Seemingly year after year, Indiana men’s soccer embarks on a daunting regular season path in hopes of making the College Cup. This year is certainly no different, as the Hoosiers’ pursuit for a ninth championship will lead off with the reigning national champions — the no.-1 ranked Clemson University Tigers.
Indiana’s culture is driven by its history and decorated collection of talent. To sustain it means facing challenges. Head coach Todd Yeagley said in a Wednesday press conference that he embraces the Hoosiers’ rigorous schedule, and he understands more than most what it takes to build a winning program.
“It’s just the standard,” Yeagley said. “It would be easier to put a couple of light ones in there, but playing softer teams won’t really get us where we need to go short term and long term.”
From a tactical standpoint, Yeagley said preparing for a season opener, much less the No. 1 team in the country, has its obstacles. Given the changes in Clemson’s roster, namely losing senior and top goal scorer Luis Felipe Fernandez-Salvador and senior goalkeeper George Marks to the pros, Yeagley said the Hoosiers have to rely on the opposition’s philosophy and past tendencies more so than concrete film.
From Yeagley’s scouting report of the Tigers, coming out of the road match with points seems like a Herculean task.
“They’ve got athleticism, they have individual flair, they’re well structured, they’re well coached and they have an amazing crowd and environment,” Yeagley said. “This will be a College Cup environment.”
Luckily for the Hoosiers, they appear to have a formidable roster of their own. Despite losing key cogs in goalkeeper Roman Celentano, forward Victor Bezerra and defender Spencer Glass to Major League Soccer, the Hoosiers retained multiple veterans like redshirt senior defender Daniel Munie and expect contributions from a variety of underclassmen and transfers.
[Related: Indiana men’s soccer players recognized in Top Drawer Soccer 2022 preseason awards]
One of those transfers is junior and former Duke University goalkeeper JT Harms, who will make the start in goal on Friday against the Tigers. Harms, an Ohio native, is a midwesterner through and through and had developed connections to multiple of his Hoosier teammates in his time with the Columbus Crew Academy as a youth player.
Yeagley acknowledged the massive hole Celentano left between the pipes, but he believes Harms is up to the task.
“Roman was a special keeper no doubt, but we don’t need our keeper to be Roman,” Yeagley said. “(JT) has a good composure to him, he has a good IQ, his positional play is excellent, he has good natural leadership and he’s one that puts a lot of fires out before they make their way into the box.”
After experimenting with a 3-4-3 formation in the preseason, all signs point to the three-center back system being implemented at the outset of the regular season. However, Yeagley said it is subject to change. The defending core on paper — with the likes of Munie, junior Joey Maher and fifth-year senior Nyk Sessock — are capable of warding off opposing attackers. Still, the offensive arsenal of weapons will be put to the test against a stingy Tigers defense.
Sophomore forwards Samuel Sarver and Tommy Mihalic flashed brilliance as freshmen and will figure to be an integral part of the Hoosiers’ attack. Karsen Henderlong, a senior transfer from Xavier University, was a lethal goalscorer in the Big East. Additionally, senior Herbert Endeley brings loads of speed and potent playmaking ability up front.
To beat the Tigers, it will take near perfection in multiple facets of play.
In the preseason, the midfield was one of the focal points of Yeagley’s experimentation, and it will be crucial to have a maestro in the middle of the field controlling the tempo. Whether that be redshirt senior Ben Yeagley, sophomore Patrick McDonald or an unexpected contributor will remain to be seen.
At 7 p.m under the lights of Historic Riggs Field in Clemson, South Carolina on Friday, the Hoosiers will be pitted against a collegiate soccer titan. Despite being the underdog, Yeagley exudes confidence in his squad.
“We take the field every game and expect them to get a result and we’re gonna go out there and we’re gonna get after it,” Yeagley said. “I know we’re playing Clemson, but they’re playing Indiana.”
