In what has been an unforgettable month for the Stanford men’s soccer team — a month which started with the program winning its first national title — things got even better on Thursday, when defender Brandon Vincent got picked No. 4 overall in the MLS SuperDraft, with teammate midfielder Eric Verso following at No. 34 overall. Vincent will be headed to the Windy City to play for the Chicago Fire, while Verso will head north to Montreal to play for the Impact.
Vincent, who graduated this past quarter, became the second-highest Cardinal pick in SuperDraft history and is the seventh Stanford player to be taken in the first round. The 2015 College Cup Defensive Most Outstanding Player and back-to-back Pac-12 Defensive Player of the Year was also recently added to the January training camp roster for the U.S. Men’s National Team and was therefore unable to attend the draft in Baltimore.
Watch @_bvincent‘s reaction to being selected 4th overall by the @ChicagoFire in the @MLS #SuperDraft! pic.twitter.com/4EZhO3gDhk
— U.S. Soccer (@ussoccer) January 14, 2016
Thank you @ChicagoFire for the opportunity to keep chasing my dreams & everyone who has supported me along the way. #BeTheDifference #cf97
— Brandon Vincent (@_bvincent) January 14, 2016
This season, Vincent was the anchor to Stanford’s backline, which helped limit opponents to 0.62 goals per game, good for sixth-best in the nation. He added 13 goals in his career, including 6 this season — one of which was the third of the Cardinal’s four goals in their rout of Clemson in the national title game.
Vincent would not be the only Cardinal to receive good news, as Verso, who played this season for the Cardinal as a fifth-year senior, would be selected in the second round, marking the fifth time Stanford has seen multiple players taken in the SuperDraft. At midfield this year, Verso contributed 13 assists, tied for second-best in the nation, as well as 2 goals, the most recent of which came as Stanford’s icing-on-the-cake fourth goal in the national title game. He ended his Stanford career with 13 goals and 19 assists.
Huge thanks @impactmontreal for giving me this opportunity! Great team, city, and fans! Can’t wait to get started!! https://t.co/VXRX4OTEmS
— Eric Verso (@EricVerso) January 14, 2016
Vincent and Verso could be joined in the MLS by former teammate Jordan Morris. Morris recently declared that he would be forgoing his senior season to pursue a professional career, and while he recently trained with German club Werder Bremen, it remains unclear whether he intends to try to play in Europe or in the MLS. If the latter, he would likely play with the Sounders, who have offered him the most lucrative Homegrown Player contract in league history.
With two more rounds of the draft to go, one other Stanford player, senior Ty Thompson, will be awaiting his fate. If drafted, Thompson would be the 21st player from Stanford to be drafted in the SuperDraft, which was formerly known as the MLS College Draft.
The SuperDraft resumes on Tuesday via conference call.
Contact Alexa Philippou at aphil723 ‘at’ stanford.edu.