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Following its 2018 national championship, Maryland men’s soccer came in ranked No. 1 in the United Soccer Coaches preseason poll released Tuesday.
The Terps lost a lot of crucial pieces to their title run in the offseason — including leading goal scorer Amar Sejdic, goalkeeper Dayne St. Clair and defensive anchors Donovan Pines and Chase Gasper, among others — but coaches around the country seem confident they’ll reload for another monster season.
Maryland returns a lot of talent in forward Paul Bin, who was second on the team in points, as well as midfielder William James Herve and defender Johannes Bergmann, to name just a few. And the program has a number of new additions as well.
The poll also showed how steep competition will be for the Terps next season, as their schedule includes six ranked opponents. Maryland will face three teams in the top 10, including No. 2 Indiana (Oct. 18), No. 3 Akron (Sept. 13) and No. 7 Michigan State (Oct. 11). Opponents Virginia, Georgetown and Michigan all made the cut as well, while Wisconsin and UCLA received votes.
Coach Sasho Cirovski has always scheduled a tough slate for his team, so this shouldn't be anything new for the Terps, but it has been a while since they were ranked first heading in the preseason poll. The last time Maryland had the honor was in 2006, fresh off winning its 2005 title.
In other news
Maryland football announced wide receiver Jeshaun Jones tore his ACL and will be out for the 2019 season. Thomas wrote about the impact this could have on the Terps.
Washington Redskins tight end Vernon Davis, who played for the Terps from 2003-2006, had a message for Jones.
From one @TerpsFootball player to another, @VernonDavis85 sends his best to @JeshaunJones06 following news of his ACL tear. pic.twitter.com/AmaE70gjRl
— NBC Sports Redskins (@NBCSRedskins) August 6, 2019
Minnesota Vikings wide receiver Stefon Diggs also reached out to show support.
@JeshaunJones06 wishing you a speedy recovery youngin. This will be apart of your journey. You going come back even better than before ♥️
— DIGGS (@stefondiggs) August 7, 2019
With Jones out, transfer Sean Savoy could step into a big role. I wrote a feature on the connection Savoy and quarterback Josh Jackson formed at Virginia Tech through enduring different struggles on and off the field, and how they’ll look to continue that in College Park.
In more Maryland football injury news, it looks like running back Lorenzo Harrison III was injured in practice on Tuesday. No official statement has been made yet by the team.
RB Lorenzo Harrison III was just taken out of practice in the front seat of a cart. Did not see what happened. But he was bent over with head in his hands as he and a Maryland staff member drove by.
— Cody Wilcox (@Cody_Wilcox15) August 6, 2019
While at training camp for the Terps, Cody also reported that running back Jake Funk did in fact tear his ACL last season. But he assured media that he is feeling healthy and looks to be practicing with the team in full.
“My knee is probably stronger than it was before. I feel stronger. I feel quicker,” Funk said.
— Cody Wilcox (@Cody_Wilcox15) August 6, 2019
Check out the latest podcast, where we discuss everything Maryland football, including Jones’ ACL tear.
As we continue our last week of our Maryland football position previews, here is a look at the Terps’ punting group.
Maryland softball announced Tuesday that pitcher Braelyn Cooper will be transferring into the program from Liberty University. Cooper posted a 1.09 ERA last season.
And finally, check out this video on Alex Len from the Atlanta Hawks.
"I actually saw it, like in my head, 'oh I actually can do it'."
— Atlanta Hawks (@ATLHawks) August 5, 2019
Go through the Hawk Life w/ @alexlen#TrueToAtlanta pic.twitter.com/ldOV5cy0km