University of Connecticut Athletics
Coyle Excels on Battle, Soccer Fields
5/13/2009 12:00:00 AM | Men's Soccer
May 13, 2009
Below Story Written By Chief Mass Communication Specialist Ryan Delcore, Naval Mobile Construction Battalion 133
Builder Constructionman Joe Coyle from Naval Mobile Construction Battalion (NMCB) 133 is no stranger to pushing himself to get the most out of life and his Navy career.
Born in Staten Island, N.Y., in 1982 to Dennis and Dr. Bernadette Coyle, he began to play organized soccer at the young age of 3. Starting out in local clubs for children, he began playing in a New Jersey State soccer club at the age of 10. He was selected for the state team, competing against other states in the region.
When he was ready to start high school, his parents sent him to Hun School of Princeton, a boarding school in New Jersey, where he played for the Mercer United Warrior High School Soccer League. He was afforded the opportunity to play in such places as Morocco and Europe while in the league.
Being inspired by his mother, who is an education professor at the University of Princeton and a high school history teacher, Coyle decided to go to the University of Connecticut, where he earned a bachelors degree in history and a master's degree in education. He tried out for the university's soccer team as a freshman and was awarded a three-year scholarship. In order to utilize his love of history and education degree, he taught high school history for a year after graduation.
Coyle hungered for more adventure and life experiences while still young so he went to the local Navy recruiting office where he learned about the many programs the Navy had to offer. He looked into officer programs and decided to learn an enlisted rating first. After screening, he was denied entry into other programs due to color blindness and difficulty with depth perception.
Some say, this is hard to believe when they watch him handle a soccer ball.
His love for physical activity, the outdoors and learning new skills guided him to the Seabees. He signed up and attended Builder School in Gulfport, Miss., after finishing recruit training in Great Lakes, Ill. Coyle caught up with NMCB 133 in Okinawa, Japan, where he reported for duty October 2008.
Being a team player for most of his life, he quickly got into the swing of things, attending a field training exercise at the Jungle Warfare Training Center and working at construction sites while in Okinawa. He adapted to life in the battalion and began to excel due to his strong work ethic, maturity and professionalism.
"Coyle made the jobsite fun and never had a lack of motivation each and every day while on deployment," said SW1(SCW) Antonio Chavezplata, Coyle's jobsite supervisor.
Coyle saw a flyer for the All Navy Soccer Team tryouts while working out at the Camp Marvin Shields gym in Okinawa. He submitted a package while on deployment and attended tryouts in Pensacola, Florida Jan. 10-31.
They started out with approximately 45 men from the Navy and Coast Guard, keeping only 16 field players and two goalies by the end of tryouts. Even though it was his first year trying out for the team, they made him team captain.
The team went to Dyess Air Force Base in Abilene, Texas, for a tournament where they competed against teams from the Army, Air Force and Marine Corps Feb. 1-8. The All Navy Team came in second even though they tied the Army in the final match. The judges gave the tournament first place to the Army due to the overall tournament shootout totals. The Army had scored more end-of-match shootout goals than the Navy during the tournament. End-of-game shootouts were established for the tournament in case of a draw in a final match.
The All Navy Team was awarded silver medals for second place, and Coyle was awarded a crystal trophy for being selected as one of the 11 best players in the tournament who would go on to play for the U.S. All Armed Forces Team.
The U.S. All Armed Forces Team was made up of the 16 best field players and best two goalies of the Armed Forces Tournament. The team stayed in Dyess for more training until the tournament began Feb. 22. It played against teams from Barbados, Brazil, Canada and Suriname. Each team competed against one another once. Brazil won the gold by defeating Barbados, who took the silver, and the U.S. won the bronze by winning against Suriname.
Since returning from deployment and the soccer tournaments, he has been studying for the builder third class petty officer advancement examination and plans to put in an officer package in the future.
"I wanted to do something physical and challenging while serving in the Navy," said Coyle.
