Indiana Picked 2nd In Big Ten Preseason Poll; McDonald, Sarver, Oduro Named On Players-To-Watch List

The Big Ten men's soccer preseason poll was released Monday, and No. 2 Indiana was slotted second. In the same release, three players from each team in the conference were chosen for the players-to-watch list. From Indiana: Patrick McDonald, Sam Sarver, and Collins Oduro.

BLOOMINGTON, Ind. — The Big Ten announced the men’s soccer preseason poll by the league’s coaches Monday, as well as the players-to-watch list. No. 2 Indiana was picked to finish second to No. 14 Maryland, last year’s regular season Big Ten champion.

Ohio State and Rutgers were picked to finish third and fourth, respectively. The top-four finishers in the conference last season likewise comprise the 2023 preseason top four. Last season, the order went Maryland, Ohio State and Rutgers tied for second, and then Indiana.

Three players from each of the nine programs in the conference were also selected for the preseason players-to-watch list. Two juniors, midfielder Patrick McDonald and forward Samuel Sarver, as well as highly-touted freshman forward Collins Oduro, represented the Hoosiers.

McDonald started 23 matches last season, scoring and assisting twice in big moments, such as in wins over No. 20 Butler and UNC Greensboro in the Elite Eight — and defeats to Rutgers in the Big Ten Tournament Championship and Syracuse in the national championship.

The pesky Sarver usually played as one of the two forwards up top last season, scoring Indiana’s first goal of the 2022 season by stealing the ball from the goalkeeper at top-ranked Clemson. Sarver scored in Indiana’s 2-0 shutout against No. 9 Akron early into the season and at the very end, assisted the game-tying goal versus Syracuse. 

In Indiana’s preseason these past two weeks, Sarver has dropped back to playing as an outside midfielder in the 4-4-2 formation. Also in the preseason, Indiana head coach Todd Yeagley spoke extremely highly of Oduro, the 2022 Pennsylvania Gatorade Player of the Year. Oduro scored 39 goals in his high school’s 24 matches this past year and shares Sarver’s pesky and energetic traits as one of the two forwards up top.

Indiana’s season opener is Thursday at 8 p.m. EST at Notre Dame. The match will be aired on ACC Network Extra via ESPN. 

• INDIANA HOLDS OUT 1-0 VICTORY TO END PRESEASON: Indiana won all three preseason scrimmages, outscoring opponents 5-1. Tommy Mihalic's goal was the decider Friday night versus Louisville, and Indiana held on with trust in plenty of freshmen substitutions. Next up is the season opener at Notre Dame next Thursday. CLICK HERE
• INDIANA-LOUISVILLE EXHIBITION SERIES HISTORY: Indiana soccer has started the preseason 2-0. The team's final exhibition is Friday night against Louisville at Bill Armstrong Stadium. The two teams last met in the regular season in 2016, an Indiana victory, but have since played only exhibitions. The saga continues. CLICK HERE
• INDIANA DEFEATS BOWLING GREEN: Indiana’s preseason continued Tuesday against Bowling Green. The Hoosiers lost 1-0 to the same foe in last year’s preseason, but they took down the Falcons 3-1 behind Tommy Mihalic’s one-goal and two-assist performance and Collins Oduro scoring his first collegiate goal. Assisting the duo from the central midfield was Patrick McDonald. CLICK HERE
• BTN SOCCER SCHEDULE: The Big Ten Network men's soccer television schedule was announced Monday evening. Indiana will play five matches on BTN, with room for more since three TV slots are for postseason matches and one is open. The Hoosiers' first match on BTN will be a currently top-10 matchup at home against Washington one week into the regular season. CLICK HERE
• IU SOCCER WINS PRESEASON OPENER: Indiana's preseason began Friday night, as the Hoosiers won 1-0 over Wright State at Bill Armstrong Stadium. Freshman Alex Barger and fifth-year senior Karsen Henderlong teamed up for the lone goal of the match, in which plenty of Hoosiers had solid individual performances. CLICK HERE
• ROSTER CHANGES: Indiana men's soccer lost four players that started in last year's national championship match. The team's 2023 preseason begins Friday night at Bill Armstrong Stadium. While final roster decisions may have to wait weeks, tonight will provide the first few snippets of player rotations and how new or returning players perform in the team's 4-4-2 formation, unless the coaching staff experiments with another formation in the first few preseason exhibitions. CLICK HERE