Midfielders Danny Garcia, left, and Ramón Núñez, right: James Coreas
2 former soccer players from W.T. White have made it to the big leagues.
This year, W.T. White alumni Danny Garcia and Ramon Nuñez were signed to Dallas’ Major League Soccer team, FC Dallas. Although Garcia and Nuñez are both midfielders and homegrown players, they each took their own journey to get where they are today.
Garcia was raised in Dallas and recalls his best memories of attending W.T. White.
“At school, all the students would look out for each other,” Garcia says. “If we ever had a problem, there was always somebody we could go speak to.”
Garcia played on the high school’s soccer team his freshman year, and then played for the FC Dallas Academy during his remaining high school years until he graduated from W.T. White in 2012. At age 19, Garcia was signed to FC Dallas. He is eligible to make his official Major League debut in the 2014 season. Since being signed to FC Dallas, Garcia says his highlight was being able to debut with the team after being subbed into the game during an international friendly exhibition game against English team Stoke City FC.
Fellow W.T. White alum Ramon Nuñez was signed to FC Dallas this year in March. This is not the first time for the 27-year-old to play professionally for Dallas, however. Back in 2004, Nuñez signed for the Dallas Burn after playing for the Southern Methodist University Mustangs during his freshman year. Three years later, Nuñez left Dallas to play for his native Honduran team, and also had stints playing for Chivas USA and Leeds United, until he tore his ACL in 2012. The injury, which traditionally requires a long recovery, kept Nuñez off the playing field for months, until he was subbed on in several games this past summer. His most notable game was in August, when he scored a goal against Chivas that helped FC Dallas achieve its first official win after a two-month streak of ties and losses.
Nuñez says he is happy to have a chance to play again and be back in his hometown. He bought a house in Preston Hollow shortly after signing with the soccer league this year.
“This time around, the league is so much better,” Nuñez says. “The FC Dallas team and staff have grown so much over the years, and I am sure there are more good things to come.”
The next FC Dallas game is Oct. 12 at 7:30 p.m. against the Chicago Fire at FC Dallas Stadium. Tickets are available at ticketmaster.com.
Watch Danny Garcia play in the next FC Dallas Reserves league game against the Chicago Fire Reserves on Oct. 13 at 10 a.m. on Field 1 at FC Dallas Stadium.
