State of Recruiting: 2028 Class off to a Flying Start

June 15 is two weeks in the rearview mirror at this point. In that fortnight, there have been over 160 players who have publicly announced their verbal commitments. It's a remarkably fast start for the class - especially among the power four conferences with conferences like the SEC already over 60 percent full for their recruiting classes before the first month is over. The date for official visits is over a month away but many of these decisions will be made before those trips will be completed.

The women's college soccer recruiting typically moves fast, but this year seems exceptionally fast. The roster limits and new rules for eligibility are certainly having a factor in the decision-making from both sides. The top programs being early in the offers and commitment has a large influence on the whole landscape.

Ten of the players in the top 20 of the Prep Soccer National Rankings for the 2028 class have already given their verbal commitment. Stanford, UCLA, and Duke all landed two verbal commitments from those top ranked players.

Stanford is coming in as an early favorite to be the top ranked recruiting class. The Cardinal landed No. 2 overall recruit Kendra Hansen Kendra Hansen M State #2 Nation CA , who has firmly established herself as a key player for the US Youth National Team.

UCLA, under new head coach Gof Boyoko, looks to be the challenger for the top spot in the recruiting rankings. The Bruins have top level talent and depth. Most of the class is attacking talent, but goalkeeper Gabby Gjeldum looks to be a star-in-the-making. She was outstanding recently for Galaxy SC during the Girls Academy.

Duke has a small class of only two players, but they are top ranked talent, which makes that a formidable class at the outset.

USC, Texas, UNC, and Penn State also look to be making classes that should challenge for the top spot in the future.

The Florida Gators have been the most active program in landing verbal commitments through the first two weeks. Florida has nine verbal commitments (Devon Weafer, Izzy Sanchez, Reial Phonsavath, Carsyn Murray, Ava Klein, Addison Jericho, Noelle Granger, Olivia Bongiorno, and Ashley Baxter) as of June 30. With limited roster spots, five years of eligibility, and other contributing factors, the size of the Florida class is unique for 2028.

This is head coach Nick Zimmerman's first recruiting class with Florida. He was quite familiar with the 2028s from his previous role as head coach of Mississippi State. There is a balance to the recruits with reinforcements at every position. There's certainly a playing style change with coach Zimmerman now in place that puts a high emphiasis on the counter press, and the recruiting class reflects the players that fit style of play.

While other programs seemingly rush into the recruiting circus, Florida State has once again not landed a verbal commitment yet for the 2028 class. The Seminoles did not have a verbal commitment for the 2027 class until earlier this month. Forward Ayomide Junaid is the lone verbal commitment to the program at this point as she made a public announcement in May. It's a stark contrast compared to the other programs that regularly compete for the National Championship, but the approach certainly seems to work for the Seminoles.

In the race for most commitments from the 2028 class, Texas club Albion Hurricanes clearly leads the pack. AHFC has nine verbal commitments from the 2028 class already. The club has players heading all over the country, which is another underrated aspect of this early recruitment time with players from Texas heading to California and vice versa. The geographic region for programs to recruit is all over the world.

AHFC heading toward almost double digit in recruits is a testament to the quality of the players at the club as well as the work of Club Director Gustavo Mota. Here is his thoughts on the recruitment journey: