Spring Break
The Daily OrangeMSOC | He's still here: Isaac Collings has endured three knee surgeries in five seasons at Syracuse
By Matt Ehalt
Posted: 9/3/08, 12:32 AM EST Section: Sports
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He kicked his legs in circles and continued to get loose. The orange and white number seven jersey moved in the wind. The referee waited for the next stop of play to put him in the game. The ball went out of bounds, and he trotted onto the field.
The microphone crackled for a second. A few moments later, the name that had been said so many times previously at the Syracuse Soccer Stadium would be said again: Isaac Collings. The clock showed 25:37.
He positioned himself at midfield. The ball came back into play and sailed over his head. Fourteen seconds later, Collings would touch the soccer ball - and he was back. The sixth-year senior, who has suffered three torn anterior cruciate ligaments in his time at SU, was on the field for Syracuse for one last season.
"It's kind of like a second chance," Collings said. "It's rare what I'm going through grad school and stuff like that. So it's a second chance, and I want to make the most of it. A couple of months ago, I was thinking there is no way I'm coming back, college soccer is done for me."
***
Oriskany High School (N.Y.) needed a win to reach the Section III tournament. To do so, it would have to defeat its biggest rival, Herkimer High School. It was a cool night, and plenty of people were in attendance - the perfect recipe for a rivalry game.
Oriskany won the game behind its captain at the time, who finished his career with 91 goals and 91 assists. The captain, of course, was Collings.
"Isaac played midfield for us that game, and he was just dominating everybody out there," said former Oriskany High School coach Keith Bremiller, who worked with Collings his senior season. "Everybody was just in awe. It was the coach's dream where everybody on the team played well, and Isaac was always the leader in our games."
From a young age, Bremiller said, Collings was always around soccer. He remembered how during his brother's indoor soccer games as a youngster, Collings used to come stand at the mid-line and just shoot balls at the goals. Nine out of 10 times, Collings would score.
Collings would go on to graduate from Oriskany as a McDonald's High School All-American. Life could not be better for him on the soccer field.
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