CHARLOTTE INDEPENDENCE

Blake Pope, a Charlotte Independence academy player, is aiming for a first-team contract after de-committing from the Charlotte 49ers.

Blake Pope is taking an all-or-nothing approach to professional soccer.

The 18-year-old could become the first player to make the path to pro transition through the Charlotte Independence Soccer Club to the USL Championship first team side of the same name. Pope is on an academy contract with the first team, which head coach and general manager Mike Jeffries said is an ongoing discussion, as it retains his NCAA eligibility. Pope recently de-committed from the Charlotte 49ers to pursue a professional career now and degree later. Now his focus is on securing a first team contract.

“I sat down with my family and the coaching staff at the Independence pro team,” Pope said. “For my pro career, this may be the best option for me, so when I am at that age of 20-21, I am used to the pro level. Being so young in the [professional] environment is just going to propel me into a player I know I can be and a level I know I can reach.”

Pope’s professional debut came in the Independence’s May 1 season opener at Tampa Bay, a 3-0 loss. He played 12 minutes at right back, coming on for defender Clay Dimick.

“Blake has been very good in our trainings and good when he has come on during games preseason,” Jeffries said. “I thought he would provide some fresh legs and certainly has a great engine in terms of his ability to run around all day, but also to get in behind defenses and so forth. I felt like it was a good opportunity for him to step on the field and make an impact at our level.”

Pope provides creativity on the ball, quickness and what Jeffries described as a “tremendous engine.” His athleticism, ability to read the game, apply pressure, and technical abilities encouraged the staff to give him a shot not only to train with the first team, but earn meaningful minutes.

“You can see with him, that in the months since preseason he’s quickly [adapted] to the speed of things that he's able to handle the pace and training that is impactful on a lot of training sessions,” Jeffries said. “Those are the things that make him feel like he’s ready to take the next step.”

The Independence converted Pope from a wide midfielder to a wide right player, both as a midfielder and a defender. His versatility helped with the transition and Jeffries intends to play Pope in one position as much as possible in order for him to develop there.

Pope, a Charlotte native who spent five years with the FC Dallas academy, tries to emulate his game after 20-year-old Canadian outside back Alphonso Davies, the first player born in the 2000s to play in a Major League Soccer match. Davies currently plays for Bayern Munich in the German Bundesliga, with whom he won UEFA Champions League last year.  

Jeffries said players pursuing playing professionally at a younger age in the United States has become more common in the last five years, rather than taking the route of playing collegiately, which remains a viable option.

“You've seen a number of teams that have signed young players that might be the kind of players that would go to college,” he said. “Obviously MLS has been doing this for a number of years, but USL you’ve seen in fairly recent years has begun the process. We all have academy programs under our belt and work with players that want to jump to the next level, and I think we’re finding that for some players, it’s a right fit to stay with the pro club. Clearly for other players, a better fit to be in school and to go the college route.”

Pope is set on playing at the highest level possible, which may ultimately lead him to MLS. He currently plays alongside Charlotte FC midfielder and Charlotte 49ers alumnus Brandt Bronico, who is on loan to the Independence.

“He has basically taken me under his wing, and he is just showing me what I need to work on to get to that next level,” Pope said. “He has basically been like a big brother to me on and off the field.”

Bronico praised Pope’s ability on the ball, his decision-making and first touch. Like every player, Pope has room for improvement.

“He is still young, so there is a learning curve, and he has a lot of time to do that,” Bronico said. “Defensively [he can] anticipate the game a little better, reading plays and also position behind the ball and when he is not on the ball. You can tell he is used to being the man on the team. He is used to being on the ball a lot, but in order to develop his game a little more, he needs to do a lot of the work off the ball. Overall, I have definitely been impressed with him, and I think he is going to be a really good player.”

Pope spent three months with Charlotte Soccer Academy when he returned from Texas. Then he joined the Independence academy.

“I coached him with CSA about 18 months ago, and I was just extremely impressed with his desire in every session,” Charlotte 49ers coach Kevin Langan said. “He really was trying his best. It sounds like a crazy thing, but he was just so determined every single minute of the training session. [He was] working his best, running his fastest [and] listening. I was really impressed with that.”

Pope’s love for the game stems from his father, Brad Pope, who played at Maryland.

“I grew up around soccer,” the younger Pope said. “Basically when I was born, I had a ball at my feet. It was a great thing to have him around to teach me. I started playing soccer at the age of 2. As soon as I could walk, I started playing soccer. My dad was a mentor for me. He taught me everything.”

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