SPHS Alum Wingate Faces Former Coach

Old Mill boys soccer head coach Miseker Wingate said it was a crazy feeling to face his former coach on the opposing bench.

Wingate attended Severna Park High School from 2012-2016. He made the Falcons soccer team in his freshman year and was part of the team’s most recent state championship in 2013. He took the Old Mill job this season and the Patriots squared off with Severna Park on October 22, a game the Falcons narrowly won 3-2.

Wingate and Falcons head coach Ryan Parisi have kept in touch since Wingate’s playing days and were all smiles in the postgame handshake line. Wingate called it a full-circle moment.

“The older you get, the relationship changes a little bit,” Wingate said. “Obviously back in high school he was my coach, I was an athlete. Now we’re friends, you know, we talk quite a bit.”

After high school, Wingate attended Wheaton College and was a winger for the soccer team. He returned as an assistant soccer coach for the Falcons from 2020-2021.

“I’m blessed to be able to give back to the county that I played in,” he said. “I absolutely love being a head coach. I’m making … other relationships with other head coaches in the county, and (I’m enjoying) just being able to talk to them, learn from them.”

It’s important to establish a family culture and emphasize accountability as a coach, according to Wingate. Parisi’s approach influenced Wingate on how to coach games and run practices.

The players have bought into his coaching philosophy, and team members say they appreciate that he cares and puts them first, Wingate shared.

“My biggest goal this year is making a family environment,” Wingate said. “These kids are not coming just to play soccer … they’re looking forward to being with their teammates.”

The biggest adjustment the players have made centers on taking accountability, according to Wingate. If players miss a practice without a good reason, they should expect not to play in the next game. If Wingate decides the team will exercise on a certain day, they should expect a workout.

“Guys are starting to open up to me and (are) sharing some stuff,” Wingate said. “So, I think we’re starting to get to that point where they’re starting to feel more comfortable with me.”

With the goal of landing a varsity head coaching job, Wingate spent the past five years building experience as a junior varsity coach at different schools. When Old Mill’s varsity head coach job opened up, Wingate said it was an “absolute great fit.”

“I have a great vision for what I want this culture to be, and not just the team, but the whole program,” Wingate said. “I’m very, very invested in my JV team. I make sure to say hi to them every practice. I make sure to make myself known to them, and I try not to see them as a JV team. I try to see them all as just one program.”

If the Patriots play the Falcons in Severna Park next year, Wingate said his return will feel like a homecoming.

“I am going to have a lot of people coming out to that game,” he said.

Parisi said Wingate is like a little brother to him, sharing how their relationship has grown over the last 10 years. Wingate was an easy player to coach - someone who brought talent and the ability to build relationships with others, according to Parisi.

When the Patriots hired Wingate, Parisi said he knew Wingate would leave a long-lasting impact on his players.

“He’s a tremendous man, great leader of young men,” Parisi said. “I think (he) brings a lot of positivity to all the kids that he works with, which is ultimately the end goal of a great coach.”