Kelly Calligan, Photo Editor

He paces back and forth on the sidelines with a cup of water in his hand, ready for anything.

And then that bad call or unfortunate change of events happens.

The cup flies helplessly through the air, the water splashing everywhere.

There were some close games when it seemed San Diego State men’s soccer head coach Lev Kirshner threw more water onto the field than the team drank.

When describing Kirshner’s personality, one adjective summed it up for senior forward Andrew DiCicco.

“(He’s) passionate,” DiCicco said. “Sometimes he’s in a good mood, a bad mood.

“He’s fiery, so he might lash at us. But I think those different sides we see comes from his passion for the game, his passion to teach a bunch of young individuals about life and about soccer. I think that’s what he takes the most pride in, helping develop young men, not just young soccer players.”

After leading SDSU to back-to-back NCAA Tournament appearances in its first two years in the Pac-10 Conference, it’s safe to say Kirshner has gotten his point across to his players.

“Feelings like that are contagious,” DiCicco said. “When one person works to be the best, it drives the other people to join that individual. Pretty soon you have a band of motivated soccer players. The passion of Coach Kirshner has helped elevate this program from some mediocre times.”

But where does this fire and intensity come from?

“My competitive drive to win the national championship probably comes from the fact that I’ve been so (expletive deleted) close and not won it that I’d like to have that ring,” Kirshner said.

The cursing might be a result of his narrowly missing that ring from 1987 to 1989 as a player for Rutgers University.

In 1987, the Scarlet Knights’ Peter Vermese – one of the leading goal scorers in the nation at the time – missed a penalty kick to tie Clemson in the final two minutes.

In 1988, Rutgers went to the semifinals and lost.

And in 1989, the Scarlet Knights lost the national championship to UCLA on penalty kicks.

But far brighter than any ring for Kirshner are the bonds he forms with his players.

“The driving force behind me coaching is the relationships that I get to build with these young men,” Kirshner said. “Watching them grow as people and players, and having the opportunity to shape society and touch lives.

“It’s about challenging and testing these guys in a healthy environment so they can be the best people and the best players that they can be.”

Perhaps Kirshner’s intensity comes from the fact that he considers his players like a family.

“We want to make sure this is as close a family as possible and that we all work and play for each other,” Kirshner said. “I do not feel like I’m their coach. I feel like I work for them.

“If you’re putting on our Aztec soccer gear, you better be ready to be part of our family. If you’re not ready to be a healthy member, and you want to be dysfunctional, then you should go find another family.”

DiCicco couldn’t fathom being part of another family.

“I couldn’t imagine playing for another coach other than Lev or the rest of the coaching staff,” DiCicco said. “It’s just been a great experience.

“Sometimes people transfer and find another program, but I just couldn’t imagine doing that because of the integrity of the coaching staff and Lev at the head of that.”