College sports are so back

The GIST: Thanks to conference realignment and the women’s sports boom, the NCAA is in its shakeup era this school year — and women’s soccer is on the frontline of all that change.

Conference realignment: Already one of the most competitive women’s soccer conferences, the ACC’s plot has thickened with three new teams on the scene. Now, three of last year’s four College Cup squads hail from the conference, raising the stakes of regular-season play (and increasing players’ frequent flier miles) considerably.

• The Big Ten, which had a chaotic finish in both regular-season and tournament play last year, has also upped its drama with the additions of former Pac-12 powerhouses UCLA, USC, Oregon, and Washington. Game on.

Growing the game: While the popularity of pro women’s soccer (plus other collegiate women’s sports like basketball, softball, and volleyball) has skyrocketed in recent years, the NCAA game hasn’t caught up with the buzz.

• But given the USWNT’s Olympic success (and their players’ emphasis on the collegiate pipeline), this fall is a huge opportunity for the college gals to capitalize on the beautiful game’s momentum. LFG.

The GIST: Several familiar faces dominate the preseason rankings, and teams are already hustling to assert themselves early. Last year’s national champ and runner-up both entered the 2023 title match undefeated, underscoring the importance of a strong start — from kickoff to final whistle, there’s no room for mistakes.

🏆 No. 1 Florida State: The Seminoles blasted their way to the ACC’s regular-season crown and tournament title on the path to their fourth program natty last December — and they did it with the NCAA’s first undefeated season since 2011. With just 10 returnees from last year’s 21-player roster, FSU will be leaning on their No. 1 recruiting class to buoy them toward another deep run.

🌲 No. 2 Stanford: This season’s realignment chaos centers on the Cardinal, who landed in the ACC with the team that beat them for last year’s national title, plus five other ranked conference teams. If they can keep their cool while schlepping cross-country for five conference away matches, they’ll make the ACC even more treacherous.

🐾 No. 3 BYU: The Big 12 is the Cougars’ to lose…but hey, they’ve done it before. The 2023 College Cup semifinalists struggled to reload from the transfer portal this offseason after losing nine of their 11 starters to graduation. Last night’s 1–0 win over No. 19 Wisconsin was a good start — but can they keep things rolling through their daunting pre-conference slate?

🐻 No. 11 UCLA: The Bruins were humbled with a sub-Top-10 preseason ranking after last year’s historic choke at the finish line. But the last-ever Pac-12 champs are taking their talents to the Big Ten this season, and the Midwestern conference likely isn’t ready for this historic powerhouse.

The GIST: This sport isn’t known for its parity — only 11 teams have ever won the national title in its 42-year history — but between conference realignment and the transfer portal, who’s to say one of these underdogs won’t take it all?

🦁 No. 4 Penn State: It’s hard to list the No. 4 team as a dark horse, but last year’s stumble in both regular-season and conference tourney play rattled the Nittany Lions. The Big Ten will be even more competitive with the addition of aforementioned UCLA and No. 23 USC, but Penn State has already proven they mean business with a 4–0 blowout win over No. 8 Texas Tech in last night’s season opener.

🐏 No. 8 UNC: For the first time since women’s soccer became an NCAA sport in 1982, the Tar Heels won’t be helmed by legendary head coach Anson Dorrance, who suddenly retired last weekend. But even in this unchartered territory, you can never count out the NCAA’s undisputed fútbol queens.

🐶 No. 14 Georgia: The Bulldogs, who made a stunningly successful postseason push last year, hope to build on their momentum with an extremely ambitious pre–SEC slate. They started strong with a 0–0 draw against ACC heavyweight No. 7 Pitt last night, leaving them a full week to strategize before visiting the always-tough UNC.

🤘 No. 17 Texas: Don’t be fooled by their relatively low preseason ranking — the Longhorns are a serious threat in the crowded SEC their first year in the conference. With seniors Trinity Byars and Lexi Missimo anchoring their roster, Texas joins No. 12 Saint Louis as the only two schools to return two 2023 MAC Hermann semifinalists this season.