After building Leechburg boys soccer program, coach moves on to Freeport

By: Jerin Steele
Saturday, June 17, 2023 | 11:01 AM

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Brad Walker admitted it was difficult to part with a Leechburg boys soccer program he had built from the ground up, but, at the same time, he is excited for a new opportunity.

After four years with the Blue Devils, Walker will be the new boys soccer coach at Freeport this fall.

The Freeport school administration approved the hire Wednesday. Walker replaces Tahlon Kirkland, who coached the previous two seasons.

“Freeport is a well-established program, and I’m looking forward to continuing that strong soccer culture and tradition they have and putting my own spin on it,” Walker said. “I want to connect with the youth in the community to continue to grow it.”

Walker was tasked with starting the Leechburg program from its inception in 2019. He guided the Blue Devils to two playoff appearances in four years.

Freeport and Leechburg are both in Section 2-2A, so Walker will coach against his former team twice this fall.

“It’s tough,” Walker said of leaving Leechburg. “I’m still heavily involved with the local youth scene with the Kiski Area Soccer Association, where I’m the president of that organization. I wanted to see the game of soccer grow in the community, but over the last four years, our roster pretty much remained status quo.

“Going into this fall, it still has enough to sustain a program. I’m hopeful that by giving Leechburg this notice prior to the start of the season, they can find someone to pick it up where I left off and keep the program running. It was a tough decision. Starting it from scratch, I put my blood, sweat and tears into it. We had some success, and I wish them continued success. With Freeport and Leechburg in the same section, it’ll be interesting.”

Before coming to Leechburg, Walker coached at Highlands. He was an assistant Kiski Area before that.

Walker is a Kiski Area graduate. He was the captain on the Cavaliers’ first playoff team and went on to play collegiately at Pitt-Johnstown.

Walker inherits a Freeport team that finished 7-10 last year and qualified for the playoffs. The Yellowjackets lost in the first round to Quaker Valley.

Walker will meet with the Freeport players and parents for the first time Tuesday.

Watching the Yellowjackets from the opposing sideline, Walker got a good look at the players he will coach this fall.

His goals are to have a high-intensity mentality on the field from start to finish and continue to grow the youth program in the area to help keep the varsity numbers healthy.

“Freeport has always had a decent roster size, and they’ve had success over the years,” Walker said. “They were in 3A for a couple years, which was tough going up against some bigger schools, but when they dropped back down to 2A, they had a lot of success. I’m hopeful we can continue to build on that.”

Jerin Steele is a freelance writer

Tags: Freeport, Leechburg