The Northern Star sat down with first year women’s soccer assistant coach Connor McKee to get a better understanding of who the 2011 graduate from the University of Sioux Falls is.

Before heading back to his home state of South Dakota McKee spent two years playing at Elmhurst College.

McKee talked about why he came to DeKalb, why he decided to become a coach, what his responsibilities are in practice and on game day and a whole lot more.

NS: What went into your decision to come to NIU and become an assistant coach?

CM: I originally went to school in the Chicago area and I wanted to get back here. I knew from talking to people that John [Ross] was a really good guy to learn the game from, and a great teacher, great boss. So that all played into it.

NS: How long have you been playing the sport of soccer and what got you into the sport?

CM: I’ve been playing since I was four, so I guess going over 20 years now. My brother started playing and I naturally followed. Just, you know, played in big brothers shoes I guess.

NS: What made you want to become a coach?

CM: When I was 10 my parents actually took me to a coaching course because they were coaches as well and it just kinda seemed to fit to do the same thing they did.

NS: What are some of your duties on game day and in practice?

CM: Mainly I work with the goalkeepers, but I also do individual sessions with our field players and help out with the team. On game day, I warm up the keepers, kind of run some of the halftime stuff, work with our team manager to make sure we get film, so all sorts of stuff.

NS: Do you ever envision yourself becoming a head coach?

CM: I think a ways down the line, yeah, that would be great. There’s still a lot I need to learn and I think I’m in a great spot to learn.