Flax Adds to His Preseason Honors
The Hermann Trophy is presented annually by the Missouri Athletic Club and is the nation’s highest individual honor recognizing the National Player of the Year, determined by the voting of Division I head coaches who are members of United Soccer Coaches.
It is named in honor of the late Robert Hermann, the legendary St. Louis, Mo., businessman and soccer executive who founded the National Professional Soccer League, the first pro soccer league in the United States, which became the North American Soccer League. He was inducted into the U.S. Soccer Hall of Fame in 2012.
The 2025 Hermann Trophy semifinalists will be announced on December 9, with three finalists named later in the month. The winner will be revealed on January 9, 2026, at the Missouri Athletic Club in St. Louis, MO.
No surprise here 😤
— Wake Forest Men's Soccer (@WakeMSoccer) August 21, 2025
📰: https://t.co/gYle7xXj2C pic.twitter.com/Jf6ew5UKSm
“It’s an honor to be one of the names on this list, but this recognition truly comes from the work of my teammates and the coaching staff,” Flax said. “My main focus is just to do my small part in helping out a huge program such as Wake Forest to continue our great culture and winning ways.”
Cooper Flax Racks Up Additional Preseason Honors
Earlier this week, Flax found his name on two additional honors from TopDrawerSoccer's Preseason Awards.
Flax was named to the TopDrawerSoccer Best XI Teams - First team. He joins Ulfur Bjornsson (forward, Duke), Ransford Gyan (midfielder, Clemson), Casper Svendby (defender, Pittsburgh), Luca Nikolai (defender, North Carolina), and Nick Dang (defender, Virginia) as ACC representatives on the First Team.
TopDrawerSoccer also named Flax as the No. 11 player in the nation on their preseason Top 100 Players.
Last week, when the ACC announced its preseason men's soccer poll, it also released its 2025 ACC Men’s Soccer Preseason Watch List, which includes one player from each of the league's 15 teams that field a men's soccer team. Flax was the player selected to represent the Demon Deacons. In the preseason poll, Wake Forest was selected to finish second, despite receiving the most coaches' votes to win it all.
Finally, earlier this month, Flax was named to the United Soccer Coaches Association Division 1 Players to Watch—Midfielders list, along with his teammate Harvey Sarajian.
Flax also tallied the game-winning strike in a 2-1 NCAA Tournament victory over Maryland. His 2024 postseason honors included United Soccer Coaches Third-Team All-America, First-Team All-South Region, All-ACC Second Team, and ACC All-Tournament Team.
The Wake Forest men's soccer team's season begins tonight with a match at home against Maryland.
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Barry is the managing editor/publisher of both the TCU Horned Frogs On SI and Wake Forest Demon Deacons On SI sites. He oversees a team of 15+ writers, photographers, and podcasters covering all sports at both schools. He writes on football, basketball (men’s and women’s), baseball, men’s tennis, and other sports as needed. His weekly articles include ACC Power Rankings and Poll Watching during the football, basketball, and baseball seasons. Barry is a member of the Football Writers Association of America (FWAA), U.S. Basketball Writers Association (USBWA), and National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association (NCBWA). He has covered the 2022 Fiesta Bowl, the 2023 College Football National Championship, the 2023 College World Series, the 2024 NCAA Men’s Tennis National Championship, Big 12 Football Media Days, and Big 12 Basketball Media Days. He is an avid sports fan and traveler, and he loves any opportunity to see a sporting event in person. He has been to 18 of the 30 MLB ballparks, experienced game day at 25 college football stadiums, seen 21 NFL stadiums, and been to 16 bowl games.