The men’s soccer team is cruising through their start of the season with an impressive 7-2-0 record.
Redshirt junior goalkeeper Connor Durant has been grabbing headlines with his strong play and amiable personality. Durant was raised in Westminster, Color. and has had a less than ideal path to starting as a goalie for Colorado Mesa University (CMU).
Durant grew up with a love for soccer, but dedicated himself to football for the majority of his high school career. After graduating from Standley Lake High School in 2015, Durant was originally recruited to Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference (RMAC) opponent Colorado State University-Pueblo as a running back. After two years playing there, Durant decided it was best to move on and focus on working.
Enter childhood best friend and CMU Alumni Cody Calgano. Calgano was a defender at CMU from 2015-2020 and was a major influence as to why Durant got back into playing soccer after six years away from the sport.
“He [Calagno] is the biggest reason why I was able to even have an opportunity here. His impact on the university and soccer program was what made the coaches think about letting me tryout. He is also still my best friend to this day, a brother for life,” Durant said.
Calgano put a good word in for Durant to the coaches going into the Fall 2019, and Durant never looked back. Durant had been diligently learning since his first workout and now, in his third year with the team, the former football commit was named the starter.
“We were hanging out together and watching one of his games and by the end I asked him, ‘is there a chance that I could get shot and get back into it?’ He said I might as well try, so I got in contact with the coaches through and kept bugging them to give me a look. From there I just kept working and grinding to where I am now,” Durant said.
Durant credits a lot of his success to former players that he was able to observe and learn under. In particular, Durant has a close connection with former RMAC Goalkeeper of the Year and CMU Alumni Brendan Brown.
“The biggest thing was just taking reps behind him and trying to emulate him while he was here. We’re still close friends so, usually after every game, we’ll text each other and talk about it or he’ll send me a hype up message before the game or something like that,” Durant said.
His off-season started in May 2021. Each of the players was given a summer packet filled with various conditioning drills in preparation for their mandatory fitness test. Durant had to complete the test just like the non-goaltenders, unlike in past years where goalies were given leeway during the test.
Durant has kept up his conditioning but he is focusing more on individual goalie work and strength training during the season. His research includes studying other goaltenders and their habits to keep learning.
Durant and others have allowed only six goals through their first nine games and Durant has recorded 33 saves at the net.
Durant and the rest of the Mavericks soccer team will continue their season when they return home to Maverick Field to take on Fort Lewis College on Oct.8 at 7 p.m.
