Frederico Santos
Behind the Scenes With Portuguese Setter Frederico Santos
5/21/2020 5:30:00 PM | Men's Volleyball
PORTO, Portugal - A little over three years ago, Frederico Santos' mother told him about an opportunity to play volleyball at the collegiate level.
The setter had been playing with the Portuguese Men's National Team organization since 2013, and was a six-time national champion with the volleyball club Associação Académica de São Mamede, but a chance to get an education while playing was something Santos desired.
Santos worked with a company that helped international players get recruited by American universities. He began the process in late March, well past the normal recruiting cycle for men's volleyball. He made an online profile, uploaded a highlight video and took the SAT. Within three days he started to receive offers to come play volleyball in the United States. Before long, Santos was in correspondence with the Purdue Fort Wayne staff and received an offer to play in the Summit City.
"It seemed like a good program with a lot of potential," Santos said. "I thought it was a good school with a good chance for me to play and make a difference."
He did not visit Purdue Fort Wayne before enrolling, so his first trip to the United States was a trip to his new home. He had never traveled alone before, just with his family and national team.
"It was out of this world," Santos said. "I had no idea. I was just a kid that in a matter of a month got through all the process. I didn't even know if I was going to make the deadlines. A month later, I'm in an airport by myself.
"What you see in the movies, it was kind of like that," Santos said. "The first thing I saw walking out of the airport is this gigantic American flag."
In his first two seasons with an American flag on the back of his jersey, Santos played a role off the bench, backing up four-year starter Michael Keegan. He showed his potential midway through his freshman year, with 43 assists, 10 digs and six blocks in just four sets in a road match at McKendree. He led the Mastodons to a 3-2 win over the Bearcats, giving them momentum to go to No. 3 UC Irvine and knock off the Anteaters.
His junior season did not go exactly as planned. He had worked his way to be the starting setter for Purdue Fort Wayne and was second in the country in assists per set, but the season was cut short due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Santos called his mother, Susana, back in Portugal. She gave her son the advice to book a flight home, as she thought the borders would close before long. He took her advice and got on a plane back to Porto. Since then, he finished his junior year of classes online, which proved to be challenging considering the five-hour time difference. He even had a final exam scheduled from 11 p.m. to 2 a.m. local time.
Portugal has been on lockdown for over a month and a half. Grocery stores have a limit on the number of people allowed inside with a police officer enforcing that customers to buy only essentials. Masks are required to be worn by everyone outside of the home.
"Usually the streets are crowded since I live downtown, but now there's no one out," Santos said. "It's really eerie."
While he continues to be hunkered down in the second-largest city in Portugal, Santos continues to think about the volleyball season ahead. In his senior season, Santos will begin his master's courses in computer science. Despite his season with the Portuguese Men's National team being canceled, Santos will look to return to the game as soon as he can safely to prepare for his senior season.
The setter had been playing with the Portuguese Men's National Team organization since 2013, and was a six-time national champion with the volleyball club Associação Académica de São Mamede, but a chance to get an education while playing was something Santos desired.
Santos worked with a company that helped international players get recruited by American universities. He began the process in late March, well past the normal recruiting cycle for men's volleyball. He made an online profile, uploaded a highlight video and took the SAT. Within three days he started to receive offers to come play volleyball in the United States. Before long, Santos was in correspondence with the Purdue Fort Wayne staff and received an offer to play in the Summit City.
"It seemed like a good program with a lot of potential," Santos said. "I thought it was a good school with a good chance for me to play and make a difference."
He did not visit Purdue Fort Wayne before enrolling, so his first trip to the United States was a trip to his new home. He had never traveled alone before, just with his family and national team.
"It was out of this world," Santos said. "I had no idea. I was just a kid that in a matter of a month got through all the process. I didn't even know if I was going to make the deadlines. A month later, I'm in an airport by myself.
"What you see in the movies, it was kind of like that," Santos said. "The first thing I saw walking out of the airport is this gigantic American flag."
In his first two seasons with an American flag on the back of his jersey, Santos played a role off the bench, backing up four-year starter Michael Keegan. He showed his potential midway through his freshman year, with 43 assists, 10 digs and six blocks in just four sets in a road match at McKendree. He led the Mastodons to a 3-2 win over the Bearcats, giving them momentum to go to No. 3 UC Irvine and knock off the Anteaters.
His junior season did not go exactly as planned. He had worked his way to be the starting setter for Purdue Fort Wayne and was second in the country in assists per set, but the season was cut short due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Santos called his mother, Susana, back in Portugal. She gave her son the advice to book a flight home, as she thought the borders would close before long. He took her advice and got on a plane back to Porto. Since then, he finished his junior year of classes online, which proved to be challenging considering the five-hour time difference. He even had a final exam scheduled from 11 p.m. to 2 a.m. local time.
Portugal has been on lockdown for over a month and a half. Grocery stores have a limit on the number of people allowed inside with a police officer enforcing that customers to buy only essentials. Masks are required to be worn by everyone outside of the home.
"Usually the streets are crowded since I live downtown, but now there's no one out," Santos said. "It's really eerie."
While he continues to be hunkered down in the second-largest city in Portugal, Santos continues to think about the volleyball season ahead. In his senior season, Santos will begin his master's courses in computer science. Despite his season with the Portuguese Men's National team being canceled, Santos will look to return to the game as soon as he can safely to prepare for his senior season.
~ Feel the Rumble ~
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