The Philadelphia Union Academy is well known for producing top talents that often go on to turn pro at MLS Next Pro level, MLS, and beyond. Another path for many is to go the college route, and currently there are many Union alumni making waves in the NCAA. We at The One Team We Agree On have been following the performances of several of them, and caught up with one recently that had a stellar freshman season.
Goalkeeper JoJo Elliott, a native of Delaware who went through the Academy and was a part of some talented squads including the 2024 Generation Adidas Cup U-17 champions, and spent time with Union II, had a record-breaking freshman campaign for the University of Delaware Blue Hens.
Amongst the accolades he racked up in his first season were, per University of Delaware Athletics:
- Single-season individual goalkeeper goals against average (0.69)
- Tied program record for goalkeeper shutouts in a single season (9)
- Contributed to 10 single-season shutouts, a program record
- 53 saves in the season and only 11 goals against
- Led the Summit League in goals against (11), goals against average (.69), save percentage (.828), shutouts (9), and shutouts per game (.563)
- #9 in Top Drawer Soccer’s Top 100 Freshman List and Freshman Best XI Team (first team)
We wanted to check in with JoJo and get his thoughts on his time so far at Delaware, as well as some reflections on his journey through the Academy and experiences more recently with the Union. Some parts of the following interview have been edited for clarity, with both Kyle and I interviewing JoJo.
When did you first get involved with soccer, and did you play any other sports growing up?
Yeah, I started playing soccer as early as I remember, I would say sometime, maybe around three, I joined recreational soccer. I’ve two older sisters- they played as young as they could. And so I was always around the soccer field. And then when I was probably three, I started playing for myself, taking the ball around little rec fields. And then when I was six, I joined my first travel team, and I was playing U-8 for a team called Delaware Rush at the time. And then when I was nine or 10, I got scouted by the Union, and then joined the Union when I was 10 or 11 full-time, and the Academy started my U-13 year.
What was that process like for you? I mean, you said you were nine, like for you and your family to be like, hey, Philadelphia is interested in you, they have this very good Academy. What was that process like, if you remember at nine years old?
Yeah, I remember it being very informal because my coach had some type of relationship connection with Phil Karn at the time, and so I got plugged in with him. Got invited out to training weekly for probably, I don’t know, the first couple months, playing up with, actually, Andy Rick’s age group. And so I played with those guys on like, a weekly invitation. And then after that, they pretty much had their tabs on me, put a team together to go to Portugal my U-12 year or Pre-Academy. And that was my first official time being in the Union team. And then ever since, once they have tabs on you, they just keep you in the system, keep their eye on you and whatever. And then when it came time for the Academy to officially start U-13 years we had tryouts, and then I was in. But the time leading up to that tryout was rather informal, and then I would train with my team, play for my team, and then get invited to trainings whenever I could.
I’m sure there’s a lot of moments that stand out to you during your time at the Academy. But if you had to pick maybe just a couple, what were some of your favorite moments?
It’s a good question. I think that trip to Portugal is probably one of my favorites. I would also say one of the most influential, because a big international trip when you’re 12 years old has a big impact on you, lot of eyes on you, a lot of opportunity. And so I would say playing against those international teams definitely gave me a different perspective, also to the scale that soccer is in the world. Like when you’re 12, all you think about is showing up on Saturday mornings to your local field, but this time, we’re flown across the country, across the world, playing against top teams. And so just, I think that was something really cool to look back on.
And then I would think, I think there’s a lot of other individual games and moments that stand out, but the GA Cup, when we won it [in 2024], that was a pretty cool time, even though I wasn’t in the spot that I wanted to be, coming off of injury and stuff, but being a part of the team through that, seeing how heated the games get against Flamengo, with the fights, all that stuff, it was pretty electric. It’s something definitely to remember. And then winning in PKs was pretty cool. And, yeah, I think, honestly, I have so many memories, but those are some of the bigger ones.
Flipping to the academic side real quick, would you say academically the Academy prepared you for the college life now at University of Delaware?
Yeah, I’m not sure if you guys know this, but I was the only one to not go through YSC Academy. So my mom actually homeschooled me when I was younger, and it worked going into middle school while I was driving an hour each way to and from practice. And it’s probably the only way that I could do it in fifth and sixth grade before, like we’re old enough to join YSC. So it worked out very well. And then think probably sixth, seventh grade was like the first time I had the opportunity to join YSC, did the tours, talked with the guys there, the coaches, and figured out that keeping on with my individualized academics that my mom had for me would be plausible, so long as I showed up to team trainings, team meetings and team games on time, and that’s something that I could do.
And so I kept going, and then delayed the idea of going to YSC to later and later, then high school came. It’s probably a little bit more of a reassessing period, and yet again, pushed it off because I could do my own schooling. And then junior and senior year became heavily focused in what’s called dual enrollment classes, and so my credits were credited to both high school classes and college classes. So I came in with a little bit north of 30 credits, which allowed me to get out or to be excused from taking history, science, math and writing classes here at Delaware, which allows me to be more major focused, and honestly makes more of an enjoyable academic time here.
[Kyle] Yeah, as a as a former NCAA coach, I understand completely with that.
[Jillian] For sure, I was an NCAA swimmer, I know it’s a lot, and when you can get to those core classes, ones actually go towards your major, that can be huge, especially when you have the kind of schedule that you have as an athlete. But yeah, sounds like you were pretty well prepared for that transition. So and just going through that recruiting process, what led you to the decision to attend University of Delaware?
Long story short, I had a pretty interesting recruiting process, because I was coming out of an ACL injury, and so I was sidelined for most of what would be considered your key recruiting period. And then coming out, while I actually got back spring of my junior year, played a couple games, was not quite in the spot that I wanted to be slightly re-injured in my… not my ACL, but the stuff around my knee… and so we went back and spent the next couple weeks, months really stabilizing it, being a little bit more aggressive in my rehab, and then came back in the fall of my senior year, and that’s when my recruiting really kicked in.
And I talked to different schools, got my eyes looking far, close, and then I had a period after a tournament in California. Long story short, I wanted Delaware because I got sold by Tommy (McMenemy – Delaware head coach) and what they want to do with this program, and the fact that it is in my backyard was a really beneficial factor, and something that I’ve come to really be thankful for. But in that recruiting period, like hearing what Tommy wanted from this program, the standard at which he drove the program, coaches, everything. It was just very easy to buy into and see where I would fit in it. And now walking it out has been a lot of fun.
Just curious, did you speak with Jamie Cleland (Head of Academy Goalkeeping) and Jon Scheer (Union Academy Director) about their time at University of Delaware, since there’s those connections?
Yeah, so like I said, I kind of had two recruiting periods before I got injured in the beginning. And during that time, I worked heavily with Jamie, and he was actually still a goalie coach here as I was getting recruited. And then as it came time for the fall of my senior year, he got through that season, and then he began transitioning out as I was coming to being committed at Delaware. And so yes, I worked tightly with Jamie, and then I have talked to Jon about his time in Delaware a little bit. But yeah, it’s cool to have so many connections between the Union and Delaware.
You talked about how coach McMenemy sold you on the program. What was that vision that that really stood out to you? Because a lot of times coaches will say, you come here, here’s what we’re going to do. What really stood out to you?
Yeah, it’s a good question. I think honestly, the way Tommy carried himself and communicated was a key factor. He carried himself top notch, and honestly second to none. And so that was very clear. And to see the standard at which he carried himself was easy to see that what he would verbalize about the program, that he was building would by no means be anything but that standard at which he carried himself. And so, as he described this program, which is a pretty young program for soccer, and something that he… this is this first year of having a team full of his recruits.
And so you could start to see, over the past four years, the turnaround of the team. And he was verbalizing while I was getting recruited that he really wanted to make this program into something more than just a mid-tier D1 team, and he wanted a standard of excellence in every area. And he said that goalkeeper would be what was needed to make that happen.
And so I think he communicated a lot of key factors about what he needed to see turn around in this program, indicators of what’s been turning around since he joined, things that he talked about from his time at Michigan that he liked, things that he talked about at Michigan that he honestly didn’t like. He showed that he knew what he wanted, because he’s seen the good and bad of big schools, and he knew, as he’s building this program, which directions he wanted to take in order to be best of the best.
And you guys as a team, had some really incredible moments this year. For you personally, as a freshman, what were the biggest standout moments for you this year, because there’s a couple games where you played, like University of Kansas City, I believe, the last game of the regular season, that was a back and forth match. And then there was a couple other matches early in the season where you really, you personally, made a mark on the team. So what were some of the highlights?
I think, honestly, there were a lot of them, and each of the highlights feels, though they built upon themselves, because coming into the season, I honestly didn’t know… I didn’t have much of an expectation, right? And I don’t think the team had too much of an expectation other than like, we’re going to go out and do the best that we can in every area.
And so as we played teams like Penn early in the season, where we honestly didn’t know where we would match up against a team who has been pretty decent over the past number of years, getting a win against them, just like that was a really fun game, because we had a lot to prove.
But then we proved that there was something solid to this team, that we had a backbone. And then going into the next couple of games, starting with our first conference game, we had some big home games versus UMass. That was a fun one, because once again, this team was a Sweet 16 team in the past couple of years- like they’re solid, we didn’t know how we line up, but then defeating them, and to be able to do it on your home field every single game this season was honestly a highlight every single time, because they’re like, let’s just go do it again. Let’s just have game that we had last time, and let’s replicate our game style. Do it better and better, then we would do it. And each time would become a new highlight in its own way, right?
And then, honestly, I feel as though we were left off a little bit in our games versus Kansas City, both of them at the end of the year, because it didn’t feel as though we played like ourselves, like we would have on our home field, which is slightly aggravating, but I think that’s what we learned from, and that’s what’s going to change a lot this year, hopefully, because this team is not like we have no expectations going into the year, but now we have a benchmark, and we have something to prove, because it’s harder to do two years in a row than it is just getting the ball rolling.
And then for you personally, just making that transition to college, what do you think has been the biggest adjustment going from playing at that Academy level and being a high school student going to college?
Honestly, it’s been a pretty seamless transition. And I wouldn’t say there’s any one thing that really changed, at least from a soccer perspective, because I feel the Academy really did prepare me well for that, and the coaches, like explained everything, and coming into Delaware, like the Delaware coaches, really equipped me with every possible means to do well as soon as I got into the field.
But that being said, the college game is different in its own way, and it does present a different side of the game than what Academy would or even being in trainings with first team/second team is just slightly different in that regard. And so there were some areas of my game in which I had to adjust strength, and change and adapt to in order to be successful.
And I think, like in possession, was something that took a little bit of time, because you just have to learn to be playing for a new team, having a different back four in front of you than what you’ve what I’ve honestly played with for past eight, nine years of my life. So the changes that you would expect going from playing for the same team for eight or nine years to a new team that you’ve never played for were all there. But I honestly think the transition was as easy as possible, because the coaches equipped me to be ready for that in every regard.
And then for you, you collected some accolades this postseason, some recognition across both freshmen, some stat breaking, some records at University of Delaware. How do you… obviously, it’s a team game… but is that kind of a nice little nod? Like, hey, I had a great season, but there’s more to it, because it’s a team sport at the end, then you want to be successful with your teammates?
Yeah, it definitely is nice, and it is exciting and a fun little thing to motivate me a little bit more. And it’s something that definitely motivates me to compete, but I don’t think it has anything to do with, honestly, just my performances and stuff like that. I genuinely think that it comes from the team and the fact that they would show up every day and compete day in, day out.
But I am honestly a little bit disappointed, because I think our team could have been recognized better, because it feels as though we’re that close to being really recognized as a team in the way that it feels as our team should do, or is deserving. And so yes, those things are nice, and they are nice individually, but I do think our team deserves more, and honestly, that’s what is motivating me more than anything for this next season.
And then recently, you got a really great opportunity, getting to go with the Philadelphia Union’s first team to Spain during preseason. So can you talk about that experience and what you took away from that time with the club?
Yeah, that was a really cool experience. And I think it goes back again, like I talked about earlier, the connections that Delaware has built with the Union. They’ve been huge, and they have been working in my favor, thankfully, and so that experience, it definitely gave me a different perspective, and that’s the way that I’ve begun to describe that trip. Because, yes, I’ve played with the first team quite often in trainings andnstuff like that, but nothing quite like living with those guys for a couple of weeks straight, training with those guys, day in, day out, and really… you just sense the culture differently.
And so those opportunities really opened my eyes one two different attributes of my game, which I want to see get better in order to be able to be able to compete and play the best soccer that I can play, but also opened my eyes to the alternate side of the game of soccer, which is that it’s like a livelihood.
And so you see these guys who are much older than me, and they’ve been doing this for much longer, the way they carry themselves honestly, the way their outlook on soccer is something. That had an impact on me, and so that trip was just a super cool opportunity to be there with them from both a soccer perspective and off the field. It allowed me to come back into this space at Delaware and really have a different outlook, both on the field and off the field, the way I carry myself, the way I interact with my friends and all of us, all that stuff, and honestly, it just makes me not take anything for granted being here, because this time in soccer, at least college, soccer can be very fickle. Who knows what a pro career could look like, because that can be far longer than four years you have in college.
And last question from us, heading into 2026, you said you wish your team this year we’ve gotten some more accolades. What has been the focus? Have you guys started spring ball yet?
Yeah, we started training as soon as we got back to school. I think the focus, honestly, it feels like we haven’t skipped a beat since the fall, honestly, and it doesn’t feel like there’s much of a difference between our focuses from the fall and the focus is in the spring. But it’s honestly just pushing to the next level of everything and every area of our game. And I think that comes down to bringing new players in, how they help us, and helping them buy into our game model.
But I think the focus for the team is bettering that game model in every regard. And so I think our position, there’s been a lot of focus, but also in possession. And so it’s working on different ways to press, working on different ways to counter press, all those things, just so that our team can buy into our game model in a better way and ultimately be on the same page.
Because I think that’s what it comes down to, is if we can get 11 guys doing the same exact thing, working for the same goal, then we’re going to be stronger unified than separate, and that those things just take time and getting players like me, who are younger, a little bit less experienced, more experience, and understanding the game model, so that we can all be more unified in what we’re working for.
A special thank you to JoJo Elliott for taking the time to speak with us, and to Ali Cucinotta of University of Delaware Athletics.
Main article photo courtesy of University of Delaware Athletics.
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