Donavan Gusto Phillip has been named the best player in collegiate football for the 2025 season by the Missouri Athletic Club (MAC).
At the organisation’s annual banquet in St. Louis on Friday, January 9, the North Carolina State forward lifted the MAC Hermann Trophy – the most prestigious individual award in NCAA Division I men’s soccer.
A towering, powerful forward, Phillip, who was born and raised in the East Castries community of Marchand, tallied 19 goals in leading the Wolfpack to the College Cup finals.
A junior at NC State, he was the leading scorer in the NCAA this fall. He featured in 22 of the team’s 23 matches, logging 1,482 minutes and averaging 67 minutes per game. He is the highest-scoring athlete to represent the Wolfpack since Sam Okpodu netted 20 goals in 1984, and his 40 points equal the mark last set by Roy Lassiter in 1991.
In November, Phillip was named the Atlantic Coast Conference Offensive Player of the Year, the first in programme history to claim that award. But the bow on the season will certainly be the Hermann Award, presented annually since 1967. Voted upon by United Soccer coaches, who also made him a First Team All-America selection, the award was handed to an NC State player for the first time in programme history.
The MAC Hermann Trophy, a 10-pound crystal soccer ball awarded annually since 1967, honours the United Soccer Coaches National Players of the Year in NCAA Division I men’s and women’s soccer based on voting conducted by member coaches.
Runners-up for the men’s award were University of Washington senior forward Richie Aman (Hanover, N.H.) and Grand Canyon University freshman forward Junior Diouf (Thies, Senegal). Stanford senior forward Jasmine Aikey won the women’s award.
