In Germany, soccer, or fußball as its known, is a second life for most children: a young Gerhardt was no exception.

"I always played soccer. My family was very soccer-oriented, so I started playing when I was two," Gerhardt said. "I (was) always kicking a ball around; that was the only sport I was falling in love with."

The passion was established as love with his dad as a mentor. 

"He was playing soccer when I was a kid. I was always watching his games on the weekend, looking up to him," Gerhardt said Sept. 6 after MSU drew with Air Force. "Even right now, once he wakes up, obviously there is some time difference, I’m going to talk to him about the game and the performance. He guided me and is still with me."

Gerhardt started his soccer journey with German club JSG Altenkirchen. The forward then moved to the Shaw Bears in North Carolina in 2021 before joining Sportfreunde Eisbachtal in the German fifth tier.

From 2022-2024, Gerhardt played for the CSUN Matadors before coming to East Lansing. 

"Graduating from high school with a diploma, I was deciding: do I want to go the pro path? Do I want to try and make it professional in Germany but sacrifice my studies? Do I only want to focus on my studies? And I was unsure how to decide," Gerhardt said.

The decision for the teenager was a massive one. Gerhardt was contacted by an agency to discuss combining his ambitions as a soccer player and scholar. 

"After a long conversation with them and my parents, we decided to make the move. Since that day, I’m here (in the United States)," Gerhardt said. 

As an international student, Gerhardt acclimating to a new culture was a matter of question, having lived his entire life in Germany. A new life in a new country was a concept of intrigue, he said. 

"It took me some time to get used to it. Luckily, I had some other German teammates at my first school that helped me to get into the flow of the culture," Gerhardt said. "(The) first one or two months were difficult for me, especially leaving my family and friends. I fell in love with the process and the way college works."

Gerhardt is currently pursuing a Masters of Science in Marketing Research and Analytics at MSU. The Altenkirchen native is cherishing the sport-education balance within the program.

Amidst the difficulty of moving to a new country and environment, Gerhardt emphasized the importance of the people around him.

"It’s been great, especially (because) the coaches and all the teammates made it easy for me. It’s like a second home. I get along very well with all my teammates and coaches," Gerhardt said. "Also the academics, all the advisors, the professors, they really help me to find a good way to excel in my classes and on the field."

Off the pitch, Gerhardt is a lifelong FC Köln supporter.

"That’s my team since I was a kid. I grew up close to the city, I used to go to the games in the stadium, I was celebrating with the fans,” Gerhardt said.

Since coming to MSU, Gerhardt has been a fixture of the men's soccer lineup, playing 291 minutes over six games thus far.