RENTON — As an 18-year-old freshman soccer player at the University of Washington, Craig Waibel randomly found himself seated at some event with legendary Huskies football coach Don James. Waibel says he still isn’t sure how that ended up happening, but James left a lasting impression with something he said during that dinner.
“There’s no loyalty in sports,” James said.
Waibel apparently uses this phrase a lot, almost as a personal ethos. Following his appointment as just the third general manager in the Seattle Sounders’ MLS history, I asked him what it means and why he’s so fond of it.