Tim Bresnahan, Staff Writer

FOXBORO, Mass. -- The move might have worked in college, but it had no chance on the practice field at Gillette Stadium. Felix Brillant dribbled the ball toward a defender on the left flank, kept it too long, and eventually was dispossessed.

Revolution teammate Brian Kamler yelled across the field, "Felix!" then extended his upturned hands as if to say, "Look at all the space. Look at all the teammates. Use them."

Lessons such as this one are inevitable when you're a rookie. Brillant is just trying to learn from them as best he can.

"It is tough adjusting," said the 23-year-old Montreal native, who could see action today when the Revs host Columbus (4 p.m., FSNE). "Every day after training, I try to analyze what I've done wrong, and at the next training, I try to do it different."

But Brillant has learned pretty quickly and made some impressive strides in his first few months with the Revs -- especially when you consider where he's come from. He spent the last four years at Franklin Pierce College, which competes in the Northeast-10 Conference with Merrimack College at the Division 2 level -- not exactly a breeding ground for MLS talent.

The Revs selected Brillant in the sixth round (56th overall) in January. None of the players selected at the 56th spot since MLS adopted its expanded SuperDraft format in 2000 has made any impact in the league -- no offense to Mario Gomez, Marsim Beskovic or Alejandro Rincon.

However, with the Revs roster heavily depleted by injuries, Brillant has seen action in four matches thus far (including the exhibition against Sporting Lisbon) and started in right midfield on Wednesday at Kansas City. Based on early returns, he might stick around for a while.

"I believe this is an opportunity Felix needs to be given, to prove he's worthy of being a professional soccer player," said Marco Koolman, head coach at Franklin Pierce. "I believe for him, this is only the beginning."

Fast and then some

Brillant's tremendous speed is his best asset, especially at this stage of his career. Put him into the late stages of the match, and let him start running, pressuring defenders and creating space on the flanks. However, he's more than just a trackster out there.

"When you have pace, you scare people, but he's got a lot more to his game than pace," said Revs head coach Steve Nicol. "He's got good feet. The more he's playing every day, the more experience he's gaining, and he's making better decisions. He's doing great. I'm more than happy with him."

While he didn't play at a big-time college program, Brillant's not intimidated by the professional level. Before going to Franklin Pierce, he spent two years in the youth system of Cannes, a pro club in France.

"It was a really good experience," said Brillant, who played right back at Cannes but has alternated between right midfield and forward since then. "This is not new to me, because I used to train every day over there. Actually, I used to train more than I do here."

Koolman, a native of the Netherlands, believes those two years in France made a huge difference in Brillant's development.

"Any international player ... has a simple advantage," said Koolman. "He's gone through the process of a pure, natural soccer environment. Just the fact that he's been in that culture has allowed him to grow as a player."

Nonetheless, the jump from college to MLS still isn't easy. In the Northeast-10, Brillant terrorized defenders with his skills, especially in one-on-one situations. Koolman often gave him a free role in the attacking third of the field, hoping to take full advantage of his superior abilities. The professional game presents far greater challenges.

"You don't have that much time to think. You need to know what you're going to do with the ball before you get it," said the 5-7, 153-pound Brillant. "That's the biggest adjustment. In college, even though I didn't know what to do with the ball, I could just push it (past a defender) and run with it. ... But here, people are as fast as me, so I can't push the ball and run. And physically, (with) my small body, I can't just muscle my way out of those situations."

Over the years, Revolution fans have seen many small, speedy forwards with flashes of skill: Welton, Jamar Beasley, Johnny Torres and William Sunsing come to mind. None of them ever really lived up to his potential, however.

Brillant arrived with little hype or expectations, but he now has a chance to make his mark with a Revs club that needs to find some offense from new sources.

"I hope MLS has patience with a player like this," Koolman said, "to develop players who bring enthusiasm and flair to the game."