2019 Conference USA men's soccer season

The 2019 Conference USA men's soccer season was the 25th season of men's varsity soccer in the conference. The season began on August 25 and concluded on November 12.

2019 Conference USA men's soccer season
LeagueNCAA Division I
SportSoccer
DurationAugust 2019 – November 2019
Number of teams8
2020 MLS SuperDraft
Top draft pickElliot Panicco
Picked byNashville SC, 13th overall
Regular Season
Season championsMarshall
  Runners-upCharlotte
Season MVPAimé Mabika (Kentucky)
Tournament
ChampionsMarshall
  Runners-upCharlotte
C-USA men's soccer seasons
2019 Conference USA men's soccer standings
ConfOverall
TeamW L TW L T
No. 11 Marshall5111633
No. 21 Charlotte +4031244
No. 23 Kentucky +4211353
FIU4211035
Florida Atlantic340781
South Carolina250792
UAB1513122
Old Dominion1513111
As of 17 December 2019
Rankings from United Soccer Coaches

The defending regular season and tournament champions were Kentucky.

Background

Previous season

Ahead of the 2018 NCAA Division I men's soccer season, FIU was ranked 20th in the United Soccer Coaches preseason poll. As the season progressed, Kentucky emerged as one of the strongest teams in the nation, being ranked as third in the country. Kentucky finished the season with a program best record of 19–2–1. Kentucky would also go on to win the C-USA regular season, win the 2018 Conference USA Men's Soccer Tournament,[1] and reach the Elite Eight of the 2018 NCAA Division I Men's Soccer Tournament.[2][3] Additionally, C-USA runners-up, Charlotte earned an at-large bit into the NCAA Tournament.[4] Old Dominion, who had one point been ranked as high as 18th in the nation, were one of the first teams out of the NCAA Tournament bubble.

Head coaching changes

The New Mexico Lobos men's soccer program was relegated from a varsity to a club sport. Head coach Jeremy Fishbein's contract expired with the termination of the New Mexico varsity program.[5]

Long-time UAB Blazers men's soccer head coach, Mike Getman, retired following the conclusion of the 2018 NCAA Division I men's soccer season. Getman was replaced by Virginia Tech assistant coach, Jeff Kinney.[6]

SchoolOutgoing coachManner of
departure
Date of
vacancy
Position in tableIncoming coachDate of
appointment
UAB Mike GetmanRetiredNovember 26, 2019Preseason Jeff KinneyDecember 21, 2018
New Mexico Jeremy FishbeinProgram terminatedJanuary 1, 2019Preseason

Head coaches

As of 2018 season
TeamHead coachPrevious jobYears at schoolOverall recordRecord at schoolC-USA recordNCAA
Tournaments[7]
NCAA
College Cups[7]
NCAA
Titles[7]
CharlotteKevin LanganCharlotte (asst.)886–34–20 (.686)86–34–20 (.686)38–10–10 (.741)600
FIUKevin NylenOrlando City SC (scout)319–12–4 (.600)19–12–4 (.600)11–3–2 (.750)100
Florida AtlanticJoey WorthenSouth Carolina (asst.)34–27–0 (.129)4–27–0 (.129)3–13–0 (.188)000
KentuckyJohan CedergrenDartmouth8128–72–31 (.621)76–42–17 (.626)35–14–8 (.684)1000
MarshallChris GrassieCharleston (WV)3115–39–12 (.729)16–19–4 (.462)6–8–2 (.438)000
Old DominionAlan DawsonNorth Carolina (asst.)23373–166–51 (.675)244–136–41 (.628)28–17–3 (.615)1400
South CarolinaMark BersonThe Citadel41507–250–73 (.655)496–245–73 (.654)53–42–19 (.548)2230
UABJeff KinneyVirginia Tech (asst.)10–0–0 (–)0–0–0 (–)0–0–0 (–)000

Preseason

Preseason poll

The preseason poll was released on August 13, 2019.[8]

Team RankingFirst Place Votes
1.Kentucky5
2.Charlotte2
3.Old Dominion0
4.Marshall1
5.FIU0
6.South Carolina0
7.UAB0
8.Florida Atlantic0

Preseason national rankings

The preseason national rankings will be announced in August 2019. United Soccer Coaches, Soccer America, and TopDrawerSoccer.com do a Top-25 preseason poll. CollegeSoccerNews.com and Hero Sports do a Top-30 preseason poll.

UnitedSoccer[9]CSN[10]SoccerAmerica[11]TopDrawerSoccer[12]
Charlotte21232020
FIURV
Florida Atlantic
Kentucky8266
Marshall
Old DominionRVRV
South Carolina
UAB

Preseason All-Conference teams

HonorRecipient
Preseason Co-Offensive Player of the YearKalil El-Medkhar, Kentucky
Preseason Co-Offensive Player of the YearJason Reyes, Kentucky
Preseason Defensive Player of the YearAimé Mabika, Kentucky
Preseason All-CUSA Team
PlayerSchoolClassPosition
Teddy ChaoucheCharlotteSr.MF
Elliot PaniccoCharlotteR-Sr.GK
Andrew BoothFIUR-Sr.MF/D
Alonso CoelloFlorida AtlanticSo.MF
Kalil El-MedkharKentuckyJr.MF
Enrique FacusseKentuckyJr.GK
Aimé MabikaKentuckyR-Jr.D
Jason ReyesKentuckySo.F
Daniel CoronaOld DominionSo.F
Sebastien HauretOld DominionR-Sr.MF
Luca MayrSouth CarolinaSr.MF/F

Regular season

Positions by round

Team ╲ Round1234567
FIU1111234
Marshall2233321
Charlotte3322112
Kentucky4454443
Old Dominion5545578
UAB6676687
South Carolina7767856
Florida Atlantic8888765
2019 Conference USA Men's Soccer Tournament semifinals
2019 Conference USA Men's Soccer Tournament quarterfinals
Eliminated

Rankings

National

  Improvement in ranking
 Drop in ranking
RVReceived votes but were not ranked in Top 25
NVNo votes received
 Pre[13]Wk
1
Wk
2
Wk
3
Wk
4
Wk
5
Wk
6
Wk
7
Wk
8
Wk
9
Wk
10
Wk
11
Wk
12
Wk
13
Wk
14
Wk
15
Wk
16
Final
Charlotte USC 211712101195101718171715None released21
TDS 202021201815888232321222519191919
FIU USC RVRVRV221613151211131923RVNone releasedRV
TDS NVNVNVNVNVRV2123212417RVRVNVNVNVNVNV
Florida Atlantic USC NVNVNVNVNVNVNVNVNVNVNVNVNVNone releasedNV
TDS NVNVNVNVNVNVNVNVNVNVNVNVNVNVNVNVNVNV
Kentucky USC 891721231916201616161519None released23
TDS 6659201814152325182323RVRVRVRVRV
Marshall USC NVNVNVRVRVRVRV211520141311None released11
TDS NVNVNVNVNVNVRVNVNVNVNVNVRV1514151515
Old Dominion USC RVNVNVNVNVNVNVNVNVNVNVNVNVNone releasedNV
TDS NVNVNVNVNVNVNVNVNVNVNVNVNVNVNVNVNVNV
South Carolina USC NVNVNVNVNVNVNVNVNVNVNVNVNVNone releasedNV
TDS NVNVNVNVNVNVNVNVNVNVNVNVNVNVNVNVNVNV
UAB USC NVNVNVNVNVNVNVNVNVNVNVNVNVNone releasedNV
TDS NVNVNVNVNVNVNVNVNVNVNVNVNVNVNVNVNVNV

Regional - United Soccer Southeast

The United Soccer Southeast regional rankings contain teams from Conference USA, the Atlantic 10 Conference, Sun Belt Conference, and Missouri Valley Conference.

  Improvement in ranking
 Drop in ranking
RVReceived votes but were not ranked in Top 10
NVNo votes received
 Wk
1
Wk
2
Wk
3
Wk
4
Wk
5
Wk
6
Wk
7
Wk
8
Wk
9
Wk
10
Wk
11
Wk
12
Charlotte311111243332
FIU432223111447
Florida AtlanticNVNVNVNVNVNVNVNVNVNVNVNV
Kentucky243432432223
Marshall855344324111
Old DominionNVNVNVNVNVNVNVNVNVNVNVNV
South CarolinaNVNVNVNVNVNVNVNVNVNVNVNV
UABNVNVNVNVNVNVNVNVNVNVNVNV

Postseason

Conference USA Tournament

The Conference USA Men's Soccer Tournament was held from November 13–16, 2019 on the campus of Old Dominion University. Marshall won their first ever Conference USA Championship, beating Charlotte in the final.

Quarterfinals
November 13
Semifinals
November 15
C-USA Championship
November 16
1Marshall1
4Kentucky24Kentucky0
5Florida Atlantic01Marshall1
2Charlotte0
2Charlotte1
3FIU33FIU0
6South Carolina0

NCAA Tournament

SeedRegionSchool1st Round2nd Round3rd RoundQuarterfinalsSemifinalsChampionship
113MarshallBYE W 2–1 vs. West Virginia(Huntington, WV) L 1–4 vs. #6 Washington(Seattle, WA)
4Charlotte W 3–1 vs. Mercer(Charlotte, NC) L 1–2 (OT) vs. #2 Clemson(Clemson, SC)
2Kentucky W 2–1 (OT) vs. Loyola Chicago(Lexington, KY) L 0–3 vs. #5 Indiana(Bloomington, IN)

Awards and honors

Players of the Week

WeekOffensiveDefensiveRef.
PlayerPositionTeamPlayerPositionTeam
Sep. 2Andrew BoothFWFIUHagay JalonGKFlorida Atlantic[14]
Sep. 9Teddy ChaoucheMFCharlottePatrick HoganDFCharlotte[15]
Sep. 16Alessandro CampoyFWFIUDelasi BatseDFCharlotte[16]
Sep. 23Caleb FrankeFWFIUNick O’CallaghanDFFIU[17]
Sep. 30Ivan MykhailenkoFWFlorida AtlanticDaniel GagliardiGKFIU[18]
Oct. 7Axel SigurdarsonMFCharlotteIllal OsmanuDFMarshall[19]
Oct. 14Mohamed CondeFWFIUElliot PaniccoDFCharlotte[20]
Oct. 21Milo YosefFWMarshallPaulo PitaGKMarshall[21]
Oct. 28Daniel EvansFWKentuckyHagay JalonGKFlorida Atlantic[22]
Nov. 4Milo YosefFWMarshallPaulo PitaGKMarshall[23]
Nov. 11Jamil RobertsMFMarshallPaulo PitaGKMarshall[24]

Postseason awards

Conference awards

2019 C-USA Men's Soccer Individual Awards[25]
AwardRecipient(s)
Player of the YearAimé Mabika, Kentucky
Offensive Player of the YearMilo Yosef, Marshall
Co-Defensive Players of the YearNick O'Callaghan, FIU
Aimé Mabika, Kentucky
Midfielder of the YearAndrew Booth, FIU
Goalkeeper of the YearElliot Panicco, Charlotte
Freshman of the YearMilo Yosef, Marshall
Co-Golden Glove AwardElliot Panicco, Charlotte
Paulo Pita, Marshall
Golden Boot AwardAlessandro Campoy, FIU
Coach of the YearChris Grassie, Marshall
2019 C-USA Men's Soccer All-Conference Teams[citation needed]
First TeamSecond TeamThird TeamRookie Team

GK: Elliot Panicco, Charlotte
D: Patrick Hogan, Charlotte
D: Nick O'Callaghan, FIU
D: Aimé Mabika, Kentucky
D: Illal Osmanu, Marshall
MF: Teddy Chaouche, Charlotte
MF: Andrew Booth, FIU
MF: Alonso Coello, Florida Atlantic
MF: Kalil El-Medkhar, Kentucky
F: Alessandro Campoy, FIU
F: Milo Yosef, Marshall

GK: Enrique Facusse, Kentucky
GK: Paulo Pita, Marshall
D: Jimmy Filerman, Old Dominion
D: Frano Buhovac, South Carolina
MF: Alban Rousselet, FIU
MF: Alex Alexis, Florida Atlantic
MF: Marcel Meinzer, Kentucky
MF: Pedro Dolabella, Marshall
MF: Deniz Dogan, Old Dominion
F: Ivan Mykhailenko, Florida Atlantic
F: Daniel Evans, Kentucky
F: Jamil Roberts, Marshall

GK: Daniel Gagliardi, FIU
D: Luke Johnson, Charlotte
D: David Garcia, FIU
D: Tom Abrahamsson, Florida Atlantic
D: Jan-Erik Leinhos, Marshall
D: Chris Reichman, UAB
MF: Joe Brito, Charlotte
MF: Xavi Olmos Ferris, FIU
MF: Sebastien Hauret, Old Dominion
MF: Logan Hitzeman, South Carolina
MF: Chase Rushing, UAB
F: Kameron Lacey, Charlotte
F: Brian Banahan, South Carolina

Kameron Lacey, F, Charlotte
Axel Sigurdarson, MF, Charlotte
AJ Cousins, D, FIU
David Garcia, D, FIU
Tom Abrahamsson, D, Florida Atlantic
John Michael Bandy, D, Kentucky
Eythor Bjorgolfsson, MF, Kentucky
Max Schneider, MF, Marshall
Milo Yosef, F, Marshall
Jose Olmos, D, Old Dominion
Brian Banahan, F, South Carolina
Logan Hitzeman, MF, South Carolina

Regional awards

AwardRecipients
CoSIDA Academic All-District[26]Hagay Jalon, Florida Atlantic
Carlos Diaz-Salcedo, Marshall
Jonas Westmeyer, Marshall
Luca Mayr, South Carolina
United Soccer All-Southeast First-Team[27]Elliot Panicco, Charlotte
Aimé Mabika, Kentucky
Nick O'Callaghan, FIU
Illal Osmanu, Marshall
Andrew Booth, FIU
Kalil El-Medkhar, Kentucky
Jamil Roberts, Marshall
Milo Yosef, Marshall
United Soccer All-Southeast Second-Team[27]Enrique Facusse, Kentucky
Patrick Hogan, Charlotte
Jan-Erik Leinhos, Marshall
Teddy Chaouche, Charlotte
United Soccer All-Southeast Third-Team[27]Paulo Pita, Marshall
Marcel Meinzer, Kentucky
Alessandro Campoy, FIU

National awards

AwardRecipients
Senior CLASS Award[28]Elliot Panicco, Charlotte

All-Americans

Consensus All-Americans
None

To earn "consensus" status, a player must win honors based on a point system computed from the four different all-America teams. The point system consists of three points for first team, two points for second team and one point for third team. No honorable mention or fourth team or lower are used in the computation. The top five totals plus ties are first team and the next five plus ties are second team.[29]

College Soccer News[30]Soccer America[31]Top Drawer Soccer[32]United Soccer Coaches[33]
First Team
NoneNoneNoneNone
Second Team
None

Milo Yosef – Marshall

None

Milo Yosef – Marshall

Third Team
Elliot Panicco – Charlotte
Milo Yosef – Marshall
NoneNoneNone

2020 MLS Draft

The 2020 MLS SuperDraft was held in January 2020. Five players from Conference USA were selected.

Rnd.PickPlayerPos.TeamSchool
113 Elliot PaniccoGKNashville SCCharlotte
124 Paulo PitaGKLos Angeles FCMarshall
232 Daniel GagliardiGKVancouver WhitecapsFIU
357 Nick O'CallaghanDFOrlando CityFIU
496 Andrew BoothMFMinnesota UnitedFIU

Homegrown players

The Homegrown Player Rule is a Major League Soccer program that allows MLS teams to sign local players from their own development academies directly to MLS first team rosters. Before the creation of the rule in 2008,[34] every player entering Major League Soccer had to be assigned through one of the existing MLS player allocation processes, such as the MLS SuperDraft.

To place a player on its homegrown player list, making him eligible to sign as a homegrown player, players must have resided in that club's home territory and participated in the club's youth development system for at least one year.[35] Players can play college soccer and still be eligible to sign a homegrown contract.

No players from Conference USA signed homegrown contracts following the 2019 season ahead of the 2020 MLS season.

References