Photo by Jeff Camarati/UNC Athletic Communications
After a few marquee matchups in the opening weeks of the college soccer season, a new team has emerged to claim the top spot in the Fox Soccer/SBI NCAA Top 25 rankings.
North Carolina is the new No. 1 team in the land after a victory over Louisville, the team that previously occupied the top spot.
Right on Carolina's heels are the Maryland Terrapins, who are off to a 4-0 start and routed Stanford by a 4-0 scoreline on national television on Friday. Louisville dropped to No. 3 just ahead of Akron, which suffered a minor setback in being held to a draw at Cal State Fullerton before coming back and needing a golden goal from College Cup hero Scott Caldwell in double overtime to defeat Cal State Northridge.
South Florida and Indiana continue their early-season ascent into the top 10, while a host of newcomers, including 4-0 teams Virginia Commonwealth and UC-Irvine, crack the rankings after strong starts. Two teams on the way down, however, are preseason favorites UCLA and SMU, who are in danger of falling out of the rankings altogether after combining for one win in six games.
Here is the latest Fox Soccer/SBI NCAA Top 25:
- (Last week, 3) North Carolina (3-0)
- (4) Maryland (4-0)
- (1) Louisville (2-1)
- (2) Akron (2-0-1)
- (7) UConn (3-0)
- (8) UCSB (3-0)
- (6) Creighton (3-0)
- (10) West Virginia (2-1)
- (13) South Florida (3-0)
- (15) Indiana (2-0-1)
- (14) Virginia (3-1)
- (11) Notre Dame (1-1-1)
- (18) Boston College (4-0)
- (16) Penn State (3-1)
- (5) UCLA (0-2-1)
- (17) Ohio State (2-1-1)
- (22) Monmouth (2-0)
- (24) Central Florida (3-0)
- (NR) Virginia Commonwealth (4-0)
- (NR) UC-Irvine (4-0)
- (NR) St. John’s (2-1)
- (19) William & Mary (2-1)
- (9) SMU (1-2)
- (NR) Washington (2-0-1)
- (NR) Northern Illinois (3-0)
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What do you think of this week's rankings? Impressed with North Carolina's start? Surprised that Akron had trouble with its two California-based opponents? What do you make of UCLA and SMU?
Share your thoughts below.
