COMPOSITE SCHEDULE | WEEKLY RELEASE
The 2019 NCAA men's soccer season begins Thursday evening, as Temple and USF will be the first two American Athletic Conference teams to take the pitch. The Owls will host Rutgers, and USF will travel to No. 1 Maryland before the rest of the league sees action on Friday.
THE FAVORITES
UCF was selected as the preseason favorite for the second-straight year, unanimously topping the 2019 American Athletic Conference Preseason Poll. The Knights received all seven possible first place points in the vote by the league’s head coaches. SMU finished second with 42 points, and UConn third with 36. UCF claimed the 2018 regular-season conference crown, while SMU prevailed over the Knights in the conference championship game on penalty kicks. UCF, SMU and UConn represented The American in the 2018 NCAA Championship.
SETTING A HIGH BAR
Preseason Offensive Player of the Year Cal Jennings will look to build on his record-setting season with UCF in 2018. As a junior, Jennings ranked second nationally in both goals (20) and points (45), both single-season conference records. He was one of 15 national finalists for the MAC Hermann Trophy, and has been named one of the NCAA’s 11 players to watch for the 2019 season.
OUT OF THE GATE RUNNING
The American’s teams face strong non-conference competition from day one, with eight games scheduled against preseason top 25 teams or teams receiving votes in the first five days of the season. USF will begin its 2019 campaign at defending national champion Maryland on August 29. Labor Day weekend will also feature foes Wake Forest (UCF), Lipscomb (SMU, Tulsa), North Carolina (UCF), Wright State (Memphis), Georgetown (Temple) and Rhode Island (UConn).
ON THE RISE
For the second-straight year, The American will begin its season with at least three teams ranked or receiving votes in the United Soccer Coaches poll. UCF earns its highest-ever billing to begin a season at No. 15, with UConn and SMU both receiving votes.
ALL EYES ON US
Two American Athletic Conference players, both UCF Knights, were among just 36 men’s college soccer players to be named to the MAC Hermann Trophy’s 2019 Watch List. Senior Cal Jennings and junior Louis Perez, both All-Americans last season, both made their debut to the Watch List. Jennings finished last season as a Semifinalist for the award.
LOOKING BACK - 2018 CHAMPIONSHIP
No. 2 seed SMU repeated as the American Athletic Conference tournament champions on Nov. 10, prevailing by a 5-4 margin on penalty kicks over No. 1 seed UCF in a 1-1 draw. The Mustangs reached the championship match following a 2-1 double-overtime win over No. 6 seed Memphis, while the Knights advanced over No. 4 UConn 3-2 in double overtime in the other semifinal contest.
UCF and SMU each earned a share of the 2018 Regular Season Championship. The teams both accumulated 16 points during conference play. SMU earned the honor for the third time in the past four years, while UCF’s regular season title became the program’s first since the Knights earned the honor in Conference USA in 2004.