The final round of U.S. Open Cup qualifying serves up a clash of amateur heavyweights as Chicago House Athletic Club hosts Tulsa Athletic at Elmhurst University.

Both sides have set their expectations on qualifying for the tournament, but only one will be able to reach that mark this time around thanks to this matchup.

The two teams got to this stage via very different results. The House secured a 2-1 comeback victory over Wisloka Chicago with a stoppage time winner, while Tulsa ran riot on Woodland Football Club, ultimately winning 9-0.

Despite the gap in those scorelines, this contest is expected to be a very close one.

Going back

While qualifying for the Open Cup is an achievement for any amateur side, both Chicago and Tulsa are looking to return to the tournament they’ve featured in many times. The House has been in the cup proper the last two years, while the latter is looking to qualify for a 7th time.

“It's important for the club, it gives us something to fight for. In terms of the amateur landscape in Chicago, qualifying again would show people that we're here and we're serious and we want to continue to grow,” said House head coach Shannon Seymour. “Although we dropped from that professional status, we want to get back to that. Qualifying again would put a stamp on that and let people know that we are here and we're serious.

For Tulsa, there’s an added desire to make it this year versus previous years. They were kicked out of the NPSL after winning the national championship the season before, which killed any dreams of a repeat.

“This would be special in the sense that 2024 was not a great year for us. I mean, we had something incredibly valuable to our club stripped from us. Having the opportunity to defend a national championship is a really special opportunity, so to have that taken away from us made 2024 a really difficult year,” said Tulsa owner Sonny Delasandro. “I think it would speak to the perseverance and the focus of the club to move things forward. This is our first time we've done the open track qualification, and I think it's great. I've learned a lot. It’s one of those situations when life gives you lemon. It'd be a cool way to punctuate a difficult year.”

Both clubs know what a cup run can do at this level, as both made the 3rd round back in 2023, which was the furthest stage any amateur teams got to that campaign.

“We know they have a rich history. They've been around for quite a while and they've obviously done some great stuff as well, just as we have. They made it to the 3rd round the same year we made it there, so we know that they're a team that has played in big matches and can compete,” said Seymour. “They’ve shown that they can win those big matches like us. It's a little bit of a rivalry game with that in mind, it feels like a new rivalry.”

There’s another special connection between the two, and that was on show in the lead up to the contest. Instead of having the federation handle a draw to decide hosting rights, Tulsa owner Sonny Delasandro and House president Peter Wilt made a deal.

They both drove to Union, Missouri, which happens to be the midpoint between Chicago and Tulsa. Once they got there, they would host a coin-flip ceremony themselves, with the winner earning the right to host.

“Delasandro is an old friend of mine, and he’s someone I respect as much as anyone in lower-division soccer. It was a fun thing we were able to do together that I thought would help our chances of hosting.

I was afraid if we left it up to the powers of be we may not get as fair of a shot,” said Wilt. “It was his idea to meet halfway, and I tracked down the city leadership of Union and we set it all up. While we were only together for maybe an hour and a half or so, we had a great time together.”

“Wilt has always been a mentor and he's different in a beautiful way. Him and I are similar in the way we view the game. There were actually two coin flips. The first one was to see who would call the flip, and I won that flip. Then I was wrong with the second flip, which meant that the game went to Chicago,” said Delasandro. “At its core, soccer's supposed to be fun in this country, it's supposed to be entertaining. Sometimes people forget that. The genesis of the idea was to meet and post about it and make it a fun thing. It was our small soccer-nerdy way of drawing attention to the beauty of the Open.”

Delasandro even got some advice from his team’s captain before the coin-toss, and he was advised to go heads. It worked the first time, and he had to stick with the gameplan, but it failed him on the second time of asking. “You have to back yourself and back the coin. That’s our club mentality, that if you want to beat us then you’re going to have to beat us,” said Delasandro.

That sets up a bit of a colder day since the game will take place in Chicago, but it won’t be as chilly as it has been in recent days.

“It's not going to be as cold as I would like,” said Wilt. “It's unfortunately warming up, in terms of the dynamic that the Tulsa players would have dealt with. It’s fortunate for the fans, at least.”

What is unfortunate is that Tulsa now has to make the trip up north, and the timing has made this challenge especially challenging.

“We play in the UPSL, and unfortunately we play on Saturday in the conference championship game. We’ll play at 2, and then the boys will get on a flight early the following day and go to Chicago. I think what's being asked of the club is probably one of the most daunting tasks ever asked of an amateur soccer club in the United States, but we looked at it as a challenge,” said Delasandro.

“The main concern is just like getting the most amount of recovery that we can get. The good thing is a lot of guys at this level play in tournaments where they're playing four and five games in a weekend. We don't view it as ideal, but you know you've got two options. You can use it as an excuse, or you can find a solution. Our choice will be the latter. If we're able to pull it off and win both, I think it would be a really remarkable feat that solidifies the club's reputation as one of the best amateur clubs that's played in the US.”

New man in charge

The biggest difference with the House this year versus their previous Open Cup qualifying campaigns is the man in charge.

Following the departure of former head coach Matt Poland in the summer, the club turned to former player Shannon Seymour to take charge. He’s done what he’s needed to so far, but this will be his biggest game yet. The club has full faith in him.

“It's very rewarding to see our faith in him rewarded.

He has done everything we've asked for and more,” said Wilt. “It's not just the results. It’s the way he's embracing the opportunity to make the transition from player to coach, and it's not an easy thing to do at the same place. These guys were your teammates and now they're your students. The dynamic changes, and he is self-aware enough to recognize that.”

Pressure is a privilege, and Seymour knows how much a win here would mean for not only the club, but himself.

“I mean for myself, personally, it means everything. I've seen what the Open Cup magic means for me as a player, so knowing what it could mean for some of the new guys who have yet to experience that, I feel like I put a lot on myself to get them to that feeling so they can experience that level of professionalism. Playing a Minnesota United II or a Chicago Fire or a Forward Madison in a competitive fixture is completely life changing,” said Seymour. “Doing this gives me the validation that I'm here and maybe this is the right path for me. If you know your why, or why you’re doing something, then it makes this work easy. Although it's work, it doesn't seem like it when I'm on the field or when I'm prepping the team. It would mean the world to me to be able to do this and deliver this team to the Open Cup as a coach, with my own tactics and my own ideas. It's massive shoes to fill with Poland getting there twice, and I want to take that mantle and make him proud. That would mean everything.”

He does have some new challenges ahead of him. The first is the fact that he’ll be up against opposition that’s not familiar or local to the Chicagoland area.

“When you play a Chicago-based opponent, it's a lot easier to scout. There’s a lot more people to talk to that have played them or know them. We know the league they play in, and we know they are very dominant there, both regionally and nationally,” said Seymour. “Scouting's been a little more tricky in the sense that you can get a gist of the team but not individual players. We know they have some very talented players. It was a little tricky, but getting to see some of their games on YouTube and talking to some other coaches to help with scouting has been helpful.”

While Delasandro himself isn’t a coach, he understands that sometimes you need to worry less about what the opposition is going to do and think more about what you want to do.

“I feel like if you were to overthink and tweak everything you were doing to react to something that another team was doing at this level, I don’t think that would be the greatest investment of time and of tactical application. You go out there and have an idea of what they're going to try and do and their dangerous players, but we have our ideas and our dangerous players as well,” said Delasandro. “We'll probably lock horns for the first half-hour and then see where that goes. If there's some changes that need to be made, our coach John Woodhead is certainly more than capable of identifying those during the course of a match.”

The House has one very dangerous player who unfortunately will have to miss out this weekend, which leads to Seymour’s other big new challenge. Club captain AR Smith has been suspended for the contest due to yellow card accumulation, and that is a major blow for his side.

“Anybody who knows AR knows he exudes a confidence that it's hard to find. He's played at top levels and he's been a magician on the field for us. What he does for the team on and off the field is unmatched, and it will be tough to fill that role. AR has pushed us through games, and he really becomes a killer in games where you need a killer,” said Seymour.

However, Chicago has always had a “next man up” mentality, and that won’t change here.

“We have guys that understand the situation, and I think AR has been awesome and supportive of the guys and telling them this is a team sport at the end of day. It takes our whole roster to win a game, especially in the Open Cup. You not only have to look at who can replace him in midfield but who can take the armband, who can be the next guy to step up and calm the team down when things are getting hectic, or to maybe put in a hard tackle when we need an enforcer. Different guys will have to step, and we do have multiple guys that can step up and fill different holes,” said Seymour.

“That will be another challenge for this team, but this is a team that's faced numerous challenges throughout the tournament, and they're coming together with the knowledge that they have the ability to overcome it,” said Wilt.

Final words

No matter what side of the coin you fall on, fans of both teams should be set for a fun and exciting affair. Many fail to recognize the magic of the Open Cup, but here’s hoping this contest delivers a classic.

Even if it doesn’t, there’s a good chance we’ll see some magic regardless before the game even kicks off.

“We’re going to give the House the greatest pennant in U.S. soccer history,” said Delasandro.

- Adnan Bašić