University of Georgia Athletics
Glover Loves The Grind Of Soccer
September 02, 2026 | Soccer, The Frierson Files
By John Frierson
Staff Writer
When Sage Glover suffered a broken right ankle last September, the Georgia soccer midfielder knew that her season was over. But the work didn't stop.
"When I came back, in terms of about a week after surgery, I was on the sideline with my notebook. I was just taking notes the entire time," said Glover, a fifth-year player who was at LSU for three seasons before transferring to Georgia in the spring of 2025.
Before her injury, the speedy 5-foot-3 Glover started the first seven games of the season, dishing out a pair of assists. After the injury, she went into something like coach mode.
"Oh, yeah, a lot of notes," Georgia head coach Keidane McAlpine said. "She had pages on pages. She was diagramming in the locker room; she did a really good job of studying herself, the team, her position — she did a lot of work."
For Glover, she just wanted to be involved, be mentally sharp, and do everything possible to come back a better player than she was before she got hurt.
"I just wanted to have a chance to reframe my brain since I've played every single year up until that point," she said, "and I had heard so many ways to play, so many philosophies, and I just wanted my own. I think these last nine months, between working out and adding new skills, just changing my brain, the way I deal with the game and stuff like that."
When asked about coaching one day, Glover said it's something she's thought about.
"Potentially, yeah, way down the road," she said.
McAlpine thinks she has a lot of potential as a coach.
"She's expressed some of the ideas of it already, and I'm like, I think you'd be a great coach. She's constantly asking questions about formations, positioning, why we're trying to this, why we're trying to do that. She's asking a lot of great questions, which I think in turn will help her move forward," he said.
Before she becomes a former player, Glover has a lot she still wants to do on the field. She has started four of the No. 25-ranked Bulldogs' six games this season, and she scored Georgia's first goal of the season on a penalty kick at Minnesota. She also had an assist in the Bulldogs' 2-0 win at Mercer on Sunday.
McAlpine said he had a similar injury back when he was playing, and he knows what went into getting back on the field and back to being the player he was before the injury.
"I understand the mental battle that she's waging in terms of, do you tackle? Do you not tackle? Are you stable? Are you not stable? I think she's done an amazing job of just going all in and putting herself in the mix and not really worrying about it," he said. "I know how difficult that is, so I give her a lot of credit for that. She's sticking tackles. She's going forward full speed. And I think her leadership has been good."
Glover isn't back to where she was before the injury, he said, but she's on her way.
"You can see it coming, and I've been really proud of how she's approached the return and her rehab and getting back to full form, and our team is better for it," he said.
Glover is one of the most experienced players on the team, and she's using that experience to help a young squad develop.
"She provides another voice of somebody who's actually been in and can see and has seen a lot of games and a lot of schemes and different things," McAlpine said. "She provides a level of understanding and expertise that our team needs."
Growing up in Atlanta, Glover didn't play any other sports. Soccer was it. She said she was a very energetic child, and her parents, Marcus and Candice, put her into soccer as an outlet for all of that energy. Soon after, she was hooked.
"They threw me into soccer, and I ended up falling in love with it," she said.
One of the things Glover likes most about soccer is how difficult it is. There's the constant running, there's the physical aspect of it, and it's just really hard to put the ball into the back of the net.
"I think I just really fell in love with the grind and just how hard it is, but also how fun and rewarding it can be," she said. "You're using your feet to run and also kick a ball, which is just so hard. But when you get on those really good spells with your team, and you get good chemistry, it's just so much fun to be around."
Glover and the Bulldogs host No. 15 Florida State at the Turner Soccer Complex on Thursday at 6:30 p.m.
Staff Writer
When Sage Glover suffered a broken right ankle last September, the Georgia soccer midfielder knew that her season was over. But the work didn't stop.
"When I came back, in terms of about a week after surgery, I was on the sideline with my notebook. I was just taking notes the entire time," said Glover, a fifth-year player who was at LSU for three seasons before transferring to Georgia in the spring of 2025.
Before her injury, the speedy 5-foot-3 Glover started the first seven games of the season, dishing out a pair of assists. After the injury, she went into something like coach mode.
"Oh, yeah, a lot of notes," Georgia head coach Keidane McAlpine said. "She had pages on pages. She was diagramming in the locker room; she did a really good job of studying herself, the team, her position — she did a lot of work."
For Glover, she just wanted to be involved, be mentally sharp, and do everything possible to come back a better player than she was before she got hurt.
"I just wanted to have a chance to reframe my brain since I've played every single year up until that point," she said, "and I had heard so many ways to play, so many philosophies, and I just wanted my own. I think these last nine months, between working out and adding new skills, just changing my brain, the way I deal with the game and stuff like that."
When asked about coaching one day, Glover said it's something she's thought about.
"Potentially, yeah, way down the road," she said.
McAlpine thinks she has a lot of potential as a coach.
"She's expressed some of the ideas of it already, and I'm like, I think you'd be a great coach. She's constantly asking questions about formations, positioning, why we're trying to this, why we're trying to do that. She's asking a lot of great questions, which I think in turn will help her move forward," he said.
Before she becomes a former player, Glover has a lot she still wants to do on the field. She has started four of the No. 25-ranked Bulldogs' six games this season, and she scored Georgia's first goal of the season on a penalty kick at Minnesota. She also had an assist in the Bulldogs' 2-0 win at Mercer on Sunday.
McAlpine said he had a similar injury back when he was playing, and he knows what went into getting back on the field and back to being the player he was before the injury.
"I understand the mental battle that she's waging in terms of, do you tackle? Do you not tackle? Are you stable? Are you not stable? I think she's done an amazing job of just going all in and putting herself in the mix and not really worrying about it," he said. "I know how difficult that is, so I give her a lot of credit for that. She's sticking tackles. She's going forward full speed. And I think her leadership has been good."
Glover isn't back to where she was before the injury, he said, but she's on her way.
"You can see it coming, and I've been really proud of how she's approached the return and her rehab and getting back to full form, and our team is better for it," he said.
Glover is one of the most experienced players on the team, and she's using that experience to help a young squad develop.
"She provides another voice of somebody who's actually been in and can see and has seen a lot of games and a lot of schemes and different things," McAlpine said. "She provides a level of understanding and expertise that our team needs."
Growing up in Atlanta, Glover didn't play any other sports. Soccer was it. She said she was a very energetic child, and her parents, Marcus and Candice, put her into soccer as an outlet for all of that energy. Soon after, she was hooked.
"They threw me into soccer, and I ended up falling in love with it," she said.
One of the things Glover likes most about soccer is how difficult it is. There's the constant running, there's the physical aspect of it, and it's just really hard to put the ball into the back of the net.
"I think I just really fell in love with the grind and just how hard it is, but also how fun and rewarding it can be," she said. "You're using your feet to run and also kick a ball, which is just so hard. But when you get on those really good spells with your team, and you get good chemistry, it's just so much fun to be around."
Glover and the Bulldogs host No. 15 Florida State at the Turner Soccer Complex on Thursday at 6:30 p.m.
Assistant Sports Communications Director John Frierson is the staff writer for the UGA Athletic Association and curator of the ITA Men's Tennis Hall of Fame. You can find his work at: Frierson Files.
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