DiPrimio: IU Men’s Soccer Confident as Title Hopes Renew
8/21/2023 8:00:00 AM | Men's Soccer
By Pete DiPrimio
IUHoosiers.com
BLOOMINGTON — Tommy Mihalic considers Indiana men's soccer's possibilities, and smiles.
"We feel really good," the junior forward says. "Guys are matching well. Newcomers are learning quickly. I think we're in a good spot."
An unbeaten preseason is in the books. Now the fight for a ninth national title resumes.
"We'll grow as the season goes on," Mihalic says. "We'll never be at our best at the beginning of the season. We're excited for the season to start."
Excitement is once again everywhere you look for this perennial national contender. Players come and go, but the winning remains, a tribute to a tradition more than half a century in the making.
With a No. 2 national ranking and a roster full of talent, young and old, and a seasoned coaching staff well versed in maximizing it, optimism is off the charts entering Thursday's season opener at Notre Dame. And if coach Todd Yeagley preaches early perspective, can you blame him?
The Hoosiers, after all, are less than two weeks into preparation for a schedule as grueling as any in the nation — including seven teams that played in last year's NCAA tourney. They have to replace three players who were drafted by Major League Soccer — high-scoring Ryan Wittenbrink, two-time Big Ten defensive player of the year Daniel Munie and four-time All-Big-Ten standout Herbert Endeley.
Ten freshmen combine with a strong veteran core highlighted by Mihalic, forwards Samuel Sarver and Maouloune Gaumballe, defenders Joey Maher and Brett Bebej, and goalkeeper JT Harms in the quest to improve on last season's national runner-up finish.
"I feel good," Yeagley says, "but it's still fast."
IU prepared with three exhibition victories in seven days, the last a 1-0 physical grind over Louisville.
"The lead up to each game was a little different," Yeagley says. "We were able to experiment. For (the Louisville game), the bench got short, but I wanted to get the new guys some big minutes."
Freshmen such as goalkeeper Alex Kara, defender Joel Demian and forwards Collins Oduro, Alex Barger and Clay Murador figure to have key roles.
"We put in a couple of freshmen who we think will play some important roles," Yeagley says about the Louisville strategy. "We forced a couple of moves. We had a new goal keeper (Kara) in the second half. I wanted to see Barger on the right. Joel is now healthy. I was ready to see him wide left. Clay has been a surprise. He has tremendous athletic tools.
"A lot of these freshmen are composed beyond their years, which has given us a lot of confidence because we knew we needed some new players to push us."
Mihalic's goal against Louisville reflects the scoring opportunities he'll have with the departure of Wittenbrink and his 10 goals and nine assists. Mihalic was IU's second-leading scorer with seven goals and may see most of his minutes on that same left wing that Wittenbrink was so lethal from.
"Pressure is good to have," Mihalic says. "I know I have to have a big role on this team. I'm up for that. I want that. I'm excited to have that role. Now I have to score big goals like that."
Goalkeeping is solid, starting with Harms, who emerged last season after transferring from Duke. He was in goal during four straight NCAA Tournament shutouts entering the title match against Syracuse.
"We know JT is in a good spot right now," Yeagley says. "Last year, it was, who are we going start (at goalkeeper). That's settled now. We don't have any questions.
"JT feels he's playing as well as he has since he's been here. That's what we need. Now we need to make sure we have someone ready if something happens to JT. Alex is someone we think could do it for us."
Harms continues IU's string of outstanding goalkeepers, including Roman Celentano, Trey Muse, Luis Soffner, Jay Nolly, Scott Coufal, T.J. Hanning, Chris Oswald, John Putna, Chay Cain and Juergen Sommer.
"We knew him prior to Duke," Yeagley says. "We had a need. He was a guy we liked on the prep side.
"Once he hit the transfer portal, we knew we needed another competitive No. 1 who could be the No. 1.
"He was a freshman captain at Duke, which says a lot, and he wasn't even a starter. That says what type of kid he is.
"His ability to relate to his teammates is high end. He's selfless. He has a big heart and has the great characteristics you want in a leader — discipline, balance.
"Now we're seeing a really confident kid. That run we had the last third of last season, he was a big part of our success. He's doubled down on that."
The 6-4 Kara spent the last two years playing for Sporting Kansas City's academy after winning a pair of Kentucky high school state titles at Louisville Collegiate School.
Against Louisville, Yeagley says, "We had to throw (Kara) in the water. His upside package is nice. He has tremendous size, and interesting and good technique. He has to understand some spaces better and managing the game better. Some of his distribution moments could have been cleaner in the first two games. (Against Louisville) it was better. You have to get some games for that. I think he has a nice future."
Opening at Notre Dame, a perennial power with 20 NCAA tourney appearances, including a 2013 national championship, reflects Hoosier scheduling philosophy — started by Jerry Yeagley, continued by Mike Freitag and now Todd — to play the best early to prepare for success later.
With eight national titles and nine national runner-up finishes, including three second places in the last six years, it's paid off.
IU is 33-10-3 against Notre Dame, 10-7-2 in the last 19 meetings, with 14 decided by one goal or a tie.
"The game is always tight," Yeagley says. "They are a good team. They're well coached. They have some new players like we do. They are sorting out their team. They are a big team. Restarts with be important."
Adds Mihalic: "It's a big rivalry. We play them every year. It was our opener my freshman year (a 3-2 IU overtime win). They have a good team and good players. It will be a good challenge to open the year. We're excited for that."
A large Hoosier crowd is likely.
"The IU crowd will give us a big lift," Yeagley says. "Our fans are amazing. A lot will come down from Chicago. We'll have a good presence."
