The Clemson men’s soccer team will begin its national title defense on Aug. 22 against the Penn State Nittany Lions at Historic Riggs Field.

After a successful College Cup run last season earned the team its fourth national championship — the second in three years — head coach Mike Noonan looks to run it back with a novice team.

The Tigers will have to defend their title without many of the key players who helped catapult them to success in last year’s postseason. Mac Hermann award-winner Ousmane Sylla, captain Brandon Parrish, forward Mohamed Seye, defender Gael Gibert and the NCAA Tournament’s Most Outstanding Defensive Player, Pape Mar Boye, left the Tigers to pursue professional careers.

The loss of veteran playmakers means room for new stars. Junior attackers Tyler Trimnal and Nathan Richmond are set to take over the spotlight. Trimnal scored five goals and added two assists a season ago, while Richmond scored and assisted five each to land himself on the All-ACC third team.

All-ACC first team member Joran Gerbet also returns for his senior season in midfield after proving himself to be a keystone in his first season at Clemson last year. Junior goalie Joseph Andema will return to the net for the Tigers after starting every game last season and finishing second in the ACC in shutouts.

Perhaps the most enticing aspect of Noonan’s new-look squad is the incoming freshmen looking to prove they fit in the puzzle of Clemson United.

Forwards Ransford Gyan, the 2023 and 2024 Gatorade National Boys Player of the Year, and Wahabu Musah, who scored a goal in the Tigers’ win over Mobile, are expected to bring more intensity to the Tigers already-stacked offense.

The ACC will prove tough for Clemson to repeat their conference championship, nevermind another NCAA championship — especially with the addition of three new teams. Noonan and his squad, however, have the tools necessary to get back to the top, and it begins on Thursday.