NTPSA Identification Card
Towards the end of college, I discovered a passion for soccer. While I was never physically-gifted, I had tons of hustle and developed a decent “soccer sense” over the years. I even joined a club team named the Mama’s Boys, which played in the North Texas Premiere Soccer Association.
Each NTPSA player was issued an identification card, which you provided to the referee in order to play. In turn, if you accumulated enough penalties, the referee would retain your card, and you couldn’t play your next game until they gave your card back after a disciplinary hearing.
In 2000, my club the Mama’s Boys won their only championship, beating our arch-rivals in a shoot-out on a hot May afternoon. It was a great way to cap my career, since I would be leaving Denton in three months and never play with that group again. So after the season, I put my NTPSA ID card in the time capsule.
A couple years later, I was out training for a marathon a random thought occurred to me: the ID card contained my picture. And my full name. And my birthdate, Social Security Number, and signature! In other words, the perfect ingredients for identity theft (if ever discovered).
Once again, my UNT education had failed me.
