In 2020, while playing for the Northern Ireland Football League Championship in Portadown Football Club, Ryan Carmichael was faced with a life-altering decision: continue playing in his home of Northern Ireland or accept a four-year scholarship at an NCAA Division I program.
“I was kind of on the fence whether I was going to come out to the States at all,” Carmichael said. “Then [associate head coach] Stephen Roche came and had a talk with me after one of my games back home. He said he liked what he saw. I ended up having a look into the student stuff. Good area, obviously, in New York. I just decided to come and haven’t looked back since.”
Carmichael, aged 19 at the time, made a monumental decision to fly overseas and join the Hofstra University men’s soccer team. Being at the height of the COVID-19 pandemic added to the uncertainty of his decision.
“I didn’t have a clue what I was walking into,” Carmichael said. “I was nervous going out, and once I arrived it was weird because everything was shut down. There were so many rules every week; we’d train one week and then we’d have to take two weeks off because someone tested positive. I think I ended up in quarantine for two months overall in my first semester. That was probably the toughest part of it.”
Despite the enormous obstacle, Carmichael made himself comfortable in his new home quickly. After all, he joined a program that was not only rich in talent and success but also in diversity. He assembled with many others who came from foreign countries, including many who were also from the United Kingdom.
“I settled in a lot quicker than you’d expect,” Carmichael said. “Two weeks in, I was already pretty settled. You’ve got boys who’ve grown up in the same type of lifestyle you have. When I came in, everybody got on. It was easy to get into the group.”
After a shortened 2020-2021 season, Carmichael played his first full season alongside upperclassmen, including program giants like Matthew Vowinkel and Hendrik Hebbeker. He contributed 15 goals in the Pride’s historic season where they played in the NCAA and continued all the way to the Sweet 16 for the first time in program history. A sophomore at the time, Carmichael was able to learn from his more experienced collegiate counterparts.
“[Vowinkel] taught me a lot,” Carmichael said. “He probably doesn’t know he taught me a lot, but just watching him play every day and the way he holds the ball up, I can’t even try to mimic it. He’s a bit bigger than me, so it comes more natural to him.”
Carmichael played his first couple games as a right-back, and his role was to deliver crosses. He quickly became a prominent presence up-front, and when Vowinkel graduated in 2021, Hofstra head coach Richard Nuttall added an acquisition that completed Carmichael’s role as the striker on the pitch.
Eliot Goldthorp was picked up in the 2022 offseason and transferred from Old Dominion University. Goldthorp became the new winger and played alongside Carmichael. The pair combined for 64 points through 21 games in the 2022 campaign – the wing-back appeared to be the last piece of the puzzle.
“It made my game a bit easier,” Carmichael said. “[Goldthorp] can cross the ball and put it wherever he wants, so I just have to stand there and wait for it to come in. I get my goals, and he gets his assists.”
2022 saw Carmichael snatch 10 goals and four assists, along with the honor of being named CAA Player of the Year. All of this was despite the fact that he dealt with a leg injury all season long. He didn’t miss a start as he and Goldthorp led the Pride to a second consecutive conference title. Carmichael took care of his injury over the off-season and ensured himself peak fitness going into his senior year.
“It didn’t affect me a lot,” Carmichael said. “I’d say it probably affected me 10-20%. I was still able to play, but it was tough because I’d have to be in treatment every day, before games and after games.”
He received surgery last Christmas and took about six or seven months to recover. He didn’t play in the spring and allowed himself to prolong his recovery to achieve maximum health going into the 2023 season.
What has taken place since is nothing short of magnificent. Carmichael led the Pride with 12 goals in the regular season. His brace in the conference semifinals against the University of Delaware Fightin’ Blue Hens on Sunday, Nov. 5, officially put him past former teammate Vowinkel in all-time scoring with his 43rd collegiate career goal and seven goals behind the all-time leading goal scorer in program history, Stuart Duffin.
“I never expected to be on 43 goals with a couple of games left,” Carmichael said. “I suppose my second year, when I scored 15 goals, I was thinking maybe if I keep going for a couple years then it might happen. I didn’t expect it.”
All the while, Carmichael enjoyed numerous honors and accolades. He was named to the All-CAA all four years. He started out as a Third-Team and All-Rookie selection before being included in the First Team every year thereafter. He was named to the All-Atlantic Region First Team in 2021 and 2022. He also received postseason accolades as an All-CAA Championship pick his junior year. However, he considers his greatest achievements to be the ones he made with his teammates.
“The two [CAA titles] we’ve won so far,” Carmichael said. “Ever since I’ve been here, we’ve been consistently good. I think we’ve lost six or seven games in four years. I think being that consistently good is an achievement in itself.”
For the senior, it’s not just the accomplishments on the pitch but also the bonds made off the pitch that have made it an incredible experience. It’s a big reason why he decided to leave Northern Ireland and pursue a career in the U.S.
“You expand your friendship group tenfold,” Carmichael said. “I’ve got friends now from all over Europe, America, everywhere in the world. That’s probably the main thing Hofstra has given me. I can go to visit anybody.”
That leaves one glaringly obvious question for Carmichael: now what?
He still has a year of eligibility and is able to choose whether he wants to graduate from Hofstra this year or play his graduate season with the Pride. Carmichael said he was “on the fence” three years ago between choosing to play in America or remaining in Northern Ireland. He expressed that same feeling for the future.
“I don’t really know what’s going to happen yet,” he said. “We’ll have to wait and see.”
Photo courtesy of Hofstra Athletics/Gil Talbot
