Briefly on the 6-0 win over Loyola (Md.), we did what we were supposed to do and that was good to see. Got 24 players into the game, which is impressive with the substitution rules.
Hopefully got some juice back into the legs of Gerbet (52 mins played), @yoshi121374 (27), Meinhard (27), Trimnal (36), Sandy Jr. (14), Gyan (27) and Remi (59). Two "big" conference games around a match at Holy Cross (1-3-1) coming up.
Now, "big" is subjective. A game at Boston College (2-0-3) tomorrow, before hosting Wake Forest (2-2-1) next Friday (I am assuming we will just stay in New England and not make two separate trips to Massachusetts). BC is a team we should handle and Wake doesn't look like Wake, yet.
But... we are 0-1-0 in the ACC and need to get the points when available - these need to be two conference wins.
At home, we've outscored BC 12-1 in the last three games played at Riggs. But you have to go back to 2014 to find the last game at BC that we've won by multiple goals (2-0). We are 2-1-1 in our last four games there with a GD of 1 (7-6).
Under head coach Bob Thompson, the Eagles are 15-6-14 at home in four-plus years under him. I just say all that to reiterate @JTJohnston stated in the Loyola (Md.) game-thread:
But this game is likely going to take at least two goals on the road against BC keeper Brennan Klein, one of the most experienced keepers in the league. He will be starting his 39th game between the pipes on Friday as a redshirt senior. That being said, he's not someone that should necessarily scare us with a 1.22 GAA over his career.
Defensively, we need to keep an eye on Ask Ekeland, the Duquesne transfer. He has four goals in five games this season and was named First Team All-Atlantic 10 and A-10 Midfielder of the Year as well as to the United Soccer Coaches Second Team All-Southeast Region as a sophomore last year, while being First Team All-Atlantic 10 and A-10 Rookie of the Year during his freshman campaign.
Ultimately, and pardon the cliche, we are playing ourselves on Friday. We are the better team. It's soccer, so things can happen, but if we take care of ourselves, three points should be ours.
BC plays in a 4-4-2 and actually average more shots per game than us (albeit against a weaker schedule). This makes central midfield a place where we need to dominate, so let's talk about our Mr. Consistency Joran Gerbet, our senior CM.
Gerbet started his career at soccer power Oregon State. I still contend that he saw King George ruin the No. 1 Beavers season in 2021 that he rode home on the plane with us.
The Frenchman started 20 games as a freshman (Pac-12 freshman of the year) and 16 as a sophomore (Pac-12 Player of the Year) at OSU before transferring. Gerbet isn't going to fill the stat sheet with goals and assists (has just four of each in 26 games for us), but he is and has been the glue to our midfield since arriving.
My favorite thing about him? He wears black cleats. No one does that anymore - just an old-school CM that wants to kick your a$$. Oh, and also, this free kick against Stanford was pretty sweet. Against our three competent opponents that we've played, Gerbet has played all but seven minutes.
Again, most won't see him on the field - he isn't the flashy, stepoverin', high-flyin', limousine-ridin', kiss-stealin' center midfielder. But watch how many times Gerbet gets the ball and the number of attacks he starts. He is our glue guy.
Go Tigers! Beat BC!
Hopefully got some juice back into the legs of Gerbet (52 mins played), @yoshi121374 (27), Meinhard (27), Trimnal (36), Sandy Jr. (14), Gyan (27) and Remi (59). Two "big" conference games around a match at Holy Cross (1-3-1) coming up.
Now, "big" is subjective. A game at Boston College (2-0-3) tomorrow, before hosting Wake Forest (2-2-1) next Friday (I am assuming we will just stay in New England and not make two separate trips to Massachusetts). BC is a team we should handle and Wake doesn't look like Wake, yet.
But... we are 0-1-0 in the ACC and need to get the points when available - these need to be two conference wins.
At home, we've outscored BC 12-1 in the last three games played at Riggs. But you have to go back to 2014 to find the last game at BC that we've won by multiple goals (2-0). We are 2-1-1 in our last four games there with a GD of 1 (7-6).
Under head coach Bob Thompson, the Eagles are 15-6-14 at home in four-plus years under him. I just say all that to reiterate @JTJohnston stated in the Loyola (Md.) game-thread:
The Eagles are unbeaten, including a 1-1 draw at home versus Syracuse in their last game. While BC only has seven goals in five games, they have scored in every game this season. However, they've given up just five goals in the five games - I don't think y'all need me to do the GAA average for that one.
But this game is likely going to take at least two goals on the road against BC keeper Brennan Klein, one of the most experienced keepers in the league. He will be starting his 39th game between the pipes on Friday as a redshirt senior. That being said, he's not someone that should necessarily scare us with a 1.22 GAA over his career.
Defensively, we need to keep an eye on Ask Ekeland, the Duquesne transfer. He has four goals in five games this season and was named First Team All-Atlantic 10 and A-10 Midfielder of the Year as well as to the United Soccer Coaches Second Team All-Southeast Region as a sophomore last year, while being First Team All-Atlantic 10 and A-10 Rookie of the Year during his freshman campaign.
Ultimately, and pardon the cliche, we are playing ourselves on Friday. We are the better team. It's soccer, so things can happen, but if we take care of ourselves, three points should be ours.
BC plays in a 4-4-2 and actually average more shots per game than us (albeit against a weaker schedule). This makes central midfield a place where we need to dominate, so let's talk about our Mr. Consistency Joran Gerbet, our senior CM.
Gerbet started his career at soccer power Oregon State. I still contend that he saw King George ruin the No. 1 Beavers season in 2021 that he rode home on the plane with us.
The Frenchman started 20 games as a freshman (Pac-12 freshman of the year) and 16 as a sophomore (Pac-12 Player of the Year) at OSU before transferring. Gerbet isn't going to fill the stat sheet with goals and assists (has just four of each in 26 games for us), but he is and has been the glue to our midfield since arriving.
My favorite thing about him? He wears black cleats. No one does that anymore - just an old-school CM that wants to kick your a$$. Oh, and also, this free kick against Stanford was pretty sweet. Against our three competent opponents that we've played, Gerbet has played all but seven minutes.
Again, most won't see him on the field - he isn't the flashy, stepoverin', high-flyin', limousine-ridin', kiss-stealin' center midfielder. But watch how many times Gerbet gets the ball and the number of attacks he starts. He is our glue guy.
Go Tigers! Beat BC!
