SLU men’s soccer goalkeeper Nick Shackelford was looking for someone very special on the sideline after the Virginia Commonwealth University game.

“I’m very proud of you, and I’m sorry it took so long,” Brad Shackelford, Shackelford’s father, said after his son had found him.

The two embraced as tears fell from their eyes. It was a reunion five years in the making.

For Shackelford, his father had been distant from his life, but in that moment, they were able to reconcile their time apart.

“I know he has his own things that he has to deal with, but I’m happy that he is finally back and able to be a part of [my]  life again,” Nick said.

Brad Shackelford was his son’s first coach as he grew up. It was his dad that got Shackelford interested in soccer.

“He never wanted me to be a goalie, he wanted to be a forward because I have a good left foot and he said that ‘you could be a goalie if you want, but I want you to be out on the field,’” Shackelford said.

Shackelford became a goalkeeper and played the position after his dad coached him.

However, his dad then became distant from his life after his parents divorced in 2001. Brad Shackelford remarried and moved to the mountain areas of California.

“He kept to himself and just worked. It was all he knew was just how to work. It was mainly my mom, my grandparents and I…They were supporting me,” Shackelford said.

As Shackelford became a better goalkeeper, he began to have success. He was a part of the U.S. club team that won a regional championship and his club team was a national finalist the next year while he was in high school.

As he entered the University of California for his freshman year of college, it was hard for Shackelford to maintain a relationship with his father.

“It was hard to contact my dad at home because my life was training and soccer, and I was trying to stay focused…My dad was not really involved at that point,” Nick said, “I tried to keep him informed of what I was doing, but it was not relevant to keep in touch.”

Shackelford, after redshirting his freshman year at California decided to transfer to Saint Louis University in hopes of more playing time. After two years at SLU, Brad Shackelford decided to contact his son in hopes of a reunion.

“My dad contacted me last summer saying that we should have a dinner and that ‘I have not seen you in a while.’ I decided to go,” Shackelford said.

Shackelford describes the dinner as “very emotional” since the two men had not seen each other in a long time.

“He was very sad, he felt that he had not been in my life,” Shackelford said. “He wanted to try to be a part of my life again.”

There was only one way that Brad could be a part of Nick’s life again and that was watching a soccer game, the game that he had introduced his son to as a boy.

“I told him that was the biggest thing that [he] needed to do. I felt that was necessary because soccer was such a big part of my life,” Shackelford said.

After the team began to have some success this season, beating some top-25 teams like Creighton and the University of Louisville, Shackelford hoped that his dad would keep his promise of coming to a soccer game.

“Finally, he texts me and let me know on Wednesday that he was coming to the VCU game on Friday. I texted and asked him if he got his ticket, but I got no response,” Nick said.

Shackelford had to maintain his focus as the team was preparing to play its third ranked opponent, Virginia Commonwealth University. Brad Shackelford eventually contacted his to and let him know he was in St. Louis to attend the game. The arrival of Nick’s dad was well-timed, as it coincided with Shackelford’s 22nd birthday.

“If there was any doubt or focus that I was missing for that game, him saying that ‘I’m here’ was just [like] an exhale, a sigh of relief,” Nick said.

The game itself was an emotional roller coaster for the Billikens. The Bills were down 1-0 and then equalized the game, but then were down 2-1 for nearly the rest of regulation time until near the end when the Bills had a free opportunity. Raymond Lee kicked the ball in the back of the net with seconds to spare and tied the game. In double overtime, the Bills completed the comeback and won 3-2.

For Nick, the game was already emotional draining, but having his dad at a game for the first time in years made it even more so.

“It was such an intense game. We had high expectations going into the game and having Dad there was so nice. It was nice to look up into the stands and actually see him there,” Nick said.

Nick was not only happy that his dad got to see him play soccer, but that Brad got to see him on the field as both a leader and role model.

“It was nice to let him see me as a man; it was important to let him see that part of me. This season I was trying to step up and be a role model and leader,” Nick said.

After such a long time apart from each other, the two men put the past behind them. Nick is grateful for his father for taking the time to come to the game.

“No matter how far away that he is, those little texts that he sends me and the little things that he said, means so much more than anyone could understand,” Nick said of his father.

Nick and Brad Shackelford will never forget the VCU game, not just for the double overtime win, but the long-awaited reunion of between the father and son.