Since the previous boys soccer rankings, quite a bit has happened.

Private school powers Salesianum (Del.) and Pennington School (N.J.) started regular season play, parts of New York have returned competition, and several of Maryland's top MIAA schools banded together for a new league to start play next week. 

It all adds up to several new entries into this week's Top 25.

Mount St. Joseph (Md.) vaults into the Top 5 with a lineup featuring three seniors already committed to NCAA Division I programs, three other seniors with NCAA Division I interest, and a standout junior who will soon commit to a program in the ACC, Big East, Big Ten, or Ivy League. On paper, Mount St. Joseph might be the strongest high school team playing this fall. 

In New York, a few sections have returned to play and Mamaroneck (N.Y.) has jumped out to a 5-0 start. But two teams to watch will be Shenendehowa (N.Y.), which defeated [CBA Albany ny-m] in a clash of undefeated teams last week, and Monsignor Farrell, also off to a 5-0 start and faces defending Catholic state champ St. Anthony's (N.Y.) this week.

While several of these Eastern schools are early in the regular season play, the first boys state champs will be crowned this week, starting with Idaho and Indiana.  

FAB 50 BOYS TEAMS

NOTE: Instead of assigning a ranking number this season, teams will be grouped based on their results and talent pool. Once the season comes to an end and some reasonable assessments are possible, TDS will publish a final FAB 50.

Here are our TOP 5 teams in alphabetical order (with records as of Sunday, Oct. 11): 

Clifton (N.J.) 9-0-0

Mount St. Joseph (Md.) 0-0-0

St. Ignatius (Ohio) 15-0-0

Mamaroneck (N.Y.) 5-0-0

Milwaukee Marquette 9-0-2

Whitefish Bay (Wis.) 12-0-1

[William Hall ct-m] (Conn.) 8-0-0

TEAMS 11-25 (in alphabetical order):

Beavercreek (Ohio) 15-0-2

Detroit Catholic Central (Mich.) 8-0-3

Fayetteville-Manlius (N.Y.) 8-0-0

La Salle (Pa.) 7-1-0

Medina (Ohio) 14-1-2

Olentangy Liberty (Ohio) 14-1-1

Pennington School (N.J.) 2-0-0

Pingry School (N.J.) 6-1-0

St. Dominic (Mo.) 17-1-0

Salesianum (Del.) 1-0-0

OTHERS UNDER CONSIDERATION (in alphabetical order):

Dodge City (Kan.) 15-0-0

Holland (Mich.) 15-1-0

Lakeville North (Minn.) 12-0-2

Mars (Pa.) 15-0-0

Olathe South (Kan.) 12-1-1

St. Anthony's (N.Y.) 2-0-1

St. Xavier (Ky.) 15-2-0

Traverse City West (Mich.) 19-1-2

Unionville (Pa.) 6-0-1

[William Tennett pa-m] (Pa.) 10-0-0

AROUND THE NATION … 

IN THE BOOKS: Annie Haycock redirected a rebound into the upper left corner of the goal, lifting Davis (Utah) to a dramatic 1-0 overtime victory over American Fork (Utah) in a Class 6A clash of state powers. Davis and American Fork have combined to win six of the last seven large-school state titles in Utah. Watch the replay of the match or simply fast forward to 1 hour, 55 minutes to see the winning goal through this link. 5A: Olympus and 4A: Ridgeline also claimed state titles over the weekend. Utah's Class 3A and 2A finals are scheduled for Tuesday, Oct. 26. 

MILESTONE VICTORY: Zack Gardner's goal gave Glastonbury (Conn.) a 1-0 victory over Tolland (Conn.) on Oct. 8, marking the 300th coaching win for 21-year veteran Mark Landers. The former ESPN associate producer-turned-educator has guided Glastonbury to seven state titles during his tenure. Glastonbury is 6-0-1 this season.

RETURN TO PLAY: Brandon Ibarra-Sanchez and Ethan Hinds netted the goals that lifted Salesianum (Del.) to a 2-0 win over Cape Henlopen (Del.) in the season opener for both teams on Saturday. Since Salesiaum is playing all but one match against in-state opponents this fall, an undefeated season is highly likely. Salesianum has not lost to an in-state opponent since 2014, a run of 56 matches that includes the 2020 opener. ... Penn commit Stas Korzeniowski scored four goals in Pennington's first two matches last week. 

QUIETLY RUNNING UP WINS: Lower Dauphin (Pa.) spent the 2016 and 2017 seasons ranked among the best high school teams in the nation while the lineup featured several college-bound players. Both years, the team delivered state titles. The high-end talent pool might have moved on, but the team is still winning. The Falcons won another state title in 2019 and is off to a 9-0-1 start in 2020.

NEXT WEEK: GIRLS FAB 50

Image Credit: NJ.com