FORT WORTH, TX — You may have seen her on the Horned Frog soccer posters all year, but having her face plastered all over campus isn’t what made Kelly Faerber feel like a celebrity.

As the senior player reflected on her career with the TCU soccer team, she said one of her favorite things was something that happened after the games were over.

“After the games, we’d always have all these kids run down to the field with soccer posters and have all the players autograph them,” Faerber said. “I remember the first time I was asked to sign these posters. I was like, ‘Wow, I don’t really believe I’m that much of a celebrity!'”

Faerber said she loved that memory more than any other because the feeling of kids looking up to her and the rest of the team was so special.

She said she knew she belonged at TCU before she was even enrolled. On a visit to campus during high school she realized this was the place for her.

“Some things you just kind of know, and I felt that when I came here,” Faerber said. “I knew I was going to be up for the challenge of trying to come here and play soccer, but I thought if it doesn’t work out I’m still at a great school where I can continue my education.”

Faerber’s soccer career at TCU started strong. She saw action in all 18 games and started in 15 at midfield. After contributing a lot to her team in the 2006 season, she expected to do the same during her sophomore year, but an injury put a halt on that.

Head coach Dan Abdalla said Faerber’s dedication to the team didn’t waver even when she had to stay on the bench.

“She was one of the players that it didn’t matter if she was on the game field or at practice, she was always one that was making us all better by what she was doing,” Abdalla said. “She always put the team before herself.”

Coming back from her injury, Faerber didn’t see as much game time during her next two years on the team. But now that her TCU soccer career has ended she said she misses being with her teammates the most.

“I miss the girls so much,” Faerber said. “They’re like your backbone and your best group of friends. And getting to see them every day is definitely something that I miss.”

As she reflected on that injury, she said she learned more about life lessons rather than just getting back to her full strength.

“I wish I would have realized I could have worked harder to get back into a starter position, but more than that I wish I would have realized I should live in the moment because there will come a day when I won’t be able to play at all,” she said.

Abdalla said Faerber was always a leader. He said she was unselfish in her roles on the team and that made her a valuable player.

“She’s one that if you could take her heart and passion that she has and put it in every single player, you’d be in great shape,” Abdalla said. “She’s the kind of person that a coach just absolutely loves.”

Even though her soccer days as a Horned Frog are over, Faerber continues to play in a co-ed adult league. She said that while the competition isn’t as dominant on the co-ed team, being able to get outside and play has kept her happy.