University of North Carolina Athletics
My Carolina Experience: Logan Pause
March 31, 2015 | Men's Soccer
My Carolina Experience: Logan Pause
By Zoya Johnson, GoHeels.com
Logan Pause grew up right outside of Chapel Hill in Hillsborough, but his proximity to the University was just the beginning of his Carolina connection. When he joined his first club team at the age of nine his coaches Rich Wachsman and Tom O'Conner also happened to be UNC soccer players.
Through his relationship with Wachsman and O'Conner, Pause became a consistent ball boy for the men's soccer team by the age of 10. From there he developed a relationship with then head coach Elmar Bolowich and his love affair with Carolina became inevitable.
At 14, Pause joined Bolowich's club team, Carolina United. He was a phenomenal talent and that was something Bolowich recognized and cultivated.
Pause's love for Carolina made it obvious where he wanted to be when it was time to make his college decision. Though he visited other institutions to “check the box” he says, “It was a dream to represent the soccer team and the university and truly call myself a Tar Heel. Coming in I was a little awe struck because my dream was finally coming true but it just felt like home. I had personal goals of getting on the field and contributing but my main goal was to get there and represent the university.”
Pause did so in a major way. In his freshman year he became one of the top freshman in the ACC, appearing in 20 of 22 games. In his sophomore year he returned after knee surgery to score the game-winning goal against Duke before being named the defensive most valuable player of the 2001 NCAA College Cup, helping lead the team to UNC's first national championship. The NCAA run in 2001 will be remembered for the cliffhanger games the Tar Heels played en route to the title and Pause was right in the middle of the action.
In 2002, as a junior, Pause was named co-captain alongside Matt Crawford. The team had a very successful season before falling in the second round of the NCAA tournament. Pause did all of this while maintaining a consistent spot on the Dean's list and the ACC Academic Honor Roll.
“I left UNC after my junior season and to be honest to leave a university that I loved, teammates that were my brothers and all the relationships that I'd built was one of the hardest things I've ever had to do.”
That spring, Pause was drafted 24th in the Major League Soccer Super Draft by The Chicago Fire. He saw time on the field immediately and continued to be an impact player throughout his 12-year professional career.
“One of the things I wanted to make sure I did was get a degree from Chapel Hill. It took a handful of years to do it but I ended up getting my B.A. from UNC in economics and then my master's in sport administration from Northwestern University while I played professionally.
“There were challenges with being on the road and studying and balancing my family, but at its core it all just required a lot of discipline. I knew my professional career wasn't going to last forever so I tried to do everything in my power to prepare myself so that I would be ready for the next phase of life when that time came.”
Thanks to that mindset, Pause has started a new chapter in his soccer journey. A week after announcing his retirement from the field, on December 1, 2014 he was named as the new vice president of The Chicago Fire Soccer Club.
“I was physically, emotionally, and mentally ready for something new. All the things that life sort of throws at you made it clear that it was time, and having two small children played a part in me wanting to be home. I am incredibly grateful to the owner, Andrew Hauptman, and to the club for wanting to keep me on board and help provide an opportunity for me to continue to represent the team.
“Thanks to my time at UNC I learned the importance of loyalty and trust. The opportunities that UNC provides are the best in the world in terms of the platform academically and athletically, I used it as an opportunity to learn and prepare for the next step, which does come.
“As amazing as Carolina is we can't be there forever so prepare well and thoughtfully for it. Playing for Elmar and Tar Heel Nation put a sense of responsibility in my actions. Thanks to my experience, I took pride in representing UNC and any organization I was a part of in a respectful manor. The relationships that I built mattered. Those sort of things translated when I moved on from UNC.
“Knowing what it's like to be a Tar Heel from the age of nine and then having the opportunity to step on the field and in the classroom as a Carolina student is a gift and an honor that I am forever grateful for. It was UNC and the people involved in the institution that have made me who I am.”