For the first time in three years, Indiana men’s soccer is searching for a new starting goalkeeper.
JT Harms first joined the squad in 2022, filling the void left by Roman Celentano — the No. 2 overall pick in the 2022 MLS SuperDraft to FC Cincinnati. Harms established himself as Indiana's No. 1 option at the position after transferring from Duke University, starting in 62 of his 63 appearances and allowing only .97 goals per game over the course of his three-year Hoosiers tenure.
The Whitefish Bay, Wisconsin, native started in a national championship. He won two Big Ten regular season titles and one Big Ten Tournament championship. He captained the 2023 and 2024 squads, earning second-team All-Big Ten honors both years.
But following his graduation, the Harms era is now over for Indiana, and a crucial competition has emerged — one which will help head coach Todd Yeagley find his new shot stopper.
Brown, Michel emerge as early candidates
It has taken over a year for graduate student Holden Brown to recover from a knee injury suffered in 2023, but the University of Virginia transfer is finally healthy and set to compete for the top spot in his sixth season at the collegiate level.
The 6-foot-4 Brown started all 18 matches for the Cavaliers in 2021, leading the Atlantic Coast Conference and finishing fourth nationally with 86 saves. In his junior season in 2022, he earned third-team All-ACC with eight clean sheets in 19 starts and a 1.03 goals against average.
Yeagley called Brown “another new player” due to his absence last season, and the Zionsville, Indiana, native is “doing really well physically” as he aims to lead the Hoosiers in goal.
Conversely, freshman Judewellin Michel provides the squad with a younger option. Hailing from Montreal, Québec, the 6-foot-5 Michel played in CF Montréal’s academy, earning invitations to the top-flight preseason training camp in 2024 and 2025.
“If I had to draw a line in the sand today, I'd say it’s Holden and Jude are right there, and we haven’t even gotten through one training,” Yeagley said in a press conference Tuesday. “So, we’ll see how it plays out, but we’ll give them all an opportunity.”
Rounding out goalkeeper room
For the second consecutive season, Indiana added a transfer from the University of Louisville. First came fullback Quinton Elliot, who made an immediate impact for the Hoosiers in 2024 and joined the Columbus Crew following his All-American junior season.
This year the program secured sophomore goalkeeper AJ Piela, who spent one season with the Cardinals. His 2024 campaign featured 10 starts, 41 saves and one clean sheet.
A strong spring season also catapulted redshirt junior Cooper Johnsen into the conversation. The Los Altos Hills, California, native spent his first season redshirted and has yet to see game action, but he will still have an opportunity to challenge for the starting role.
“We’re really impressed with Cooper, who has been in a support role but carried the team in the spring,” Yeagley said. “Cooper really made some strides.”
A recent example leaves more uncertainty
Yeagley will have a decision to make for his starting role, beginning first with Indiana’s preseason opener against No. 20 Western Michigan University on Aug. 11. The decision will be even more important come Aug. 21, when the Hoosiers face No. 9 Clemson University in the regular season opener at Bill Armstrong Stadium.
However, past experiences have shown Yeagley that his starter on day 1 won’t necessarily be his starter halfway through the season.
“Roman didn’t start for six games, that coach was crazy,” Yeagley joked. “What the hell was he looking at? And we hadn’t lost a game that year. We were undefeated and we made the change.”
Who Yeagley decides to suit up against the Broncos on Aug. 11 7:30 p.m. at Bill Armstrong Stadium is still unclear, even to him. But whoever earns the spot will have a challenge on their hands — continuing the successful lineage of Hoosier goalkeepers.
Mateo Fuentes-Rohwer covers Indiana men’s soccer for the Indiana Daily Student. You can follow him at @mateo_frohwer on X and contact him via email at matfuent@iu.edu.
