Tim Howard's historic performance as goalie for the U.S. soccer team in its World Cup loss won praise in a phone call from Secretary of Defense Chuck Hagel.
Hagel made the call Wednesday, prompted by someone going to the Secretary of Defense Wikipedia page and replacing Hagel's picture with Howard's picture,
according to The Hill. Howard's 16-save performance on Tuesday in the U.S. team's 2-1 loss to Belgium in the knockout round of the World Cup was the most by a goalie since the tournament started keeping such records.
Howard's play saved the U.S. team from a potentially embarrassing loss, but actually gave the Americans a chance to tie the game in the late stages of extra time, which could have sent the contest into penalty kicks to determine a winner against the world-rank Belgium squad.
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"Secretary Hagel congratulated Howard on his record-breaking game and a great run in Brazil," Pentagon press secretary Rear Adm. John Kirby said in a statement, adding that the entire team was sent an invitation to visit the Pentagon. "He told Howard that with some training, he could someday become the real secretary of defense."
The Wikipedia entry was a long list of Internet memes honoring Howard's play, many under the #TimHowardCanSave hashtag. Howard plays his regular soccer season with Everton F.C. in England's Premier League.
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