"It's the time of day where it's just me. I can plan my day, go for a run, collect my thoughts," he says.
His thoughts are constantly flowing.
"Your brain is going 24-7," he says.
And his brain is working well. The Union has spent most of the season in first place in MLS' Eastern Conference.
Curtin credits his players.
"They have a belief right now and they have confidence that they can beat anybody in our league," he says.
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During our day with Curtin, we learn of his unique approaches. He calls them "progressive."
Curtin has placed GPS units on each player. He says, "So I know how many sprints they've done, what their heart rate is at when they're starting to fatigue. Maybe that's when I make a substitution."
Curtin also has a different approach to film sessions.
"I try to keep film sessions eight minutes and under, just attention span-wise", he says. "I think anytime you get over that threshold in the touchscreen generation...they can kind of switch off," he says.
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Born in Montgomery County, Curtin was a standout player at Villanova. He played nine seasons in MLS. In 2010, he returned home to join the Union as a coach at their academy.
Four years later, he was named head coach.
"To be able to coach a team in the city where I'm from, to give them their first trophy is why I do this. I won't stop working until we get it," said Curtin.