Jorge Gonzalez, Tormenta Football Club League One Assistant Coach, is leaving Statesboro behind. He has accepted a position as an assistant coach for the MLS team Columbus Crew’s second team, Crew Two, in Ohio, where will be working under the head coach and performance coach. This brings to end a successful seven-year run with Tormenta, but Gonzalez maintains this is not farewell. He plans to continue to be active in the Statesboro community remotely through his conditioning training business, JG Training.
Gonzalez was born in Colombia and moved to London as a young child. Soccer was one of his earliest memories and has always been a part of his life.
“From as young as I can remember, soccer has always been around. It’s always been in the family,” Gonzalez says.
Continuing to play throughout high school, Gonzalez visited Chicago with his coach and a teammate from England on a break from school and connected with a coach who was heading to Bryan College in TN. He graduated with a degree in business administration and followed his mentor, Joey Johnson, to Reinhardt University in 2014 to get his MBA and begin his coaching career. In 2016, Gonzalez realized coaching was what he was meant to do.
In 2017 and 2018, Gonzalez traveled to Statesboro for summer leagues as an assistant coach under Coach John Miglarese. After working in that capacity for a couple of years, Gonzalez decided to make the move to Statesboro to work with the town’s newest USO1. For his first year, he lived with the Landings, his host family with whom he connected through Tormenta.
He credits his Godly mentors with contributing to the philosophy that guides his coaching to this day. “As time has gone on that’s really become my why. Yes, I’m a competitor; yes, I want to win as much as the next person, but for me, all the players I get to work with - if I know they’re becoming a better son, a better daughter, brother, man, woman -- for me, that’s where I find the value in it. When people say, ‘What’s your mission?’ To me, it’s getting to pour into so many people’s lives through the game.”
Ian Cameron, head coach of Tormenta, has shaped Gonzalez with regard to continually evolving, learning, and improving. “I needed to match his perfectionism. We play sports, no one’s perfect, but trying to match him was a way of making me better. I give him credit to where I am now and where I’m headed as well.”
Gonzalez’s hope is to leave a legacy through JG Training. The concept of a business occurred to him in 2019 after a few young players approached him for individual sessions. Before long, what started as a few students increased exponentially. Gonzalez says the initial mission has remained at the forefront through the evolution of JG Training.
“The why is investing into people, making them the best soccer player they can be, and helping them reach their peak both as a soccer player but also as a person,” Gonzalez explains.
JG Training has expanded from Gonzalez as the sole trainer to a staff of five including Lead Coach Ayomikun Fajemisin, and assistant coaches Anthony Espino, Mukuelle Akale, and Pedro Fonseca. The latter two are current players for Tormenta. Gonzalez brought them on because of their vast experience, but also because they are all there for the same reason: to invest in the kids. He is happy that each coach reflects a different stage of life and can contribute from that perspective to create a breadth of compassion and knowledge for their young pupils.
Gonzalez plans to keep in touch with JG Training students virtually over Zoom and is developing a virtual library to add to what his team of coaches will provide face-to-face. “I still want to be connected; I still want to invest into people, even if I’m far.”
The Columbus Crew opportunity will enable Gonzalez to expand his coaching repertoire and allow him to reach more people on a relational level. “For me, it’s an opportunity for growth, being around exceptional pros. It’s a great franchise, great working environment and an environment that I’m going to grow,” he says. “A reason why I want to make this jump is you never stop learning. When you say ‘Hey, I’ve learned everything there is,’ that’s when you should reconsider what you’re doing because you never stop learning.”
Gonzalez will hold Statesboro in his heart going forward and is so grateful his journey led him to Bulloch County. “God knew what He was doing,” he says. Gonzalez continues to be mindful of the impact every person has. “Be where your feet are and blossom where God puts you.”
Gonzalez’s last day with Tormenta will be Saturday’s away game against NCFC in Raleigh.
