By Jami Frantz, sports editor

Dec.4, 2008 

Quick Facts:

Age: 54

Hometown: Wichita, Kan.; born in Lincoln City, England

High School: Wichita South

College: Wichita State University; bachelor of education with an emphasis in physical education

High School Sports Played: None. Played club soccer.

College Athletic Experience: None

Coaching Resume: Shepherd coached women’s soccer at Newman University from 2001-2005. He has also been the girls soccer coach at Kapaun Mount Carmel in Wichita since 1990. He also coached the Kapaun boys from 1990-2001. Shepherd just finished his third season at Friends.

The Road to Friends: After he left Newman, Shepherd wasn’t expecting to coach at the collegiate level again. But the Friends job intrigued him. After taking off one year to re-energize, an opening for the men’s program at Friends came about. When the women’s program came up, he was offered the job and took it, he said.

Worst Season at Friends: This year the Falcons were ninth out of 10th in the conference.

Best Season at Friends: Shepherd’s first year when Friends went 9-9-2 overall.

Family Info: Shepherd has been married for 15 years to wife Beth. They have five kids ranging 26 to 6: Ian, Marissa, Hayley, Ashley and Emily. He also has a sister and a brother, Sandra and Cory, who live in Wichita. Shepherd’s father was a pattern-maker for the aircraft industry and his mom was a homemaker although she had a part-time job on occasion, he said.

Hobbies: Shepherd enjoys golfing but doesn’t have the time for it.

First Car: 1966 Volkswagen

Pets: The family has a fish and is thinking about a dog.

Favorite Band or Artist: He likes a variety.

Faith Background: Catholic

Favorite Sport to Watch: He enjoys watching football and college basketball, but any sport really, he said.

Something Not Many People Know: That he was born in England.

His family is all English. His mom’s sister married a GI and had moved to the States. His mom and dad also wanted a better life, so the family moved to the U.S. when Shepherd was 9.

Most Life-Shaping Experience: Most people think educators teach kids. But teachers learn a lot from their students, Shepherd said. Therefore the students he has had the opportunity to coach have been the most life-shaping for him.

Most Influential Person on Coaching Career: Bobby Bribiesca, longtime coach at Wichita Northwest High School, gave Shepherd the idea to get into teaching and coaching.

Favorite Thing About Being at Friends: The atmosphere of the school.

Friends has a small-school climate, everyone is friendly, students receive good direction from administrators, and it’s a great atmosphere to get an education, he said.

Most Enjoyable Thing About Coaching: The opportunity to work with kids and teach them something about the game he loves, he said. He also enjoys the interactions with the people he has met while coaching, including coaching colleagues.

“You meet a wide variety of people in the coaching world,” he said.

Most Challenging Thing About Coaching: Recruiting, especially with more and more competition in the conference and the region for athletes, he said.

What the Players Say: Shepherd is good about keeping everything positive and encouraging his players, sometimes by throwing in scripture, freshman Sarah Goldsmith said. She describes him as a positive coach who has inspired her to play well. He has had a good influence on all the girls, she said.

As a coach, Shepherd expects his players to motivate themselves, Goldsmith said. With him, there isn’t a lot of yelling, but still high expectations. He is different from other coaches she has had because he treats his players like adults and expects them to take responsibility for what they do, she said.

Current Coaching Staff: Mary Dix has been the assistant coach for two seasons. She played goalkeeper for the Falcons for four years, graduating in 2007. Her senior season was in the fall of 2006.

Most Recent Previous Women’s Soccer Coach at Friends: Erica Jewett, 1998-2000, 2001-2005 seasons