By Dan Lathey

Greg Mulamba experienced culture shock when he and his brother Oliver arrived in the United States for the first time nearly fifteen years ago. The Mulamba brothers arrived in Laredo, Texas from South Africa in 2005 to begin a new adventure and collegiate playing careers for the Texas A&M International University men's soccer program.
 
The Mulamba family moved to Johannesburg, South Africa when Greg was three years old, fleeing political strife in their native Democratic Republic of Congo. The Mulamba brothers (Greg, Oliver, Teddy, and Peter) grew up with a love for soccer, with all four being huge Manchester United fans. 
 
Oliver would contribute two productive seasons for the Dustdevils before transferring to West Texas A&M to finish his career and pursue a degree unavailable at TAMIU. He would earn First Team All-Conference honors for the Buffs as a senior.
 
Greg spent nearly a decade in Laredo, playing four seasons for the Dustdevils and seven seasons for the Laredo Heat. He graduated with his bachelor's degree in business administration with a concentration in marketing in December 2009.
 
Considered by long-time TAMIU head coach Claudio Arias as a transformative talent and heartbeat of the team during his playing career, Mulamba was a dominant force at midfielder for the Dustdevils. He racked up numerous honors for his outstanding play; earning All-Heartland Conference honors three times (First Team as a junior and senior). As a senior in 2008, Mulamba was named Daktronics South Central Region Player of the Year and Heartland Conference Player of the Year.
 
Reflecting on his time in Laredo, Mulamba says the decision to travel half way around the world was one of the best he has ever made. He believes his experience at TAMIU and long playing career with the Dustdevils and Laredo Heat have left an indelible mark on his life. Mulamba says that the life lessons he learned in Laredo outweigh the results on the field of play.
 
"When I think back on my journey, I don't so much remember the wins and losses or awards, rather I remember the people and experiences," Mulamba said. "I had great teammates for four years who can tell you I was intense on the field because I wanted to win, but off the field we had good friendships. I remember our athletic trainer, Ernst Fesiner, who would always be there no matter what I needed before practice, games or even just during the summer when I needed rehab. Playing at TAMIU paved the way for me to play for the Laredo Heat under the leadership of the Vaswani family, the best team owners for whom I have ever played."
 
After playing his last season for the Heat in 2014, Mulamba went on to play for the Austin Aztex and Oklahoma City Energy in the USL Pro league. He took a position as Director of Coaching at Soccer Shots Austin after having his career cut short due to injuries in 2015.
 
Mulamba opened his own company in Austin in 2019, named FalseNin9 Soccer Development. He says that his pours his life experience and ambition into his dream of developing great soccer players and great leaders.
 
"FalseNin9 is an all-encompassing program that strives to develop a player's physical attributes, but even more important than that we look to develop their minds and way of thinking," Mulamba said. "FalseNin9 is going to host a charity event on June 28th called Shoot For Equality in support of the Black Lives Matter movement, which I'm very proud of. Our aim is to bring people together and bring more awareness to what is happening in the African American community."
 
Coach Arias says that Mulamba's intelligence and passion has always been evident and he is not surprised that his former player is making a difference in the world.
 
"There are so many things to say about Greg's character and soccer abilities," Arias said. "He was a great person on and off the field while wearing our jersey. He could have easily gone to a bigger program after a few years being with us, but he was loyal to our program and that speaks well about him. Greg has been one of the best (maybe the best) players I have coached in terms of the holistic description of a soccer player (competitiveness, physicality, skills, mental toughness, tactical awareness, etc.). Greg had a huge impact on our program and definitely in our community as the Laredo Heat benefited from our recruiting and was able to use him during the summer on their team."
 
Mulamba recently took some time to share his thoughts on a range of topics; ranging from hard fought wins on the soccer field to the joy that his profession brings him to the role that sports can play in bringing our society together:
 
Question: What is Oliver up to these days? 
Answer: Oliver earned his Ph.D. at Texas Tech and is now the Chief Technology Officer at AquaSmart Enterprises. Most importantly, he is a dad and has two boys with a third on the way.
 
Question: What is your best memory of the 2008 season, a season in which you were named Heartland Conference Player of the Year? 
Answer: It had to be the game we played against Newman in Wichita, Kan. that went into overtime. It was raining and muddy, and I remember in overtime I got the ball just past the halfway line and I took on a player and just shot the ball as hard as I could and everything seemed to happen in slow motion. The ball flew through the air and hit the bottom of the cross bar and went in. Our entire bench jumped up and ran onto the field because that was the winning goal. I was so tired I couldn't even run to celebrate, I just collapsed. 
 
Question: What is the most valuable life lesson you learned during your TAMIU athletic career? 
Answer: Live in the moment and enjoy every second, because you will not get it back.
 
Question: What is the most rewarding aspect of your chosen career? 
Answer: Watching the kids in my FalseNin9 program develop not only into better soccer players, but better people. I never thought I would enjoy something more than playing soccer, but once I started coaching and seeing the growth and development in these kids, I just fell in love with the process. 
 
Question: Your career is going well. What would you like to accomplish over the next five years? 
Answer: I would love to see my development program keep growing. We already have kids that are playing in college and others on their way to some big colleges, but I would love to see one of my kids play at the pro level. Maybe I can come back to TAMIU and take Coach Arias' job as head coach of the men's program (ha-ha).
 
Question: What role do you see soccer playing in bringing society together in the wake of a pandemic and social justice protests? 
Answer: Soccer for me has always been the one place where it was an even playing field. No matter what fans said or what was going on around me, once I got on the field with my teammates it was about my ability. The soccer ball is round for everyone: black, white or Hispanic; it's all the same, we play with one round ball. I think there is so much we can learn from that as a society because like it or not we're all in this together through the pandemic and social injustice. We can't hide from it or ignore it, so let's come together and fight it.  
 
Question: Any shout-outs to anyone at TAMIU that had a huge impact on your life? 
Answer: Coach Arias is the reason I even ended up at TAMIU, and even though we butted heads a few times I definitely wouldn't be where I am without him. Ernst was an amazing athletic trainer who always went the extra mile to help me, and I was saddened to hear of his passing. Dr. Keck was always so generous and gracious to me throughout my entire time at TAMIU, and my teammates that made it all worth it.  
 
What They Are Saying About Greg Mulamba:
Laredo Heat Owner Sashi Vaswani:
"Greg turned heads (both girls and guys) when he took off his shirt after games.  Many envied his physique, and were always wondering want kind of diet he endured daily in order to achieve such shape. In his final year of playing with the Heat, we recruited him for a day job in one of our other companies and were astonished to see that he ate candies, cakes and whatever else sugary that was brought into the office. We then joked, that he needed to thank genetics and not his diet for his chiseled body! I do have to add that Greg was one of the fiercest of players that put on a Heat jersey, and we have yet to see anyone defend like him on our pitch." 
 
Former TAMIU soccer star Raul Quinones on having Mulamba as a teammate with the Dustdevils and Laredo Heat:
"I always enjoyed playing with Mulamba; he can make you and motivate you to keep pushing even after you think you got nothing left. The way he plays, it pumps you up and makes you want to play harder and faster. Not only he was my teammate, but also my best man in my wedding. We've been through some challenges in life and he deserves greatness. I'm very happy for his success and wish him nothing but the best in his future."
 
Oliver Mulamba on his brother:
"Getting on the field together was always considered going to war for us, and there is no better man to have on your side during battle. Committed is one of the words that jump to mind when a descriptive is asked about Greg. He is committed to his family and friends, committed to his craft, committed to his students and customers and committed to excellence. He was committed to the wonderful city and people of Laredo, and he served them with all that was within him. He continues on this path, affecting and changing the lives of those who cross his path, the sky is truly the limit. We are all very proud of the legacy he left in Laredo, and the strides he continues to make in his quest to change the world, one person at a time."