By Steve Morris

After any given North Branch boys soccer game, you can rest assured everyone from the president of the Minnesota Thunder on down to the parents of the players would get Brad Gustafson game re-caps, via e-mail.

I loved the game re-cap e-mails, because his passion and desire to improve the young men on the team was so transparent.

They were the legendary type, filled with nicknames for every player and with enough enthusiasm to fill the Metrodome in downtown Minneapolis.

No matter what the score, coach Gustafson had an uncanny ability to make every game sound like a win. On several occasions, I had to re-read his re-caps to find the winner -- no lie.

In a time of win at all costs, his approach and style to coaching was refreshing. He understands they may not win on the score board, but if they worked hard, learned from their mistakes and grew as individuals, then they won.

When I heard of him stepping down, I was as shocked as was everyone else. No one saw it coming, not even the Post Review, with its deep running sources in the area sports arena.

Of all the coaches, I thought Gustafson was passionate enough about his coaching job to last 30 years. Boy was I wrong. To be exact, he lasted six years.

When I heard the reason, I gained even more respect for him as an individual.

He didn't step down to move to a bigger or better soccer program. Nor did he step down because he couldn't handle all the stress associated with running a varsity program or because he hadn't produced a winning season.

See, Gustafson stepped down as head coach to spend more time with his growing family. By stepping down for family, he cemented what he was all about, which was setting priorities and doing what matters most. Because in the end, a soccer team will come and go, but a family is with you forever. He saw life's big picture.

By making a short-term sacrifice to spend time raising his kids, society and the community will benefit as a whole -- kids with two positive adult figures are far better off to deal with the obstacles life has in their way.

It takes a man to coach a varsity soccer program, but even a bigger man to step down from the game he loves for the family he loves even more.

If the world had more fathers as committed to their family as Gustafson, the world would be a far better place.

But for now, I will deal with a world with without Brad's game re-cap e-mails.