As he surveyed the scene, it could have been very easy for Cyprian Hedrick to remain with an OKC Energy FC side that he has been an integral member of for the past three seasons, helping the side earn a postseason berth in the past two.

After talking with San Antonio FC Managing Director Tim Holt and Head Coach Darren Powell, though, the vision of what could be in the Alamo City hit home for the Cameroonian defender.

“[Powell and Holt] are really ambitious, and I see myself being similar,” Hedrick told SanAntonioFC.com’s Luis Leyva. “They have high expectations of themselves and other people, and they work extremely hard, so for me it’s easy to work with people who are like-minded. I know that at this stage they want success and they’re going to bring in people who are going to help that along. It’s a blessing that they considered me as someone to bring in to help out.”

The first time Hedrick arrived in Texas was when he was nine years old when his mother Susana married a Texan businessman, and the two immigrated to Houston. Not knowing much English or Spanish when he first arrived – Cameroon’s most common language being French – Hedrick tried to adapt to his new surroundings as best he could. When his mother passed away when he was aged 16, it was a big blow as his talent on the soccer field was starting to blossom.

As good in the classroom as he was on the field – he earned first-team academic All-American honors at Coastal Carolina – Hedrick now carries her memory with him whenever he steps out onto the field.

“That was a really difficult time in my life,” Hedrick told Leyva. “But I also really do this for her, because as a kid she and I had this dream and now I’m living it. I know she would be really proud of me.”

Hedrick now has a new support system around him in addition to his soccer family. A new father to daughter Charlotte with his fiancée Kelsey, his everyday life is very different from when he arrived into the USL four seasons ago.

“My fiancée is our rock,” Hedrick told Leyva. “Without her, everything would crumble. When you do what I do, sometimes it’s not easy, especially when you have to move a family. But she’s always loving and caring and very supportive of everything I do. I’m blessed to have her, she does a lot that goes unseen by others, but without her our family wouldn’t function properly. I love what I do, and without her I wouldn’t be able to do it.

“Our daughter is a crazy little kid, but just having a child and a family to provide for has brought out a different side of me. I never realized how much motivation I would draw from my daughter and fiancée, but I want to provide the world for them, and that pushes me to work as hard as I can every day. I want my daughter to have a better upbringing than I did, and that will come with the work that my fiancée and I do between now and the next 18 years.”

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Now two regular-season appearances away from 100 in his USL career after appearing in every game for Energy FC this past season, the 27-year-old is ready to help San Antonio push on to bigger things in its second season in the league.

“There’s only one real goal and that’s to win a championship,” Hedrick told Leyva. “At the end of the day we want to bring a trophy to San Antonio and that’s why I’m coming. I want to come in and do whatever I can do to help in the organization, but also in the community and on the field.”