Good for him and that’s a great pickup for Stanford if that gets finalized. I look forward to hearing about others as I am sure several wheels are in motion.
I’m hearing from reliable sources that Andrea Nuzzo is transferring to Stanford as well.
Pretty sure that’s not accurate. Stanford didn’t show much interest. My understanding is he’s staying at CBU and focusing on helping them get back to the NCAA tournament
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As a USC Trojan fan, I’m genuinely bummed to see Bernardo leave to play at Stanford. I imagine this was never a decision he thought he’d have to make. He played age group club for the Trojans. I’m sure he always hoped to play at SC and finish his college career at USC. I imagine That’s what makes this situation so tough, for Bernardo.
It can’t be easy for Coach Pinta to know that Bernardo is leaving SC ( not sure if he already left) and will now be competing against USC while strengthening a top rival like Stanford. Bernardo is an amazing goalie, and there’s no denying how much he contributed to USC’s success. At the same time, I truly believe Coach Pinta was fair with his goalies. This past season, USC was simply a little bit better with Charlie Mills in the cage.
Coach Pinta is an expert at evaluating goalie performance. He knows exactly how good Bernardo is, but the results showed that the team performed slightly better with Charlie in goal toward the end of the season. In a perfect world, splitting games between two elite goalies would be phenomenal? USC wouldn’t lose either player, and Coach Pinta would have incredible depth. But I completely understand why that wasn’t enough for Bernardo. It’s extremely hard for any competitive goalie to accept splitting time.
I can relate personally. My sophomore year of high school, I split time in the cage with a teammate. I wasn’t thrilled, so I worked harder to outperform him. Eventually, I earned the starting spot, and my teammate quit midway through the season because he didn’t want to sit on the bench. That experience helps me understand Bernardo’s decision. For elite competitors, splitting time often isn’t enough.
There’s no question that Coach Pinta knows how to develop goalies. When Coach Vavic was the head coach and Coach Pinta was his assistant, he (Coach Pinta) was responsible for one-on-one goalie development. That’s why I confidently say he’s an expert at both evaluating and developing elite goalies. Many Olympians (both USA and International) , on both the men’s and women’s sides, came through USC, and Coach Pinta played a major role in their success.
When you hear Charlie Mills speak, you can tell he’s wise, mature, competitive, and a strong motivator. I believe he earned the starting role and deserved to play full games down the stretch. USC was excellent with Bernardo in the cage, but they were just a little bit better with Charlie Mills.
Looking ahead, Stanford is going to be very tough next season. With Bernardo in goal, I see them as a top-three team. At the same time, Bernardo’s departure will give Luke Harris an opportunity to develop and earn meaningful playing time, which could be huge for USC’s future.
This couldn’t have been an easy situation for Coach Pinta, but I do believe he handled it fairly. Even at the international level, we saw something similar, this past weekend, the USA National Team against Australia looked slightly better when Charlie Mills was in the cage than when Bernardo played. The great news is that Team USA has three outstanding goalies in Adrian, Charlie Mills, and Bernardo.
Charlie, congratulations on earning the starting spot, keep working hard and help USC win at national title. And Bernardo, while I’m truly bummed to see you leave, I understand your decision. You’re going to be an incredible asset to Stanford,
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This is exactly how the transfer portal should be used. If Herzer has any aspirations at the national team level, he can’t afford to be a back up. Dejan loves size in the cage, and may still prefer Herzer when it comes down to it. There is a long time until the next Olympics. Herzer could be formidable with Stanford’s defense first focus. I prefer Mills as he has that little something extra you like to see in a goalie and that is a fiery personality. Weinberg has it and Temkin has it. Not sure Herzer has it. Right now I’d have Temkin in the 2 slot ahead of Mills, but it’s meaningless for the 2028 Olympics. Temkin now has to go prove himself overseas
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When I was at Cal, the team split goalies with Ludovic Salles and Jim Wagner in late 80s, early 90s and won multiple titles
That team was so loaded with top line talent and depth that they probably could have played someone off the street in goal and still won
But splitting goalies can be done and can succeed
Hope it works out for Herzer
Did Corbin Stanley sign anywhere or did he decide to stay?
I heard he stayed, but Caleb Francisco left for UCSB, the Greek kid left and the goalie Jeness left too.
do you know where they went?
From what I heard they didn’t receive any offers worth acting on and that they were done with LBS.
Caleb Francisco will graduate and play final year at UCSB. Joe Jenness, Michael Soybel, Kostas Kapragkos are all undecided at this point.
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Griffin price is heading to Westwood!
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Good for him! And two years of eligibility left like Merril?
I don’t see how either have 2 more years to play, according to NCAA rules. Both enrolled in 2022 and took their one red shirt year, played in 2023 and 2024, did not play 2025 and should only have 2026 remaining, unless they somehow get a Olympic red shirt that does not make and sense. Can someone explain to us how they are getting 4 years in 6 to play vs the rule of 4 in 5?
To be clear this was more of a question (perhaps poorly articulated). If you are saying that is not true then makes sense. For some reason I thought that if you only played two years in undergrad you could still get two in grad school.
I can see why UCLA would want him, but I’m confused what the fit is for him. Fordham would have been a perfect fit.
A master’s degree from UCLA?
It will be interesting to see how this plays out.
I believe UCLA now has 5 goalies on their roster…
To stay in the west coast, to win a championship, to further his education, and to play with future national team players.
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I guess playing time wasn’t a consideration
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