STATESBORO - There's plenty of reasons for the Georgia Southern men's soccer team to be content with the successes that head coach John Murphy's first season with the Eagles brought about. An outstanding 4-1-1 record at home, four wins against regionally-ranked opponents and the first conference title of any kind in the program's history exceeded all expectations for the Eagles in 2016. But now, Georgia Southern's sights are set higher as the sophomore season for coach Murphy begins in earnest in 2017.
DEFENDING THE TITLE
Murphy has the luxury of returning experience as the Eagles have 10 of 11 starters back from last season's squad that went 8-8-3 overall, with 14 returning players in total. Not resting on their laurels, however, the coaching staff has brought in a staggering 16 newcomers from across the state of Georgia and around the world which gives Georgia Southern a very deep squad heading into 2017.
"There's a psychology to meeting new expectations," Coach Murphy said about the prospect of defending last season's Sun Belt Conference regular season title. "I think the program here, traditionally, has always been quite competitive. Anytime you can consummate your efforts with a championship, expectations grow. And that's going to be the challenge with our group.
"We're fortunate to have 14 returning players, which is a fantastic number, but we also have a very large incoming group. To be able to integrate all that talent together; to be able to clarify roles and what expectations there are, that's not easy, and it's what we've spent the majority of our preseason on. Now it's about getting chemistry and togetherness, and a camaraderie that's required when you're playing against top competition."
POSITION BY POSITION
And it's not just one position that will benefit from the solid core of returning players, plus the influx of new talent. Each position will have competition for starting roles and significant minutes as the season goes along.
Up top, the Eagles have the luxury of returning All-Conference forward Blake Wilson. The senior ranked third in the Sun Belt in goals scored (8) and points (18) and was named a preseason All-Sun Belt selection by the league's coaches. In addition, senior Adam Abdellaoui returns after notching a pair of goals and a team-high four assists last year. The newcomers include Spanish junior Javier Carbonell, a very accomplished striker who played in Atletico de Madrid's club system, along with freshman Jack Rittmeyer from nearby Savannah and freshman Edward Raji from Dacula.
The midfield returns a pair of All-Conference performers in senior Nick Wells and sophomore Sander Wang. Wells showed his versatility throughout the season, playing in a multitude of spots on the field while adding two goals and an assist, while Wang's freshman campaign included a goal - the game-winner in the season-opening win against Houston Baptist - and three assists, with two of the three assists resulting in game-winning goals. Also returning from last season for the Eagles are senior Thor Sveinbjornsson, sophomore Josh Bronstorph and sophomore Trei Schwartz. Seven newcomers will add their athleticism and depth to the midfield, including junior transfers Sam Choi (Young Harris) and Sebastian Gregerson (Limestone). Sweden native Victor Gustafsson joins four other freshman - Kareem Gharbi (Fairfax, Va.), Alhaji Tambadu (Stone Mountain, Ga.), Rhys Jeffrey (Woodstock, Ga.) and Ethan Oulsnam (Gray, Ga.).
The back line for the Eagles featured, at many times last season, one sophomore and three freshmen. Returning to anchor the group is Sun Belt Conference Defender of the Year Emil Laursen. The junior was picked as the preseason Defender of the Year by the league's coaches in 2017 and looks to follow up on his All-Conference and All-Region campaign this year. Laursen tallied three goals in 2016, all game-winners for the Eagles, and played every minute in 11 of his 14 starts. The other three returning starters, now sophomores, are Rasmus Juul, Justin Little and David Rhoades. Sophomore Landon Crossley also returns for the Eagles. Adding to the defensive group are four newcomers, with sophomore transfer Sebastian Carlson (Presbyterian) joining the Eagles, along with freshmen Gonzalo Talavera (Madrid, Spain), Cody Prentiss (St. George, S.C.) and Aldair Cortes (Cairo, Ga.)
Two newcomers join two returners for Georgia Southern in goal for the 2017 campaign. Redshirt sophomore Torgeir Fjaer was 6-6-3 with a 1.33 GAA in 15 matches last season, notching a pair of shutouts, while junior Chase Herzog went 2-2 in four starts with a 1.50 GAA. A pair of transfers will look to compete for the starting spot as graduate student Robert Flott (Butler) brings his 6-5 frame to the Eagles for his final collegiate season. Sophomore transfer Conner Washer (Limestone) played in a pair of matches for the Saints last season before joining the Eagles.
THE SCHEDULE
The Eagles hit the ground running with tournament action in Charleston, S.C., to open up the season with non-conference matches against Monmouth (Aug. 25) and Furman (Aug. 27). The month of September features an attractive home opener against No. 5-ranked Clemson (Sept. 4) and in all, four teams that were in the Top 50 of the NCAA's RPI last season will face the Eagles during the month. On September 8th and 10th, Georgia Southern will host the Coastal Empire Challenge, featuring Houston Baptist, Jacksonville University and Gardner-Webb. The first day of action taking place at the Armstrong State Soccer Field in Savannah, Ga., with the final day competing at Eagle Park in Statesboro. Georgia Southern men's soccer will be the first team to play a regular season match on the Armstrong campus in wake of the consolidation announcement made earlier this year.
No. 19-ranked Coastal Carolina on the home slate also gives the Eagles the opportunity to host a pair of nationally-ranked opponents in one season for the first time since 2002. The Eagles also have home dates against Mercer (Sept. 23), Georgia State (Oct. 7), Stetson (Oct. 24) and Howard (Oct. 28).
In addition to the season-opening tournament, away dates include North Florida (Sept. 1), Winthrop (Sept. 19), Campbell (Oct. 11), UAB (Oct. 17), Hartwick (Oct. 21) and Appalachian State (Nov. 4). The 2017 Sun Belt Conference Tournament will take place on November 9-12 at Coastal Carolina.
"As you can see, we have an upgraded schedule in 2017 and it will be an exciting challenge for our entire program," Murphy said. "There are no easy games at this level, so we must be consistent in our approach to each game. With eight regular season games and an exhibition match at home this year, we hope to establish a strong home field advantage with the amazing support that our university community and fans in southeast Georgia can provide. The Sun Belt will be more competitive than ever, and that combined with our non-league contests, will pit us against some of the best teams in the country. We look forward with measuring our program against top competition week-in and week-out in 2017."
THE GOAL
For the Eagles, it's a two-fold goal. Win now, but build the foundation for a program that will continue to climb the ladder of successes in the future. Murphy outlines his thoughts as the Eagles begin to play their second season under the veteran coach with more than 20 years of experience, collegiately and professionally.
"We need to continue to take a step forward and at this level, it's not easy," Murphy said. "We have a saying around here. Process over prizes. That's what we're trying to emphasize. In the short term, we're trying to get as much out of this particular group of players that we can right now, but obviously we have to look to the future. The things we're going to build on - team chemistry, academic excellence and social responsibility within the group - these are things that we've tried to establish from the outset that are always going to be long term goals for the program.
"When you bring in mature talented players, and you have a good environment around the program, that's what's going to fortify you during the tough times. We're going to have challenges this season and we're going to have to find ways to get through them together. That's not only going to help us in the short term, but help set the table for long term goals for this program."
The short-term goals begin for the Eagles, who are picked to finish second in the Sun Belt Conference in a preseason poll of the league's coaches in 2017, on Friday, August 25th at the Aaron Olitsky Tournament, hosted by the College of Charleston.
