Nick Pariano Interview - Philadelphia Union
On Thursday, my good friend and Philadelphia Union beat reporter José Nuñez set up an interview with Nick Pariano.
Click Here for the Full Video Interview on José Nuñez’s Substack
Nick Pariano only recently turned 21 years old, but after already concluding a four year collegiate career by the age of 20, he now plays professionally within the Philadelphia Union organization. He signed a first team contract as a homegrown player on December 14, 2023. The deal goes through 2025, with club options for 2026 and 2027.
Early Days
This fast track was made possible by graduating high school early and making his way to Duke University as a 17 year old. In the interview, Nick talked about making the decision to leave high school early only a couple weeks prior to the COVID-19 lockdowns.
It was a rather unique experience for Pariano, as most kids that age are still finishing up their senior year of high school, but ultimately, it didn’t really phase him. Because of the situation around COVID-19, he felt more fortunate to be at Duke University than anything. During his freshman year, despite all of the societal challenges, Pariano still got to play a full season since the ACC was one of the few conferences that played most of their games. He expressed, “I was pretty thankful that I was able to play, and I felt like I had a full year of development there.”
Growing up with a father who was an All-American wrestler and a highly accomplished lacrosse coach for a mother, Nick talked about the support he was given. When looking back upon his childhood, he said, “It was great to be around. I’d say one of the biggest takeaways was that they definitely wanted us to enjoy what we were doing.” From an early age, there was an emphasis on the kind of work him and his brother would put into sports. His dad would tell them to embrace the pain of working hard, so you can imagine a couple of young Pariano kids running up a hill while telling themselves, “I love the pain!”
This is something that Nick has carried with him throughout the years, and it has been noticed by teammates and coaches. Ocean City Nor’easters coach Kevin Nuss said, “He always has a smile on his face and his work ethic is infectious.”
It’s been really helpful for Pariano to have parents that have been successful in athletics. After games and practices, through the ups and downs, he’s always been able to count on them to be understanding and supportive, and provide advice on how to continuously move forward.
The hard work has paid off, not only in soccer, but also in gaelic football. Since moving to Philadelphia, his brother Joe and him played gaelic football for the Delco Gaels. He had even won the North American championships in a sport that basically combines the skills of soccer and rugby.
Pariano obviously went on to have success throughout his time at the collegiate and pre-professional levels of soccer. As a 17 year old freshman, not only did he play 16 games with 7 starts, but he led the team with 4 assists. He was named to the ACC All-Freshman Team as a result.
Over the years, he totaled 10 goals and 26 assists across 4,527 minutes. He made appearances in the NCAA Division I National Championship Tournament in each of his last three seasons, though was unable to win either a conference or national championship.
Last Year
During the 2023 calendar year, Pariano was selected as the Mid-Atlantic Division Player of the Year and named to the USL League Two Team of the Year with Ocean City Nor'easters before entering his senior season where the success continued. Aside from the defensive unit, Pariano played the most minutes (1,486) and led the team again with 8 assists. The Blue Devils had the number one scoring offense in NCAA Division I (2.78 GPG) and his efforts saw him collect an ACC All-Conference First Team honor as well.
Click Here for Nick Pariano 2023 NCAA Highlights with Duke University
Given his continuous success throughout the years, we asked him about how he approaches each season. The three main aspects that stood out in our conversation were consistency, presence, and a winning mentality.
Pariano said, “First and foremost, I always want to be as consistent as possible.” His time with Ocean City gave him confidence and consistency in every performance and this gave him something to build upon for each season at Duke.
He also placed a lot of emphasis on having a winning mentality by saying, “Usually, you play better when you win. I go in wanting to win every game and do what I can to help the team win.” Sometimes I feel like this is a mindset that has become less common, but his focus on contributing to the team success has helped him have individual success as well. I think many young players who may have more of an individualistic focus could learn from this approach.
As another area of importance, he eluded to the common idea of being present. He didn’t use these terms explicitly, but he talked about not hanging on to the past. He restated that he always wants to feel like he’s building upon something, progressing, and growing.
Influences
One of the reasons why Pariano chose to attend Duke University was the professional caliber players that they tend to attract. Between his early days at YSC Academy through to his time at Duke and Ocean City, he has played with many talented players who are now professional, so I asked him who have been some of the most influential and what has he been able to learn from them.
Two of the first names he mentioned were Peter Stroud and Thor Úlfarsson, who were with Pariano during his early years with the university. He quickly pointed out that both of them are gamers. They’re highly competitive and have that desire to win.
I figured Peter Stroud would be brought up given his personality and playing style, and you can see that Stroud and Pariano share some attributes. The midfielders spent three seasons together before the two time All-American departed Duke University after the 2022 season to sign a Homegrown Player contract with the New York Red Bulls.
Thor Úlfarsson played 25 games while scoring 19 goals. He was later named the ACC Offensive Player of the Year in 2021. The 23 year old Icelandic forward was drafted by the Houston Dynamo, but has since signed with Hungarian top division side Debreceni VSC this past January.
Another teammate that he learned a lot from was his roommate Antino Lopez who is now with the Tacoma Defiance within the Seattle Sounders organization. I always find it interesting to hear who everybody thinks are the best players on the team, and Pariano said, “He was consistently the best player on the field every day. He brings it in training, and in games. There are guys that look good in training, and there are gamers, which of course is the most important thing, but he’s able to do it every day, all day. It’s impressive.”
He also brought up Amir Daley who came into the Duke program at the same time as Pariano.
Advice for Others
Given the path that he has taken, I also wanted to see what kind of advice he might have for some of the younger guys who are about to start their collegiate careers.
He started off by saying, “For guys going into school for the first time, I’d say, don’t get frustrated when you can’t figure it out right away. Whatever it is. Just keep your head down. Keep working at it. I think that’s what going to college is all about. It’s about opening your world up.”
He also talked about the additional benefits of attending college. For academy players, it’s a good opportunity to “get out of the bubble” and work with some new teammates and coaches. Whether it’s only for a year or two, it’s a refreshing experience and a way to try new things. He left off this section with, “It’ll benefit you in more ways than you think it might, on the field and off the field. Find things you’re passionate about. Take advantage of everything.”
Last month, Pariano has begun his professional career with Philadelphia Union 2 in the MLS NEXT Pro league. In the first three games of the season, they have two wins and a draw as they welcome Orlando into Subaru Park for the next fixture on April 11th.