Olympia soccer alumni to remember McGahan
Former team captain, war casualty will be honored before varsity game Monday
More than eight years after sacrificing his life while in combat in Afghanistan, Mike McGahan continues bringing people together on the soccer pitch at Olympia High School.
The program's annual memorial game, in honor of the former team captain and 2008 University of Florida graduate, will be played Monday when Olympia (6-1-2) hosts Clermont East Ridge (1-6-1) at 7:30 p.m.
McGahan was 23 when he was killed while leading his unit into battle on June 6, 2010. He will be honored before the start of the varsity match while the playing of “Taps” echoes over the loudspeaker and words are recited in memoriam.
Former Olympia soccer players, dating back to 2001 when the school first opened, will gather for an alumni game to cap the evening.
“It's really become a heritage of Olympia kind of thing, to where even if you didn't know Mike, the experience of the ceremony and the game is humbling, and kind of brings you back to earth and helps you recognize that life is precious,” said Daniel McGarigal, a former teammate at Olympia.
McGahan was a second lieutenant in the U.S. Army who came from a family of military veterans. He married his high school sweetheart, Miranda Tsukamoto, seven months before fighting alongside the 1st Brigade Special Troop Battalion near the Pakistani border for the final time.
Current soccer players at Olympia are reminded of McGahan's sacrifice each year while crowding a makeshift memorial decorated with candles and pictures and his high school jersey. The No. 4 he wore as a Titan is one of only two numbers retired at the school. It remains painted on a stadium wall beside the No. 5 once worn by former NFL running back Chris Johnson.
“We want that honor for him to be a part of what he did on the field, but more importantly for what he did for our country,” said Olympia soccer coach Lou Romao.
Romao never met McGahan, but he's handed out an award in his name at the conclusion of each season. It goes to the person who shows integrity and leadership and is well-rounded as a player and role model.
“Based on all I've heard about him, he stood for everything that the Olympia program stands for, and we want to get our kids to also become that same type of person,” Romao said.
A natural born leader passionate about community, it's impossible to estimate the number of lives McGahan would've continued to impact. Those that knew him through soccer refuse to let him be forgotten.
“He always displayed leadership and everyone on the team kind of congregated to him, following his character and his energy and his passion,” McGarigal said. “It wasn't a question when we started playing about who was going to be our captain.” Former Olympia soccer player Mike McGahan will be remembered before the start of Monday’s varsity match. The annual alumni game will cap the evening.
McGahan was more than a soccer player or a serviceman; he was a brother, a son and a person that resonated in a positive way with others. It's an rare and inspiring attribute.
Romao estimates there's been 30-40 former Olympia soccer players from all eras on hand any given year for the memorial game. It's a proud moment for the coach, one that reinforces what he says to his teams year in and year out when he tells them “Once a Titan, Always a Titan.”
“This is really to honor him as a person, as a military veteran and lastly as a soccer player,” Romao said. “He obviously was a huge role model for his teammates. The evening is held in honor of everything he's done for us.”