The MAC Hermann Trophy has been given to many of America’s top players throughout its history. Names such as Claudio Reyna, Brad Friedel, and Alexi Lalas have been awarded college soccer’s equivalent of the Heisman Trophy. Many of its winners have gone on to have long careers in professional soccer, and since 2010, the trophy winners have largely gone on to play in Major League Soccer.
Winning the MAC Hermann Trophy all but guarantees a first-round selection in the MLS Draft. The trophy adds a level of expectation and pressure to those players’ respective first seasons with their clubs.