COLLEGE PARK, Md. - Maryland men's soccer head coach Sasho Cirovski is the cover story in the December issue of Scholastic Coach and Athletic Director magazine. Cirovski discusses a wide range of topics with editor Kevin Newell, including growing up in Macedonia, his collegiate experience at Wisconsin-Milwaukee, and his time with the Terrapins.

The following is an excerpt from the feature where Cirovski discusses his choice to forego a professional soccer career to pursue a college education:

COACH: After high school you became a standout player at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, where you were a four-year letterman and won the Herman Kluge Award for Male Athlete of the Year. What made you choose UWM? How did your college years shape and prepare you for a career in soccer?

CIROVSKI: Two of my high school teammates, when I was a junior, went to Wisconsin-Milwaukee and the coaches noticed me at the city championship. Pretty much at that point they told me there would be a scholarship for me if I wanted to go there. After my junior year in high school I wasn't sure I was going to college at all. I had an opportunity to sign a professional contract with Aberdeen in Scotland. Alex Ferguson, the Manchester United coach, offered me a contract. It was a very tough decision at that point, whether to turn pro or go to college, but neither of my parents had finished past fifth grade in Macedonia so education was a very, very big deal in our family. I quickly passed on the opportunity to play professional soccer to go to college. That really has changed my life.

Everything I have right now was built on the opportunity to get an education and meet some of the friends I made in college. Several of my best friends in life were teammates at UWM. We were not a great soccer team. We went through some tough years. But I feel like that experience catapulted me into a coaching career and a very happy life.

To read the entire article featuring Cirovski, click here.