Leo Stolz. Jordan Morris. Cristian Roldan. You know those names. Men’s DI college soccer has its hierarchy like anything else, and when it comes down to MLS draft time, it’s not hard to figure who’s caught the league’s collective eye.
But every year features surprises, virtual head-scratchers that break the mold and force outside league analysts into frenzied moments of research. In 2014, that was Damion Lowe and Tesho Akindele. With that said, this is a look at some unknown names currently making hay in DI soccer who deserve looks at the next level based on their abilities. This isn’t limited to just seniors, either.
So let’s travel through a handful of college players you probably don’t know who have that next-level ability. From freshmen to seniors, these guys are diamonds in the rough.
F Neco Brett, Robert Morris: MLS doesn’t typically trawl the NEC for its goal-scorers, but Brett should probably be an exception. Doubts about his competition are well-founded, but know this; Brett has 27 goals since the start of the 2013 season, and the success Tesho Akindele’s found in the league after a fruitful DII career should force teams to take notice here. The Jamaican is well-built and has afterburners he routinely utilizes to squeeze past erstwhile defenders. As a junior Brett still has some assets he can add to his game (namely better foot skills), but MLS can always use preternatural goal-scorers, and there are few better in the league than Brett.
