Eric Bird (born April 8, 1993) is an American

soccer Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a team sport played between two teams of 11 players who primarily use their feet to propel the ball around a rectangular field called a pitch. The objective of the game is ...

player who currently plays for

FC Tulsa FC Tulsa is an American professional soccer team based in Tulsa, Oklahoma which competes in the USL Championship, the second tier of the American soccer pyramid. History The club was founded as Tulsa Roughnecks FC by Jeff and Dale Hubbard, bro ...

in the USL Championship.

Career

Amateur

Bird was born and raised in

Virginia Beach, Virginia Virginia Beach is an independent city located on the southeastern coast of the Commonwealth of Virginia in the United States. The population was 459,470 at the 2020 census. Although mostly suburban in character, it is the most populous city ...

. He attended Frank W Cox High School, who he helped lead to state titles in 2009 and 2010. His best individual season was 2011, where he scored 28 goals and picked up 22 assists in just 24 games and was named as the Virginia High School State Player of the Year. Bird played four years of

college soccer College soccer is played by teams composed of soccer players who are enrolled in colleges and universities. It is very prominent in United States, Japan, South Korea, Canada, and as well as in South Africa and the Philippines. The United Kingd ...

at the

University of Virginia The University of Virginia (UVA) is a Public university#United States, public research university in Charlottesville, Virginia. Founded in 1819 by Thomas Jefferson, the university is ranked among the top academic institutions in the United S ...

between 2011 and 2014. During his freshman season, he started 8 of the first 9 games before suffering a season ending knee injury. The following season, Bird recovered fully from the injury and started every game of the season. For the 2013 season, Bird was named captain and repaid the decision by leading the team with 7 goals and playing in every game of the season. Bird was a

NSCAA The United Soccer Coaches (formerly known as the National Soccer Coaches Association of America (NSCAA)) is an organization of American soccer coaches founded in 1941. It is the largest soccer coaches organization in the world, with more than 30 ...

Third-Team All-American for 2013. For his senior year, Bird again captained Virginia and led the team to a

National Championship A national championship(s) is the top achievement for any sport or competition, contest within a league of a particular nation or nation state. The title is usually awarded by contests, ranking systems, stature, ability, etc. This determines the be ...

. He was named as a NSCAA Second-Team All-All American.

Professional

On January 15, 2015, Bird was picked 41st overall in the

2015 MLS SuperDraft The 2015 MLS SuperDraft was the sixteenth SuperDraft conducted by Major League Soccer. The SuperDraft is held each year in conjunction with the annual National Soccer Coaches Association of America convention. The 2015 convention was held Januar ...

by the

Philadelphia Union The Philadelphia Union are an American professional soccer club based in Chester, Pennsylvania. The Union compete in Major League Soccer (MLS) as a member of the Eastern Conference. Founded on February 28, 2008, the club began playing in 201 ...

. He made his professional debut with Philadelphia's

United Soccer League United Soccer League (USL), formerly known as United Soccer Leagues, is a Association football, soccer league in the United States and Canada. It organizes several men's and women's leagues, both professional and amateur. Men's leagues curren ...

affiliate Harrisburg City Islanders on May 28, 2015 during a US Open Cup fixture against the

Rochester Rhinos Rochester New York FC, formerly known as the Rochester Rhinos, are an American professional soccer team based in Rochester, New York, United States. Founded in 1996, as the Rochester Raging Rhinos, they changed their name to Rochester Rhinos to ...

. On December 20, 2015, Philadelphia declined Bird's contract option after he made just 3 appearances with the Islanders and 0 with the Union. Bird moved to

side Rio Grande Valley FC Toros on March 16, 2016. Bird made his Toros debut on March 26 in a 2–0 loss to the

Tulsa Roughnecks Tulsa Roughnecks may refer to any of four distinct professional soccer teams: *Tulsa Roughnecks (1978–1984), the original top-flight team that played in the North American Soccer League from 1978 to 1984. *Tulsa Roughnecks (1993–2000), the team ...

. He scored his first goal on June 11 in a 3–0 win over

OKC Energy Oklahoma City Energy Football Club is an American professional soccer club based in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. The club is a member of the USL Championship, the second division of the American soccer league system. History Oklahoma City businessman ...

and would score in his next 2 matches as well. Bird and enjoyed a strong season and helped the Toros qualify for the playoffs. Bird would score in the 76th minute to give RGVFC the lead, but OKC Energy came back to win after giving up 2 goals in stoppage time. Bird was named as the RGVFC captain for 2017 and had another strong season. He was rewarded for his performances by being called up on loan to the Toros' MLS affiliate club, the

Houston Dynamo Houston Dynamo FC (formerly officially, but still commonly, called the Houston Dynamo) is an American professional soccer club based in Houston. The Dynamo compete in Major League Soccer (MLS) as a member of the Western Conference. Establi ...

, for two US Open Cup games. On December 22, 2017, Bird signed a first team contract with the Dynamo and was reunited with

Wilmer Cabrera Wilmer Cabrera may refer to: *Wílmer Cabrera (born 1967), Colombian footballer and manager * Wilmer Cabrera Jr. (born 2000), Colombian footballer *Wilmar Cabrera Wilmar Rubens Cabrera Sappa (born July 31, 1959, in Cerrillos, Uruguay) is a reti ...

, who was Bird's head coach for RGVFC in 2016 and had become the Dynamo head coach prior to the 2017 season. Three years after being selected in the MLS draft, Bird made his MLS debut on June 2, playing the full 90 minutes in a 1–0 loss to the Montreal Impact. He would make 2 appearances for the Dynamo in the 2018 US Open Cup as the Dynamo went on to defeat the Union in the final. Bird spend 2018 shifting back and forth between Houston and RGV. Bird spent 2019 primarily with RGVFC and only made 2 appearances for the Dynamo, with neither being in the league. On November 21, the Dynamo declined his contract option for 2020, making Bird a free agent. On December 26, 2019, Bird signed with USL Championship side

. He made his debut for Tulsa on July 13 in a 1–1 draw with the

. In a shortened season due to the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identif ...

, Bird made 13 appearances, helping Tulsa qualify for the playoffs. In their opening game of the playoffs, Tulsa and Bird lost 4–2 on penalties to

El Paso Locomotive FC El Paso Locomotive FC is an American professional association football, soccer team based in El Paso, Texas. Founded in 2018, the team made its debut in the USL Championship in 2019. Club crest and colors The Locomotive brand was unveiled on Oc ...

after playing to a 2–2 draw.

Personal life

He was in a relationship with

Morgan Brian Morgan Paige Gautrat (; born February 26, 1993) is an American soccer player who most recently played for the Kansas City Current of the National Women's Soccer League (NWSL), the highest division of women's professional soccer in the United St ...

from 2013 to 2015. His mother is a teacher.

Career statistics

:''Updated as of December 22, 2020''

Honors

Team

Virginia Cavaliers The Virginia Cavaliers, also known as ''Wahoos'' or ''Hoos'', are the athletic teams representing the University of Virginia, located in Charlottesville. The Cavaliers compete at the NCAA Division I level ( FBS for football), in the Atlantic C ...

* NCAA Division 1 Men's Soccer Championship:

2014 File:2014 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: Stocking up supplies and personal protective equipment (PPE) for the Western African Ebola virus epidemic; Citizens examining the ruins after the Chibok schoolgirls kidnapping; Bundles of wat ...

Houston Dynamo Houston Dynamo FC (formerly officially, but still commonly, called the Houston Dynamo) is an American professional soccer club based in Houston. The Dynamo compete in Major League Soccer (MLS) as a member of the Western Conference. Establi ...

* US Open Cup:

2018 File:2018 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: The 2018 Winter Olympics opening ceremony in PyeongChang, South Korea; Protests erupt following the Assassination of Jamal Khashoggi; March for Our Lives protests take place across the United ...

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Bird, Eric 1993 births Living people American soccer players Association football midfielders Houston Dynamo FC players Major League Soccer players Penn FC players Philadelphia Union draft picks Philadelphia Union players Rio Grande Valley FC Toros players FC Tulsa players Soccer players from Virginia Beach Sportspeople from Virginia Beach, Virginia USL Championship players Virginia Cavaliers men's soccer players