has played the game since he was a boy. Last September, Coach Rivera won the Regional Boys Coach of the Year and in January of this year, he was awarded the National Boys Coach of the Year award.

As a boy, growing up in Honduras, he had no formal coaching. He learned the game from players on the Honduras National team, the men would train the boys and the cycle would continue. The children would learn by watching and emulating the players. They would develop their skills in sandlot soccer games. It wasn't until Jose went to college at Louisiana State University that he had his first formal coach. They did not have an NCAA soccer league, but rather the Delta League consisting of intramural teams. Jose transferred to the Florida Institute of Technology for his final two years of college.

He began his coaching career with the Orange Park Soccer Club in Jacksonville, Fla. and from there he went to the Prince William Soccer Association in Va. He continued playing, started refereeing and, of course, kept on coaching. In 1985, he and his family moved to Georgia and he began his 10 year stint with the Lightning program in Fayetteville. For the last three years, he has been the coaching director for the Lazer Program, coaching and training players of all ages. He also works with the Olympic Development Program with the U-17 girls.

"For me, watching the kids develop as players and sharing my love of the game with them is what it is all about," Rivera said. He continues to see players of his play with college programs and win numerous accolades. Some of his previous players have children in the soccer programs now. The Lazer program has grown from seven teams to 23 with Coach Rivera as the coaching director. This year, on top of coaching a team or two, he will also be the technical director for the Lazer program, as well as working with the ODP program. That means that he will be assisting other coaches and helping teach the skills that the players must learn.

Coach Rivera holds all USSF licenses up to the 'B' license as well as an NSCAA regional diploma. He was recommended for the awards he won by many of his coaching peers and players. Everyone who has ever known or played for him knows of his great sportsmanship, his superior technical knowledge and his deep rooted love for the game of soccer. The result of all this is that he gives that same love to all of his players for them to pass on. The award he won was justly deserved but his real reward is being able to continue doing something he loves.

"It was awesome to win the award," Coach Rivera said. "I was asked to speak and I was completely flabbergasted." So much of Coach Rivera's time is dedicated to soccer, that his family chipped in and got him a separate phone line and space in the loft.

He continues to work as an air traffic controller and plans to retire in three years, but he knows he will still be coaching after retirement. "I don't know what I'll do," Coach Rivera said. "I go to work to rest from soccer."

His advice to aspiring coaches is to, "love what you coach, always remember who you are coaching and when players give 100 percent, they will win and have fun."

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