Jan. 13, 2010
By Jared Greenbaum
UCFAthletics.com
ORLANDO, Fla. (www.ucfathletics.com) - Presented with an opportunity to pursue his career dream, former UCF goalkeeper Sean Johnson wasted no time with his decision to enter the professional level of play. A mere few weeks after his return from the U-20 FIFA World Cup in Egypt, Johnson recently signed a Generation adidas contract that will send him into Major League Soccer. All that remains for Johnson now is finding out which team he will suit up for, and he will learn that answer during the MLS SuperDraft, which begins Thursday at 2 p.m. in Philadelphia.
The first hour of the MLS SuperDraft will be televised live on ESPN2 with continued coverage on MLSnet.com. In most mock draft projections, Johnson is slated to be a late-first to early-second round draft pick.
Johnson's Generation adidas signing puts him on this year's noteworthy 12-player list that includes three others from the U-20 FIFA World Cup squad, two players that represented the United States in the FIFA U-17 World Cup, and three finalists for this year's M.A.C. Hermann Trophy, awarded to the top Division I player.
The Generation adidas contract includes a three-year guaranteed salary to play in the MLS, an endorsement contract with adidas and the opportunity to have the rest of his college education paid for in full.
"It was really exciting for me," Johnson said of signing the Generation adidas contract. "Things started developing when I got back from the World Cup and picked up towards the end of the college season when other players started signing with Generation adidas. They made me an offer, and I felt that it was the best thing for me. Everything kind of worked out with Generation adidas right before the New Year."
From Jan. 8-12, he joined about 75 other professional prospects at the adidas MLS Player Combine, held at Central Broward Regional Park in Ft. Lauderdale, Florida.
"It is a really exciting time now that the combine is done," said Johnson. "I can just sit back and try to relax a little. It is a nervous feeling, but not a bad nervous; you know that you are going to get drafted, you just don't know where. I will be excited the moment my name gets called because it has been a dream of mine to play professionally for a long time."
Johnson will have the support of his collegiate coaching staff, as head coach Bryan Cunningham plans to join him and his family at the draft in Philadelphia.
"Coach Cunningham will be there as well and that is great because playing at UCF was really important to me," Johnson added. "Having the coaches there support me the whole way through means a lot.'
The 2010 MLS SuperDraft will take place at the Pennsylvania Convention Center on Thursday, Jan. 14 at 2 p.m. ET. The first hour will be broadcast live on ESPN2; the remainder of the draft can be followed on MLSnet.com.
Playing both the 2007 and 2008 seasons with the Knights, Johnson played in each of the team's 37 games and racked up 191 saves, good for fifth place on the program's all-time list. His 108 saves in 2008 are tied for the third-highest single-season total in UCF history and are the most by a Knight keeper since 1986. Johnson had a goals against average of 1.30.
For the latest news on the Knights, log on to www.UCFAthletics.com - the official site for UCF varsity sports. The site, which also contains ticket and Golden Knights Club donor information, is also the home of UCF's new online apparel store. Also visit www.UCFPhotos.com, the exclusive fan source for UCF action sports pictures.