Zachary Herivaux remembers playing FIFA against Khano Smith and Shalrie Joseph–his father’s friends–when he was 11.
They might have been professional soccer players, but Herivaux recalls being superior at video games.
“I was killing them,” Herivaux said with a laugh during an interview with The Blazing Musket. “I was absolutely killing them. They had no chance against me. That’s in my prime days of gaming. Khano really gave up playing against me after I beat him a bunch of times, about 5-0. So he gave up. We haven’t played since.”
While Smith stopped playing FIFA against Herivaux, he continued to impact his life, coaching him at multiple stops.
Smith worked with Herivaux in the New England Revolution Academy. By the time Herivaux signed a Homegrown deal in 2015, Smith was no longer with the organization.
The two reunited in 2019 and again between 2021 and 2022 at Birmingham Legion FC, where Smith was an assistant coach. Herivaux remembers Smith providing valuable guidance during the early stages of his career when playing time was hard to come by.
“He taught me to control my emotions and to really let go of the things that I can’t control and to learn how to be a better person when things aren’t going my way,” Herivaux recalled. “I’ve taken that with me everywhere I’ve been.”
Herivaux left the Legion for the Tampa Bay Rowdies in 2023, but it seemed natural that he would head north when Smith became the inaugural coach of RIFC ahead of 2024. While there were off-season discussions, an injury postponed a move until July.
“Rhode Island was one of the teams that wanted me, trusted in me, and believed in me,” Herivaux recalled. “It’s very difficult, I think, to have belief in a player who has missed so much time. I missed about 400 days of playing, and to be able to trust that I will be able to come in and do the job just made me want to come here even more.
“It’s always important to be somewhere that you’re wanted, but especially coming off such a tough time that I did. I’ve always felt that it’s important to play under people that believe in you. It unlocks a new gear in your game.”
Herivaux has repaid that trust by becoming a regular starter, and contributing four goals and three assists.
He credits some of this recent success to Smith, who has always been honest with him, just like he is with other players.
He describes Smith as a “motivator” who “is very transparent and very honest with the boys and shows a lot of love to the guys from top to bottom.” Additionally, “he might be the best at giving pregame speeches.”
Some of this has to do with his presence–Smith is 6’4–and some with his knack for understanding the moment.
“He does a good job of remembering situations for certain players and I think that’s very, very important, to be able to remember individuals and situations that have occurred in their life because then you feel that they’re paying attention,” Herivaux said.
“I had trouble with my injuries and people hesitated or didn’t believe that I could come back and play again. And a lot of people doubted me. But look at what I was able to achieve now.
“Being able to get recognition for little things like that, it really goes a long way because that’s something that I care about a lot. I didn’t know if I was going to be able to perform the same way. I didn’t know if I was going to have to retire or anything like that. And to hear that belief [from Smith] in front of the whole group, it always feels good.”
As a former player, Smith understands that success should be celebrated because the road there isn’t always easy.
After retiring, Smith held assistant jobs at Southern New Hampshire University, Orlando Pride, and Birmingham before taking the top spot at RIFC.
While it might have taken time, Herivaux believes that Smith ended up in the right place.
“Some guys are fortunate enough to get an opportunity straight off of their career, and he was not one of them,” Herixaux said. “He went up through the academy to college to the Pride to Birmingham and to now here.
“Honestly, it fits Rhode Island to a T because that’s what Rhode Island is about. It’s about having pride, and it’s about having that stubbornness and that resilience to just keep going no matter what. And if people don’t recognize you in the beginning, as long as you keep going, people will recognize you at the end.”
Smith has started to get recognition as he was named USL’s Coach of the Month for July after securing three wins in four games. Of course, RIFC’s playoff run is turning heads.
But Herivaux sees Smith, who he describes as a players’ coach, as the same type of leader he’s always been despite now being the head coach.
“I think the biggest change is that he’s in a position where he’s able to give more people opportunities,” Herivaux said. “If you see, he brought Marcos [Ugarte] in with him, who was at Birmingham with us.
“Then players like Noah Fuson, JJ [Williams], and me, a bunch of guys that a lot of teams said no to. To be able to give us opportunities and to be able to share his wealth in a way, and to bring the people that’s been through the struggle with him along with him is something that a lot of people should see.”
Herivaux summarized, “At the end of the day, you want to perform for him.”
So far, RIFC have done that. The club made the postseason in their first year, which is no easy feat. They’re now unbeaten in nine, including road playoff wins against Indy Eleven, Louisville City, and Charleston Battery.
Saturday is another opportunity to perform when they face the Colorado Springs Switchbacks at noon EST. And if they do, RIFC could become the first expansion club since 2014 to win the USL Championship Final.
Herivaux said that the Rhode Island locker room isn’t talking about making history, explaining, “I think history makes itself when you start performing well, and you start putting to work each and every day.”
That said, he certainly understands the gravity of the situation. To win a trophy, for this club, for these players, and for this coach, would be memorable.
“We’re definitely excited to be in this position,” Herivaux said. “To be able to do that in our inaugural season, it’s something really special and it takes a really special group of guys to get this far. And being able to do it for a state like Rhode Island has definitely been an amazing privilege. So it’s definitely exciting, and hopefully, good things will come this weekend.”
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