Season preview: Inside how and why Sacramento Republic overhauled its roster

Ferrety Sousa’s team won. The Sacramento Republic defender dropped to his knees last week and gave a double fist pump in celebration. He let out a yell.

The stadium was quiet, of course, because it was practice. And Sousa’s team had simply won a seven-on-seven training drill, which is played against teammates on a field about one-tenth the size of a regular field.

Hey, a win’s a win.

The Quails hope the winning vibes continue Saturday night when they open their season at home against El Paso. Sacramento Republic missed the postseason for the first time in club history last year. In response, they tore apart the roster and rebuilt everything in the offseason. The message is clear: This team must win.

After last season ended, team owner Kevin Nagle sat down with general manager Todd Dunivant and coach Todd Briggs and explained the deal: Figure out how to win.

“Kevin wants to win, and we didn’t win last year,” Briggs said. “And in professional sports, there’s accountability, and if you don’t win, usually changes are made. Fortunately for me, it wasn’t the coach that they decided to change. It was the personnel that we had to change. And now we have personnel that I believe can bring the wins, the points that we all want.”

The result of the overhaul is obvious. Just three players remain from the opening-day roster two years ago. One of those three players, midfielder Rodrigo Lopez, left the team for a season. This is a brand-new team.

It had to be this way, said general manager Todd Dunivant.

“We had a core group together for, really, four years, and it became very clear last year when we didn’t make the playoffs … that we needed to really rethink the entire roster,” Dunivant said. “And so that’s why we brought in as many guys as we did. The plan is obviously to have a very different outcome.”

Of course, outcomes depend on players and variables that are outside of mangers’ control. Last season, the Quails finished in seventh place in the eight-team Pacific Division, two wins out of a playoff spot.

The main problem was not terribly complicated: Sacramento Republic scored just 36 goals in 34 games, tied for the worst total in the division. While Cam Iwasa was solid up front, notching 8 goals, he didn’t have much help. Darek Formella had seven goals, Tucker Bone (who joined the military in the offseason), had five and Luis Felipe had five.

They were the only players who scored more than a goal last season.

Honduran striker Douglas Martinez was brought in to shore up the offense. Briggs says Martinez is “the best player in the league,” with 21 goals in 54 USL games as well as 22 starts in Major League Soccer.

“(Offense) was our major focus because of the anemic state of our offense the last couple of years,” Dunivant said. “We wanted to bring in some guys that could be dangerous.”

Dunivant and Briggs brought in eight new forwards and midfielders. Martinez says the on-the-field chemistry is already clicking along nicely.

“The connections to be honest, since the first day, I think the whole group connected with each other,” he said. “Because we have good guys, they smile all the time, running around. I think it’s good. I think it’s good. We stay light, with funny moments outside of the field.”

Those funny moments extended to a preseason trip to Palm Springs. While the trip was ostensibly about practicing and playing scrimmages, it was also about bonding. The team did water aerobics and visited a casino together.

Midfielder Matt LaGrassa, an Elk Grove native with MLS experience, said the trip was helpful bringing together a bunch of guys who don’t know each other.

“I think the feeling around the group is that everyone’s working with a clean slate,” he said. “Whether you were here before or not, everybody’s spot was up for grabs to start with. And I think it’s been good for the group.”

Perhaps the most curious signing was the arrival of Danny Vitiello, the USL’s top goalie from 2020. The Quails already have a stalwart in net in Carlos Saldaña, who made it clear he was a starting-caliber keeper last summer.

All part of the plan, Briggs said. The team wants two guys competing for starting time at every position.

“It’s having the attributes to be able to play how I want to play,” Briggs said. “No matter what position you’re in. And so that’s why there’s such an overhaul.”

Of course, all those new faces meant the team had to tweak its usual getting-to-know-you protocols. Typically, the team has rookies get up in front of everybody and sing a song. This year, they had everybody who was new to the team get up and sing a song.

LeGrassa, a 29-year-old veteran who has already had stints with Republic FC, was not exempt, even though he played for Sacramento six years ago. He sang “Let it Be” by The Beatles.

“It’s nerve-wracking when you get up there,” he said, admitting he practiced before crooning. “I don’t think I was great. I wouldn’t rate it well. No one should hire me for their wedding or any other event.”

That’s not why Sacramento Republic hired him, of course. Briggs lights up when he talks about the squad. For the first time in his career here, he’s not working with players brought in by other coaches or general managers. Where practices might have been a grind in the past, now there’s energy. Briggs smiled when he was reminded of Sousa’s double fist pump celebration in a practice. That’s the vibe he and Dunivant were going for.

“Just since day one working with this group, it’s just different. It’s different,” he said. “It’s just a different energy, a different environment, a different culture.”