TAMPA, Fla. — Martin Gramatica always knew his future relied on his feet.
He was an All-American in college, All-Pro in the NFL and eventual Super Bowl champion with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. In high school, Gramatica committed his career to football, but his heart was always another kick away.
"I grew up playing soccer," the former Bucs kicker said. "I'm originally from Argentina, so soccer was my first passion."
At 47 years old, his days in cleats are done, but that doesn't mean he can't be on the field.
"Now to be able to come back and start as a coach with the sport that I love, I just can't be more thankful," Gramatica said.
Gramatica is the first head coach of the Tampa Bay Strikers, one of the newest expansion teams in the National Indoor Soccer League.
The NISL is currently made up of five teams and all organizations have a men's and women's squad to root for on the turf.
For the Strikers, their games are played in the Yuengling Center at the University of South Florida, but the team practices at Cinco Soccer in East Tampa. It is a much different picture than what most sports fans are used to seeing.
"For a casual soccer fan, or non-casual soccer fan, this is like hockey soccer," Gramatica said. "There's a lot of scoring, a lot of very fast pace because the ball rarely goes out of bounds. You have the power play, [if you're shown] the blue card [then] you sit for two minutes. [There's also] the shootout."
This form of soccer is a transition for the rest of the coaching staff and players.
"I mean if you watch the first game, it's literally go, go, go, go, go," Tampa Bay forward and former Division I soccer athlete Tesa McKibben said.
She is one of the 40 Strikers squeezing in practice at sunrise before their full-time jobs start later that morning.
"We have girls that drive from Sarasota like you're getting up at five [in the morning] to drive for an hour and a half of soccer practice," McKibben said.
It's the continued commitment to competition, which is also something that Gramatica has never given up on. This relates to Strikers defender Nico Meola as well, who now works for a nonprofit philanthropy after running into a dead-end with the sport.
"It's an honor to come out here and compete," the former Division II soccer player said. "It's a privilege, some of us are former student-athletes so the fact we still have the opportunity is pretty awesome."
It certainly helps to have a former Super Bowl champion provide legitimacy to a budding league.
"Martin is very professional in how he deals with us, probably one of the most professional coaches I've dealt with personally in my career," McKibben said.
Gramatica's prior history of being involved with a winning franchise has helped the team believe they can reach great heights.
"He always says he does not enjoy losing and we're trying to instill that same mentality into the whole group," Meola said. "Nothing's personal, we just have to figure out the best 12 [players] to help us win the game."
For a man who made his living kicking a ball, and won a title in the process, his hope is to have others doing the same.
"I may have a side job, but that side job is secondary," Gramatica said. "Now I can make money playing soccer. That's the goal. To get it to where they can make a good living playing indoor soccer in their hometown."
Tampa Bay had their first games back on Sunday, Jan. 29, at home against the Columbus Rapids. The men's team lost 12-7 while the women's team thrashed their opponent 12-4. For ticket information on the team's upcoming home game, click here.
The NISL hopes to expand to 10 or 12 teams in the next year.
To learn more about the Strikers, click here.