New assistant coach returns to home state and her ideal post with the Seminoles.
By LAURA LEE
Published June 14, 2003
Robin Confer had been a fan of Patrick Baker for more than a decade. She followed his moves from school to school and watched him progress through the coaching ranks.
She admired his example and wanted to follow it, so when Baker, the Florida State women's soccer coach, called a month ago to tell Confer he had an assistant coaching job open, she didn't hesitate.
"This is my dream job," said Confer, a former Clearwater Central Catholic standout and All-American at North Carolina.
Previously an assistant at Mississippi State, Confer said she told her boss the one job she'd leave him for was at FSU with Baker.
"I always respected him as a coach," Confer said. "His mentality, his passion for the game - you can tell that he loves soccer and has worked for everything he got."
The two met in the Olympic Development Program camp when Confer was in high school and Baker was at North Carolina Wesleyan.
Confer watched as Baker made his way from Division III to the Ivy League to FSU. And Baker kept up with Confer's progress, as she helped CCC win its first state championship and later won three NCAA titles with UNC.
"I've always been a big fan," said Baker, who added that when the job came open, Confer was his first thought.
"Where we're at in our program right now, we needed someone that was dynamic, someone that's been where we want to be," Baker said.
Confer said she hopes her experience can help advance the Seminoles. They have been to the Sweet 16 two of the last three years and have fluctuated in the rankings between No.10 and No.20.
Confer, 27, moves back to Florida after playing and working in North Carolina, Texas, Massachusetts and Mississippi for the past nine years. She graduated from CCC in 1994 as an All-American and one of the state's most accomplished players. At North Carolina she was a four-year starter and had her jersey retired. She is fourth all-time there in scoring.
In 2001, Confer was picked by the Boston Breakers in the Women's United Soccer League's inaugural draft. But she suffered a back injury in the first game of the season, ending her playing career at 25 and forcing the course of her career toward coaching.
Confer started work on a master's degree in sports administration at Mississippi State and said she plans to continue her studies at FSU so she can eventually move into a senior administrative position in a collegiate athletic department.
