Barrows: Ted Lasso and the PHS girls soccer team have much in common

Has anyone heard the rumor that Apple TV’s hit series Ted Lasso may have been inspired by two notable Portsmouth area residents? 

For those of you that haven’t seen the show, the premise is that an English football (soccer) team hires an American football (football) coach to lead AFC Richmond in the English Premier League. What Lasso lacks in knowledge of the sport, he makes up for in his unique style of coaching through positivity, humor, and empowerment. Additionally, Lasso’s success is greatly aided by his trusted side-kick assistant coach Beard.

Who is the local Coach Lasso?

So who is Portsmouth’s coach Lasso and does he have a right-hand man like coach Beard?  Readers, let me introduce you to Mickey Smith and Charlie Seefried. Smith, in his first year as Portsmouth High School varsity girls soccer head coach, guided the Clippers to a 16-2-1 record for 2021. Conversely, in Lasso’s first season, his team performed so poorly it was relegated from the Premier League to The Championship, the second tier league in England. So, where are the similarities between the two coaching staffs?

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Mickey Smith and Charlie Seefried's  stories

First, Mickey Smith, like Ted Lasso, is or was a football guy, an American football guy.  In fact, Smith played college football at Springfield College, and like Lasso, Smith was aided by a loyal assistant coach by the name of Charlie Seefried. 

Seefried, like the show's eccentric character Assistant Coach Beard, is easily identified on the sidelines by his trademark pink Bermuda shorts and his Gilligan’s Island-style bucket hat.  However, unlike Smith, Seefried didn’t play football in college, but I, as a close friend of his for nearly 20 years, can verify that he was a highly regarded beer pong player at Lynchburg State in the '90s. Although their resumes wouldn’t have necessarily predicted success, the facts are that the stat sheet never lies. It clearly shows that these two unlikely field leaders took the lady Clippers to the D1 girl's soccer semifinals, where they narrowly lost to a Bedford team that equaled Portsmouth’s intensity, and eventually capitalized on one opportunity that proved to be enough to end the Clippers highly successful season with the final score of 1 to 0 (nil).

The secret to success

So what’s the secret of this coaching duo?  First, there is an old saying that the best coaches usually walk off the team bus with the best players, and for sure, this team was loaded with great athletes of great character.  Smith and Seefried quickly realized that with only a few tweaks and some positive game planning, that this team was similar to a Ronco Rotisserie Chicken Roaster.  In the words of the great TV huckster Ron Popeil, all they needed to do was set it and forget it.  These two coaches provided the blueprint for success and then smartly moved out of the way to watch while this talented bunch became unified and expertly kept on winning.

Smith and Seefried would be the first two to deflect any credit from themselves and direct it towards their talented team, but the fact is that coaching like theirs needs to be recognized. They achieved success by making the game enjoyable for the players.  There was no yelling; there was no bullying or unrealistic expectations; they simply coached the players during practice, put them in a position to succeed in the games, and then sat back and let the players execute the plan. This is a style that many youth coaches should take note of and emulate.  

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With all the above evidence, are you still not convinced that the hit show Ted Lasso was based on the 2021 Clippers girls varsity soccer team?  If so, let me leave you with this;  Rebecca Welton is the fictitious owner of the AFC Richmond team who took a chance on hiring unproven Ted Lasso.  Similarly, the equally charming and handsome Portsmouth Athletic Director Tom Kozikowski took a chance on hiring Smith and Seefried and it paid off.  Additionally, Ted Lasso recently won 7 Emmy Awards, and Mickey Smith, without much fanfare, won New Hampshire’s Girls Soccer Coach of the Year. Coincidence? I don’t think so.

Wayne Barrows is a Portsmouth resident.