Competitive and fiery or laid back and easy going. Most people cannot be both, but that's how UB men's soccer Captain Mike Peplinski sees himself, proving that there are definitely two sides to this senior midfielder. The guy who quietly smiles when he talks about his family will throw an opponent to the ground to prevent his team from being scored on without a second thought.
Peplinski is a true competitor.
Last year Peplinski crushed his cheekbone and broke both his sinus bone and the orbital of his eye. Early on the doctors worried about Peplinski's vision being permanently impaired, but fortunately it wasn't. They told him he would have to wait 12 months to play again, but Peplinski convinced them otherwise. Now 11 months later Peplinski finds himself leading the team in points.
Individual statistics, however, aren't all that important to Peplinski.
Team success is what Peplinski will take from the year. His own personal accolades, although nice, are not the most important factor to him because soccer is a team sport.
Even though Peplinski has played the midfield since he was eight years old, this year the team needed him to move back into a more defensive position. After graduating three of their starting defenders, Head Coach John Astudillo realized that experience and leadership would be necessary in the back this year.
Peplinski is just the man to provide that guidance.
"My goal pretty much is to organize the back line . it's a whole new group of guys back there so I'm just back there to organize and to direct everyone."
As a kid Peplinski played defense and just tried to "crush" the other team strikers. Now playing in the midfield may be what Peplinski prefers because he gets more touches on the ball, but his own personal wants come second to what is best for the team. Somehow even from the back Peplinski has managed to score three goals and have one assist.
After graduating from Liverpool High School, Peplinski played a year at the University of West Virginia, but something was missing.
Peplinski's brother, Joe, was playing for the Bulls at the time, and coming to UB allowed Peplinski to play with his role model.
Peplinski has always been close to his family and his brother has always been his best friend and role model.
"We would go in our backyard when we were young and play soccer for hours just absolutely killing each other."
That kind of competition pushed both boys to work harder and eventually earn the right to play at the Division I level.
Peplinski's brother may have been one of the main reasons he came to UB, but it's not the only reason he stayed.
"I think we have a pretty close team, and I've made a lot of really good friends here."
Outside of soccer and school Peplinski can still be found affiliating himself with some sort of sports activity.
"I love watching sports, playing sports, other sports like basketball, football."
In fact, Peplinski hopes to be involved in some sort of sports for the rest of his life. He would love to own a sports franchise, but he really enjoys college sports more than the professionals.
"There's just more excitement and energy in college sports."
Excitement and energy are definitely components that Peplinski brings to the field when the men's soccer team plays.
As the men's team continues to look to Peplinski for leadership and guidance in the back, other teams will be on the lookout, making sure he is not coming after them on the field.
Photo: Meredith Forrest Kulwicki
