Burleigh on verge of big milestone

<p>Becky Burleigh's first year as a head soccer coach was somewhat chaotic.</p><p>Burleigh, just 22 year old at the time, became the head coach at Berry College in Rome, Ga. in 1989. She wasn't just a coach, however. Burleigh was also commuting an hour and a half to Atlanta three days a week to complete her master's degree in Exercise Science at Georgia State.</p><p>It was well worth it.</p><p>Burleigh, who will turn 40 on Saturday, is on the cusp of coaching history. Burleigh is one win shy of becoming just the fifth active coach and 10th overall to earn 300 career head coaching victories. The other active members of the 300-win club are North Carolina's Anson Dorrance (633), Connecticut's Len Tsantiris (446), Santa Clara's Jerry Smith (330) and Massachusetts' Jim Rudy (301).</p><p>The achievement, which could come Friday at Mississippi, will be a significant one for the only head coach to roam Florida's sidelines in the program's 13-year history. But Burleigh contends that winning games isn't what gives her the most satisfaction as a coach.</p><p>"We all want to win, but that's not what makes the memories," Burleigh said. "The memories are the relationships you make with people.</p><p>"When we have our alumni together, no one sits around and talks about games. We don't talk about the national championship. We just talk about funny things that happened throughout the course of the year. Nothing about games. I think that's where people who have never been part of a team, that's what they're missing out on."</p><p>A picture that hangs in Burleigh's office best illustrates this. The photograph shows players from Florida's bench spilling onto the field to celebrate the Gators' 1-0 win over North Carolina in the 1998 national championship game. One of the players is Adrianne Moreira, who was a senior All-American but not on the field in the deciding minutes of the championship game.</p><p>Last week, Moreira, who lives in California, sent Burleigh the first picture of her newborn baby. The baby was wearing a Gators hat. The image left a strong impression on Burleigh.</p><p>"The cool thing about that is, do you think Adrianne Moreira is thinking, â€òI wish I would have played more in that national championship game?' '' Burleigh said. "Or do you think she's thinking, â€òI'm a Gator and I'm really proud of it and the first picture of my kid that I'm going to send out is one with a Gator hat on?' I think that's what makes UF special, is the experience."</p><p>Burleigh knew that Florida was where she wanted to be right away. When she came to Gainesville to a day and a half interview in 1994, Burleigh instantly fell in love with the school and the city.</p><p>"By lunch on my first day I knew this is where I wanted to be," Burleigh said. "I said, â€òIf they offer me this job I'm taking it.' I had been here two hours. It's just a gut feeling you get when you come here."</p><p>Obviously, Florida athletics director Jeremy Foley was impressed enough to offer Burleigh the job.</p><p>"She had a tremendous amount of enthusiasm and passion for soccer," Foley said. "She won several national championships at Berry College and she had an unbelievable personality, which leads to being an effective recruiter. I was very, very impressed with her."</p><p>Burleigh instantly turned a newly hatched program into a national power. The Gators' national title came in the program's fourth year of existence. Burleigh has led Florida to six top-10 national finishes and seven SEC Tournament titles. She is 217-59-19 with one National Championship at Florida after going 82-23-21 with a pair of NAIA National Championships in five seasons at Berry.</p><p>This season, the Gators are 5-4-2 and 1-2 in the SEC, but have been ranked as high as No. 9 in the country.</p><p>While it remains to be seen when Burleigh will pick up her 300th win, one thing is clear: The Gators coach has no plans on leaving anytime soon.</p><p>"I love Gainesville," Burleigh said. "I love the college town. I think it's really vibrant. There is a lot going on that a lot of towns this size don't have.</p><p>"Just being in a young environment is really fun. I have no desire to coach professionally or a national team. That would be a job. This is not a job."</p><p><i>Contact Brandon Zimmerman at 352-374-5051 or zimmerb@gvillesun.com.</i></p>