KANSAS CITY, MO (August 7, 2026) – United Soccer Coaches has announced the Midfielders on its NCAA Division I Men’s Players to Watch lists for the 2026 intercollegiate season.
The list are compiled and released by the Division I All-America Committees to promote college soccer leading up to the official start date for the regular season later this month. The lists include United Soccer Coaches All-Americans and All-Region players from 2025 who are scheduled to return for the 2026 season.
“Entering the 2026 season, these previous honorees represent some of the best at their positions,” said Chris Przemieniecki, Senior College All-America Administrator. “As pre-season training opens, we are pleased to recognize these outstanding student-athletes from our member schools. I would like to thank Ryan Hopkins, DI Men’s All-America Chair and his committees for their efforts in compiling this lists.”
Here is the schedule for all position announcements:
July 31–Goalkeepers
August 3 – Defenders
August 7 – Midfielders
August 10 – Forwards
2026 NCAA Division I Men’s Players to Watch – Midfielders
|
Name |
Class |
School |
Hometown |
|
Jared Aguilar |
Jr. |
University of Tulsa |
Denton, Texas |
|
Braxton Arpachinda |
Sr. |
Western Michigan University |
Sterling Heights, Mich. |
|
Martin Bakken |
Sr. |
Clemson University |
Baerum, Norway |
|
Stavros Charalampous |
Sr. |
California Baptist University |
Nicosia, Cyprus |
|
Evans Dapaah |
Sr. |
University of North Carolina |
Accra, Ghana |
|
Malick Daouda |
Jr. |
Clemson University |
Montreal, Que. |
|
Jose De La Torre |
Jr. |
California State University Fullerton |
Moreno Valley, Calif. |
|
Matt Dreas |
Sr. |
University of Akron |
Covington, Ky. |
|
Paco Fernandez |
GR-5 |
Bryant University |
Sevilla, Spain |
|
Ben Fisher |
Sr. |
University of North Carolina-Charlotte |
Alexandria, Va. |
|
Ransford Gyan |
Jr. |
Clemson University |
Sunyani, Ghana |
|
Alex Hall |
Jr. |
University of Washington |
Newcastle, Wash. |
|
Sabri Hanni |
Sr. |
Grand Canyon University |
Paris, France |
|
Diego Hernandez |
Sr. |
Furman University |
Mesquite, Texas |
|
Eric Howard |
Sr. |
Georgetown University |
Redmond, Wash. |
|
Til Kauschke |
Jr. |
Seton Hall University |
Hamburg, Germany |
|
Anton Khelil |
Jr. |
University of North Florida |
Saint Cyprien, France |
|
Leon Koehl |
Sr. |
University of Maryland |
Cologne, Germany |
|
Martin Kozak |
Sr. |
Elon University |
Santiago, Chile |
|
Nico Loebus |
So. |
University of North Carolina |
Bad Homburg, Germany |
|
Agustin Lopez |
Jr. |
University of Kentucky |
Santa Fe, Argentina |
|
Connor Miller |
Sr. |
Cornell University |
Centennial, Colo. |
|
Richard Monath |
Sr. |
University of Delaware |
Essex, Md. |
|
Luka Nikolai |
Sr. |
University of North Carolina |
Dusseldorf, Germany |
|
Collins Oduro |
Sr. |
Indiana University |
Bibiani, Ghana |
|
Isaac Powell |
Sr. |
University of California-Irvine |
Chula Vista, Calif. |
|
Diego Rosas |
Sr. |
University of Portland |
Benito, Texas |
|
Joschi Schelb |
Sr. |
University of North Carolina |
Freiburg, Germany |
|
Iain Wagner |
Jr. |
University of San Diego |
San Diego, Calif. |
|
Marco Wright |
Sr. |
University of Maryland |
Gastonia, N.C. |
|
Ryan Zellefrow |
Jr. |
University of North Carolina |
Berwyn, Pa. |
|
Giacomo Zizza |
Jr. |
University of Louisville |
Denville, N.J. |
These positional announcements also lead up to the 2026 watch lists for the prestigious Missouri Athletic Club’s Hermann Trophy on the official start date for regular season games on August 19 (men). The MAC Hermann Trophy is presented annually to the Division I National Players of the Year as voted by Division I College Coaches at the end of the regular season. The 2026 recipients will be announced on January 8, 2027, in St. Louis, Mo.
