No. 15 Indiana men’s soccer will travel to Tampa, Florida to face the University of South Florida on Friday for the first time since 2017.
The Hoosiers have only ever lost once to the Bulls — nearly 40 years ago in 1984, when the teams met for the first time. In the other five times the schools have met, Indiana has won four games and tied one. The most recent matchup ended in a 3-0 triumph for the Cream and Crimson.
This season, the Hoosiers’ only loss came to the University of Washington in a game they controlled for the majority of the 90 minutes. Indiana tied against the University of Notre Dame in the season opener and won over DePaul University and Seton Hall University. In both wins, the Hoosiers kept a clean sheet.
The Bulls have yet to win a single game this season. South Florida played Washington, Seattle University and Mercer University so far and lost all three games 2-0. The matchup against Indiana will be their second game at home, with the defeat to Mercer on Sept. 1 being the first.
In all three losses, South Florida has allowed one or more goals in the second half. In both of Indiana’s wins, the Hoosiers have scored in the second half.
However, Tampa is significantly hotter and more humid than Bloomington, so the heat could interfere with players’ stamina and tactics.
When asked about the preparation for the heat after the game against Seton Hall Monday, head coach Todd Yeagley said that he thinks his team is physically fit to withstand the 90 minutes.
“If we feel like we can’t, we might draw a line of confrontation,” Yeagley said.
While dealing with the heat, Yeagley said tactical changes might be necessary to manage fatigue while keeping composure. In the last few games, Indiana has primarily used the 4-4-2 formation, but have switched to 4-3-3 and even 4-2-3-1 throughout games.
Individually, Indiana will count on freshman forward Collins Oduro, who has two goals, and junior forward Sam Sarver, who tallies one goal and two assists so far this season.
The Hoosiers also rely on a strong defense composed of seniors Hugo Bacharach and Joey Maher. The team has allowed two goals in four games, and both goals came off individual mistakes against Notre Dame and Washington.
South Florida plays tough and doesn’t allow many chances for its opponents, averaging only seven total shots conceded per game. Indiana is a chance-generating machine, averaging 19 total shots per game with only 34 percent of those on target.
Defensively, the cream and crimson hold its opponents to an average of five total shots a game, while the Bulls average 10 total shots per game on the attack.
“We have a very good attack,” Sarver said in a post-game interview on Monday. “It’s going to be hard for a team to completely shut us out for a game.”
Kickoff is scheduled for 7 p.m. Friday at Corbett Stadium and the match will be streamed live on ESPN+.
