Rhys Wide '22 Recruiting Profile

My name is Rhys Wide and I am from Caledonia, Ontario, Canada.

I am currently finishing my freshman year at Finlandia University in Hancock Michigan, playing for the FinU Lions (NCAA D3) men's soccer team and my major is sports management (business).

You may have heard that Finlandia is closing at the end of this semester, so that means I need to find a new ‘home.’ I am really sad to have to leave FinU, but I always take challenges head on, and work hard to overcome obstacles that have been put in my way. I have really loved it at FinU, and I am determined to find another school that fits me as well as Finlandia has.

In terms of soccer, I prefer to play right back because it is the perfect combination of my love of running (cross-country), footwork, and my instincts to protect my net/getting the ball out of my end. I am known for being fearless and my pretty impressive slide tackles.

While my chosen position is right back, I often get put on outside mid, and I am also very versatile and can play just about any position if necessary to help my team. I can even play keeper in a pinch because I was also a Tier 1 Ice Hockey goalie growing up so being between the pipes comes naturally to me. In fact, this semester I was rostered to play on the FinU club hockey team, but with everything else, the team had to fold.

Academically, I maintained Honours (above 80% average) all through secondary school. In the first semester of this freshman year, had a wobble in one course which brought my GPA down (even though I earned an A, A-, B+ and B- in my other 4 courses) and I am on track this semester to bring my GPA back up again and finish out the year strong because I always learn from my mistakes. I prefer athletics over academics but I know that they go hand in hand, so I strive to excel at both.

In my spare time I like to cross-fit train and run. I keep my mouth closed but my eyes and ears wide open. In the summers I work at our local grocery store, and my huge family supports me in everything I do.

Ideally, I will find a new school to love as much as I love Finlandia. This new school would be on the smaller side, with a Business (Sports Management) program I can transfer into. This perfect school would also have a great NCAA Men’s soccer team I can play hard for, and maybe even a Club hockey team I can play for or at least practice with. If this sounds like your school please reach out to me as I would love to talk to you.

I worked really hard as a freshman, proving myself as a dedicated team player (I never missed a practice unless it was for school) and was really looking forward to being a starting sophomore, but I am fully prepared to prove myself again on a new team. I am not scared of starting over and see it as an opportunity to learn and grow even more.

Thank you for letting me introduce myself, and thank you for taking the time to review my profile.