From Mark Krikorian to Brian Pensky, the Florida State Seminoles program has maintained an incredible level of excellence over the last 12 years. Since 2014, the Seminoles Program has made eight College Cup appearances, won five national championships, nine ACC Tournament championships, and four regular-season ACC titles. This is all while playing in the toughest conference in America, the ACC. North Carolina managed to win a national title last season, while Duke, Stanford, Wake Forest, and Clemson have each come close to winning it all. Despite all that tough competition, Florida State continues to be at the front of the pack, year after year. The Seminoles are officially the premier college soccer program; five titles in 12 years speaks for itself.
Star-Studded Team
Florida State’s roster is made of a talented group of youth and experience. The Seminoles’ top 5 players are all going to become pros, whether it’s next year or down the line. Jordynn Dudley racked up 11 goals and 14 assists as a senior, but their leading goal scorer was Wrianna Hudson with 15 goals and a shot on goal percentage of 67%. If two out of every three shots are ending up on target, that’s incredibly efficient as a striker, highlighting Hudson’s ability as just a sophomore. Taylor Suarez is another sophomore who was second on the team in assists with nine, to go with five goals overall.
Yuna McCormack, the Virginia transfer, might have been the missing piece for this team in the midfield. A player of her caliber helped solidify their midfield this season. Heather Gilchrist anchored their backline and has been an all-league player for the last few seasons. Lastly, their goalkeeper, Kate Ockene, was the star of the show. Stanford pressed heavily in the first half and had a few clear-cut chances that Ockene simply erased. This is coming from a freshman goalkeeper starting in the National Championship game. One thing is clear, regardless of age, Florida State’s ability to develop its talent is second to none.
Florida State and the other elite college programs have created the perfect system of continuity to maintain their success. By having their younger players in the team get this experience now, they’re able to look up to their seniors and replicate this once they become seniors. This cycle continues, and it’s the type of system that has managed to survive the new era of college sports with NIL and the Transfer Portal, at least for now. All their ACC foes have tried to unseat the,m and yet every other year, they manage to find a way to produce a team with a chance to win it all.
Pros in the League
One of the best recruiting pitches that the Seminoles’ coaching staff can make is the fact that they run their program as close to a professional team as they can. It started with Mark Krikoria,n who built this culture before leaving to be the President of Operations for the Washington Spirit. Krikorian resigned after this NWSL season with the Spirit reaching consecutive NWSL Finals. The culture of what he built has carried on under Brian Pensky. Both coaches have maintained that if you come to Tallahassee, you will be the most prepared you can possibly be to go pro. The results speak for themselves. Take a look at this list of former and current Florida State players, both retired and current players.
Dagný Brynjarsdóttir (Portland Thorns, now with West Ham), Deyna Castellanos (Portland Thorns), Jaelin Howell (Gotham), Malia Berkely (Houston Dash), Emily Sams (Orlando Pride), Jenna Nighswonger (Arsenal), Onyi Echegini (PSG), Taylor Huff (Bay FC), Tori Huster (Washington Spirit, retired), Cheyna Williams (Washington Spirit, retired), Natalia Kuikka (Chicago Stars FC), Emma Koivisto (AC Milan), Carson Pickett (Orlando Pride), Toni Pressley (Orlando Pride, retired), Megan Connolly (Lazio), Gabby Carle (Washington Spirit), Beata Olsson (Liverpool), Leilanni Nesbeth (Chicago Stars FC).
There are surely even more Florida State alums out in the pro ranks; these are just a few of the standout names who have made a name for themselves both in the NWSL and abroad.
If you’re a top recruit and you have a choice between certain ACC schools, why wouldn’t you pick Florida State based on the track record above? North Carolina has always been at the top, and no one will likely catch them in terms of National Championships. However, based on the last 15 years, Florida State has surpassed the Tar Heels as the best program in the ACC and the nation.
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