2000 MAC Hermann Trophy Winner

College: University of Connecticut

Position: Defender

Hometown: Bong Mines, Liberia

Gbandi, who was born in Liberia and graduated from UConn in 2002, enjoyed one of the most successful careers in UConn history, beginning in 1998 when he was named the BIG EAST Rookie of the Year.

He was also honored as the BIG EAST Defensive Player of the Year in 1999, 2000 and 2001, while earning All-American honors those years as well. In 2001, the year Gbandi won the MAC Hermann trophy, he led UConn to the NCAA Championship.

Gbandi was drafted with the first overall pick of the 2002 MLS SuperDraft by Dallas Burn. 2006 was Gbandi’s best season in Dallas. H played in 28 games and earned FC Dallas's defender of the year honor.

On February 8, 2008, he completed a transfer to Norwegian club FK Haugesund where he spent the next two seasons, scoring 5 goals in 37 appearances for the team. Gbandi returned to the United States in 2010 when he signed with USSF Division 2 club Miami FC. 

In 2011 Gbandi returned to UConn to become the Assistant Director of Soccer Administration. He became an assistant coach at Dartmouth College in 2014 before being promoted to Associate Head Coach in 2015.