“A lot of AD’s complaint about the way you celebrate your goals. They think it’s disrespectful and not acceptable”.
That’s what Tim Jäger, former Athletic Director of Morningside said to Okan Gölge on first reference after he celebrated yet another goal for the Morningside Mustangs with “the fish”. He established that celebration in the early stages of his soccer career and what started as a joke, is by now almost iconic. On behalf of the AD, Okan stopped making “the fish” but kept scoring goals and broke by now almost every Morningside record.
The son of Umit and Ayhan Gölge was born on May 9th, 1999, in Cologne, Germany. After going through the whole school system in Germany and graduating with the best possible degree, he took a so called “gap-year”. Okan used that year off to focus on soccer and his recruiting process for American Colleges. Long story short, he committed to Morningside and joined Tom Maxon’s squad in 2018.
After a really successful freshman season with being second place in the GPAC and making nationals for the first time in Morningside history, the team was facing a massive change. The mustangs lost several starters including five seniors who graduated, team captain Julius Fassbinder and Luke Muhlbauer, who also transferred to different college. Tom Maxon basically lost his whole defense. “We tried to recruit good defensive players but recruiting overseas is never a guarantee. Luckily, we got some really great players for the new season,” said Tom Maxon.
The next season started with high expectations and a little bit of uncertainty if the new players can compensate the loses of key players. After a strong pre-season, the Mustangs started the season with a 7-0 winning streak. Okan scored every game and had a massive impact on the success of Tom Maxon’s squad. “We knew that we have a really talented group with Okan and some other guys but we still had to give our best on the field every single game. The GPAC is very competitive and there are no easy games,” said Tom Maxon.
The train kept rolling and so did Okan’s scoring streak. The mustangs finished the 2019 regular season strong and secured the GPAC title against city rival Briar Cliff in a dramatic game. After conceding an early goal, Okan got sent off with a red card for tackling a Briar Cliff player from the behind. “I know it was stupid and I let my team down, but I was really frustrated about how we played in the beginning of the game. In that situation, I just lost my head,” said Okan Gölge in an Interview for a YouTube documentary. Even though the odds were against Morningside, the team fought back and turned the game around.
For Morningside, it was the first GPAC win in their history. The following week, the GPAC announced the individual awards for the best players and Okan was named Offensive Player of The Year. The German forward even made an appearance in the NAIA team of the year. The Mustangs ended the successful season by losing in the first round of nationals to Oklahoma Wesleyan. The striker finished his season with 21 Goals and 8 assists. “The numbers are just impressive, especially when you consider the small number of games that he had,” says his friend and teammate Tobias Sadler.
After winning the GPAC the previous season, the expectations on the team and on Okan grew even more. The role of the Mustangs had changed and so did Okans, but the new captain knew how to deal with it. The season started and the wins followed. With games being postponed and players being in quarantine, it wasn’t always easy but the team kept going. The Mustangs led by Okan played a great regular season and the GPAC was yet again decided between Morningside and their blue rival from the other end of town. The game ended 1:1 and of course it was Okan who scored the equalizer.
It was not only the equalizer, but also the goal that secured the back to back Championship for Tom Maxon and his squad. “Okan is a really selfless guy and he would never take all the credit for the success of the team” said Bjarne Huth who is his room- and teammate.
Okan ended up scoring a total of 21 goals in 13 games with Northwestern being the only team, he didn’t score against.
The striker with Turkish roots was the key player for the Mustangs and he carried the team all the way to the GPAC title. “He had an awesome season and there is always a chance that a scout recognizes he talent”, says Tom Maxon.
The Mass COMM major aspires to be a Sports Journalist in the future, but of course, that is only his second choice of profession. Growing up, Okan always wanted to become a professional career and coming to Morningside brought him a step closer. His stats are impressive, and they will for sure not stay unnoticed. There are rumors that Scouts of MLS teams watched the game against Briar Cliff.
Okan is already 21-years-old but the dream of becoming a pro is still alive.
“His work ethic, special awareness and athleticism makes him the perfect striker” says Bjarne. “In the role he takes for our team, he reminds me a little bit of Ronaldo. The leadership abilities and his potential to carry the team are just incredible.”
The Mustangs will start the second part of their season in March 2021 and that will bring Okan a step closer to achieve his goal.
“Living with him is really nice. We basically just hang out and talk a lot. I occasionally cut his hair but other than that, we are not doing much.”
The forward really takes care of himself and part of that is a fresh haircut every other week. “The old barber left town before the semester and so we were forced to find a solution. One day, me and Okan went to Walmart and just bought some clippers. That’s basically how it started”, laughs Bjarne.
If Okan is not on the field, in class or in his room, he spends time with his better half. “Mainly we watch Survivor. We also go out a lot to get food”, says Kenzie Homan who is Okan’s girlfriend and also a soccer player.
“Playing the same sport is nice because he can help me to improve, but sometimes it also a little bit annoying because he rates all my performances.”
Kenzie is part of the women’s soccer team and that was also the reason they met in the first place. With Tom Maxon as a coach for women and men, both teams have a strong bond and spend a lot of hours together. “He liked me first and I felt really comfortable around him”, smiles Kenzie. “I’m pretty sure we went out for dinner on our first date. I was really nervous, but it was fun.”
The two are dating for over two years now and they already have plans for the future. “We eventually want to live in Chicago. I want to become a physical therapist and he a sports journalist or a professional soccer player”, says Kenzie. “It doesn’t really matter where we are as long as we have each other.”
Okan and Kenzie are from two different countries which makes a relationship not always easy but they use their breaks to visit each other whenever they can. “My favorite memory was when we were in Paris in front of the Eiffel Tower,” says Kenzie happy.
The ambitious athlete seems like a really interesting guy who has a lot of great things ahead of him. Okan is a really talented soccer player and a great athlete but it’s his personality that makes him so important for the team and Tom Maxon.