While collegiate soccer has declined as a development pathway, there are still several players who benefit from spending a few years as a student-athlete before making the jump to the next level. They are then able to enter into the professional game with more maturity and physical development, capable of contributing much sooner after joining.
Andrew Privett has been quietly emerging as one of the best young American defenders in Major League Soccer, picking up start after start. The 23-year-old Charlotte FC centerback received a position switch and thrived despite taking on new responsibilities.
Born in Fallston, Maryland, Privett came up outside of the academy system and played with the Baltimore Bays and the powerful Baltimore Celtics youth program, winning back-to-back U.S. Youth Soccer national championships. He also attended McDonogh School and was a member of the varsity team for four years.
His high school career included two MIAA championships, multiple all-state selections, and being named All-Metro Boys Soccer Player of the Year and an All-American as a senior.
Privett then matriculated to Pennsylvania State University and became a versatile multi-positional option but primarily a midfielder, contributing two goals and three assists as a freshman, followed by one goal and two assists during the COVID-shortened sophomore campaign. As a junior, he put up a career-best nine goals and four assists, leading the program to the first Big Ten title since 2005 and earning All-Big Ten Second Team honors. His final year as a Nittany Lion ended with two goals and four assists in 15 appearances, a down note due to two sprained ankles but with scouts “[taking] notice of his ability to score while distributing in the middle of the pitch.” Additionally, his summers included brief amateur spells with the Ocean City Nor’easters and Christos FC.
Eschewing a fifth potential season of eligibility at the collegiate level, Privett was selected with the 69th overall pick in the third round of the 2023 SuperDraft by Charlotte FC and subsequently signed to a professional contract, with the club considering him a “very smart guy” who “would develop quickly.”
His first year began with the reserves, save for a substitute appearance in the third round of the Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup, all the while training as a centerback. In July, he entered into a match with CF Montréal and proceeded to start the following 12 fixtures, including in the first round of the MLS Cup Playoffs. There were occasional moments of inexperience, but “teammates and coaches gained more trust in [him] with each passing game” as his confidence grew in the new role.
Despite a manager change during the offseason, Privett began 2024 in the starting lineup and has played every single available minute across 14 matches. Charlotte currently has 21 points, good enough for sixth place and the likelihood of qualifying for the playoffs in the fall. He has been building chemistry with his teammates and feels that everything “clicked” in his second year as a professional as his hybrid midfielder-defender role transferred into a full centerback position. His “lock-down” performance against Nashville SC earned a spot on the MLS Team of the Matchday, winning eight duels and 100% of ground duels along with making eight recoveries.
“Spending his youth and collegiate career as a midfielder, the six-foot-one Privett has thrived in a centerback role and taken charge while in a possession-based build-up, stepping forward when his team is on the attack. Coaches praise him as calm and composed, operating on a three- and four-player back line and preventing the counter-attack. He brings the ball forward often and takes regular long distribution with appealing field switching, crossing, and chance creation numbers. His defensive work continues to improve, recently praised for “putting on a masterclass by constantly putting out fires and making well-timed tackles in his own box.”
The switch to centerback proved apt for his player profile. “In the backline, you have the whole game in front of you,” said Privett. “You can see everything. And I think that plays to a strength of mine, my vision, and being able to see the way players move and find spaces and play the right passes that are going to get us out of pressure.”
After a consistent but far from overwhelmingly successful collegiate career, Privett quickly adapted to the professional level and thrived following a change of positions. He is in a curious age range: too old to be considered a young talent but, with several years of development ahead, far from a finished veteran product. In part due to the newness of his breakthrough, his current ceiling is a bit of a question, although his performances are intriguing and could lead to further opportunities. Reliable centerbacks are a limited resource, thus indicating the potential for his name to appear on a future January camp roster.
