MORAGA, Calif. (Courtesy SMCGaels.com) – Much is made of 5-star recruits who arrive on campus with resumes full of silverware, all-star appearances and all-everything honors.

Supporters are quick to assume these are the student-athletes who will lead their team to season after season of championship glory.

In 2010, the Saint Mary’s men’s soccer team was coming off the program’s first-ever at-large berth into the NCAA Tournament and opened preseason training with 13 freshmen – many from well-known club and United States Soccer Development Academy programs.

However, there was one little-known walk-on that did not have the glitzy resume and only made the team due to a late roster opening.

Very few observers knew much about Andre Rawls.  He was from nearby San Ramon, attended California High School and played goalkeeper for Walnut Creek Soccer Club.  Despite his eye-opening athletic ability (he was all-league in track as a high jump and triple jump specialist), he did not receive a great deal of attention from college recruiters.

Rawls applied and was accepted to Saint Mary’s in the spring of 2010 and was promised an opportunity to tryout for the team, but only for the following year.  However, just prior to the start of fall training, head coach Adam Cooper called and informed him that a roster spot opened up and wondered if he was interested.

He accepted on the spot, reported for training and spent the next two seasons improving his skills and soaking up knowledge from the players ahead of him on the depth chart.

“I really used my first two years to learn the game,” said Rawls.  “I was just coming out of high school and getting an introduction to the college game, not to mention starting at the bottom of the pecking order.  In my second year, I was really motivated to compete.  Things worked out because toward the end of the year I was traveling with the team.”

Brown attributes Rawls’ dedication, work ethic and desire to overcome his lack of experience as key factors in his rapid improvement as a college goalkeeper.

“Andre has progressed a tremendous amount since he came to Saint Mary’s as a walk-on,” said SMC assistant coach Chris Brown, an all-Atlantic Coast Conference keeper at Boston College and the coach Rawls gives the most credit for helping him develop.  “In high school and early in his college career, he was very raw and didn’t have a strong technical base.  But, it was obvious he was extremely athletic, had a tireless work ethic and a strong desire to improve.”

The person who, perhaps, had the most influence on Rawls during those first two seasons was all-league goalkeeper Doug Herrick.  The Seattle, Wash. native directed the Gaels’ defense for three seasons and was the starting keeper for the SMC side that won the 2011 West Coast Conference title and advanced to the NCAA Elite Eight.

“I think Andre learned a great deal in his two seasons behind Doug,” said Brown, who compares Rawls to D.C. United and US National Team goalkeeper Bill Hamid.  “Doug took Andre under his wing and went the extra mile to help him develop.  Andre was able to see how Doug conducted himself in training, in games and in the locker room around his teammates.”

Herrick’s influence and tutelage provided Rawls the belief that one day he would be the team’s leader. 

“Doug has always been a good friend and we remain close,” said Rawls.  “He always had confidence in me.  If I ever had a bad day, he would be the first one to pick me up.  When I might have gotten too overconfident at times, he would be the one who brought me back down to earth.  All-in-all, he really made me feel included and that was so important for me as a young player in the program.”

After Herrick graduated, Rawls was the leading candidate to assume the starting position heading into the next season.  He was the only returning goalkeeper on the roster, although he had not seen one minute of competitive playing time as a college athlete.

He started 17 games as a sophomore in 2012, set a school record and ranked 15^th nationally for goals against average and earned honorable mention all-WCC honors by the league coaches.  He was also named the SMC athletic program’s Male Newcomer of the Year honor as the top male performer among the department’s 7 men’s intercollegiate sports.

Over the next two seasons, he started 33 matches and continued to enter the schools record books.  As a senior, he became the school’s first-ever WCC Goalkeeper of the Year and set a school record for most wins in a single season.  Rawls ranked sixth nationally in saves and was even mentioned by MLS On Campus as one of its “Big Men On Campus” after his 9 save performance in a 2-1 victory at 4^th ranked Washington.

Despite playing every minute of the 2014 season, Rawls benefited from the competition he faced from backup keepers Lucas Champenois and Andrew Konstantino - both of which have demonstrated they could easily succeed in a starting role.  That daily competition helped Rawls stay sharp, avoid complacency and continue to develop.

"Andre faced really tough competition day-in and day-out from two very good goalkeepers in Andrew and Lucas," said Brown.  "The same was true for Doug Herrick when he was here.  The more that goalkeepers embrace competition and thrive in that environment, the better they are going to become."

Rawls concluded his career with several entries in the school’s record book.  He set a school record for career goals against average and finished second in total victories and shutouts.  Rawls registered three of the top six single season bests for goals against average – his only three seasons as the team’s goalkeeper.

With the recent end of the fall season and conclusion of the academic term, Rawls is setting his sights on a professional career.  He has received inquiries from a few pro teams and is scheduled to participate in various combines in an effort to earn exposure from scouts.

“I’ve said it many times that there aren’t a lot of goalkeepers who can make saves like Andre, even at the professional level,” said Brown, who’s brother, Adin, spent 11 seasons as a professional goalkeeper.  “He has a huge upside.  If he continues to work on his footwork and his overall organization of the game, he is certainly more than capable of making a professional roster this spring.”