UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa.- Jeremy Rafanello was just three years old when he started playing soccer with his two older brothers. They would constantly beat him down, but it only made him more competitive.
"My older brothers are who I look up to," Rafanello said. "They would totally beat into me when I was five and six years old. I hate to lose and its been that way ever since I was younger. They built that fight character in me and told me to keep on pushing."
The New Jersey native is now representing the Blue and White as a freshman forward for the Nittany Lions. Rafanello explained that being four hours from home was difficult in the beginning, but it has become easier.
"It still is far from home," Rafanello said. "I miss home; Jersey is my home. I've been there ever since I was a little kid and lived in the same house. I miss it a lot, but these guys make it home here to so it's awesome."
From the moment Rafanello stepped on to Jeffrey Field for the first time, he has made his mark. In the home opener against the UCF, Rafanello stood at the top of the goal line and fired one into the back of the net for his first career goal.
"It was huge," Rafanello said about his first goal. "Right when I shot that and saw it in the back of the net, I immediately got chills. I ran straight to the Sons of Jeffrey (Penn State's student section) to celebrate with them just because it was my first ever goal and I wanted to share that with them."
Making plays is no strange feeling to Rafanello. He scored double-digit goals a season in both the high school and academy setting before heading to Happy Valley. Rafanello played MLS Academy soccer for the Philadelphia Union, where he was the No. 4 goal scorer in the country. He also spent time as a member of the U19 U.S. National Team Youth Summit. These opportunities allowed for first-year head coach Jeff Cook to hear of Rafanello before even looking into Penn State.
"I think every coach and scout would like to say they were the only one to that saw the talent," Cook said. "But I mean, he is still a young player and he has a long road ahead. I think the trait I look for is that hunger to improve and Jeremy has that."
Coach Cook emphasized that Rafanelllo has great confidence in himself and that has helped him to transition and make an impact right away. Through his transition, Rafanello said he looked to the older guys for help especially since there were only two freshmen.
"There were a couple guys that took me under," Rafanello said. "Definitely Gally (Ryan Gallagher) took me in a little bit. Then also Christian Sload and Mac (Curran) were big time for me and also Brandon Hackenberg."
Rafanello currently has two goals and one assist on the season and looks to improve throughout the remainder of the season. With his experience and hunger to get better, there is nowhere to go but up for the young playmaker.