Photo by: Justin Edmonds
Kyle and Kellan Christensen are nearly inseparable. The brothers live together, compete together, eat together and constantly hang out together. The only thing that can keep these Pioneer men’s soccer players apart is their religion.
As Mormons, both Kyle and Kellan are encouraged to take the traditional two-year ‘mission’ that the vast majority of practicing Mormons go on. Older brother Kyle, a junior, spent the past two years in Argentina on his mission. Kellan, a sophomore, will begin his mission at the end of this year.
“We’re not only brothers, but we’re also best friends,” said Kyle, who starts alongside his brother a forward for DU. “So, we had been looking forward to this year together ever since I left [on my mission]. Being apart again will be tough.”
The Christensen brothers are not only two of the top three scorers for the Pioneers this season, but are also two of only three Mormons on the DU campus.
Over the past few years, the two have had to handle the pressure of being student athletes while dealing with the high demands of their religion and the negative stereotypes that come with it.
“People tend to have their preset ideas of, ‘Oh, they are Mormon. They’re weird,'” Kellan said. “But once people get to know us, they realize how kind and caring we are, and the stereotypes kind of go away.”
“I think that some people may get intimidated by it, because they hear all of these stories about Mormons that aren’t true. So, they will be kind of hesitant to talk with us at first,” Kyle said.
Soccer has seemed to be the Christensens’ equalizer with other students and teammates.
“In sports, as long as you care about what you are doing, and don’t alienate yourself in a particular way, the guys will be accepting of it,” Pioneer Head Coach Bobby Muuss said. “When you get to know Kellan and Kyle, I don’t think that you can treat them any differently. They are nice, compassionate kids.”
Kyle joined the Pioneers in the fall of 2003 after receiving the Utah Player of the Year award while a senior at Layton High School in Layton, Utah. Kyle led the Pioneers in scoring his freshman season and was named to the Mountain Pacific Sports Federation All-Conference team as a rookie and as a sophomore, before missing the next two years due to his mission.
With Kyle in Argentina, Kellan came to DU in the fall of 2006. Following in his brother’s footsteps, he had a sensational freshman season and was named MPSF Newcomer of the Year.
The brothers have been reunited this year, for what will be the only collegiate season they will play together.
“It’s been fun, really fun, to play together,” Kellan said. “We understand each other. It has been what we have been looking forward to for a while now.”
Though the Christensens are having standout seasons, the transition from not playing soccer for two full years was difficult for Kyle.
“For those two years, I didn’t play at all,” Kyle said. “So when I got back and hopped in at spring season, it was bad. I was out of shape, my skills were gone and it took a long time to get it all back.”
Kyle’s game has come on as of late, as his goal Friday in the Pioneers’ tie with Sacramento State gave him four on the season, making him second on the team only behind his little brother.
Part of his success, Kyle said, is due to playing with Kellan.
“We understand how each other really play, and we know each other’s instincts. We can play really well together and have the potential to score a lot of goals,” Kyle said.
The success on the field for the Christensens has helped them to ease the off-field tension they may receive from teammates and other students about their religion.
With the restraints of their religion, the Christensens’ daily life tends to be much different from many of their peers. As Mormons, the brothers are not allowed to drink, smoke or swear, among other things, and attend church services every week.
“It gets kind of hard at times,” Kellan said. “At [DU] there is only one other Mormon, so it gets hard when everyone is off doing their thing, and we have to try to not get tempted.”
Muus sees the Christensens’ lifestyle as a good thing: “I think, if anything, it may help some of their teammates to maybe make better decisions in their lives from being around them and seeing the kind of people that they are.”
Kellan will find out where he will be going for his Mormon mission this week, as Mormons are assigned their destination by a council.
Wherever he ends up, it will mean that these two undividable brothers will have to go their separate ways.
“It will be tough, but I am excited to get out there and serve,” Kellan said. “We are just going to try to get the most out of the time we have together now, and, hopefully, we can finish this season strong.”
