South Florida Division Prospect Team

TEAM SHEET

(A) MLS Affiliated/Academy

FORMATION

This is more of what you’d image from a 3-5-2 formation with the modern wing backs flanking a group of three center backs. There’s one deep lying all-action defensive midfield that supports the two box-to-box 8/10 hybrids.

STARTING ELEVEN

Daniel Lugo — Tampa Bay United (LF)

Danny Lugo has been one of the most productive strikers throughout USL League Two with 10 goals for Tampa Bay United. He grew up within the organization and helped them win their first-ever USL Academy League National Championship title in 2022. As he’s been responsible for half of the goals scored for the club this summer, his coaches at North Carolina are hoping he can bring that much needed goal scoring ability with him this fall as the Tar Heels will be looking to replace the 10 goals and 7 assists that Quenzi Huerman was responsible for last season. Huerman has since graduated and signed professionally with the Colorado Springs Switchbacks.

Seth Mahlmeister — Sarasota Paradise (RF)

Not many people probably watch Purdue University Fort Wayne in the Horizon League, but just as Seth Mahlmeister led the Mastadons over the 2023 season, he led the Paradise this summer. The 6’2” striker scored 10 of Purdue Fort Wayne’s 24 team goals and for the Sarasota Paradise, he netted 8. Mahlmeister had a shot with the Columbus Crew Academy in 2020 after scoring 32 goals in the prior academy season with Fort Wayne United. In an era where everybody’s favorite player is either Messi and Ronaldo, I love that Mahlmeister’s favorite player is Didier Drogba and that he has learned a lot from the legend.

He’ll enter his senior season after having been named to the Horizon League First Team, so the big question will be, can he exceed his 2023 marks and get on the radar of more clubs?

Maximus Barboto — Tampa Bay United (LCM)

After two solid seasons playing for his father at the New Jersey Institute of Technology (NJIT), Maximus Barboto is on the move. The New Jersey native cleaned up on conference awards during his time, collecting the America East Rookie of the Year, All-Rookie Team, and First Team awards over his freshman and sophomore seasons. Now that he’s joining the University of Akron, he’ll have a new set of challenges against a step up in competition.

Recent Highlights (Credit — Golden Videos)

JP Jordan — Sarasota Paradise (CM)

JP Jordan is one of the reinforcements arriving to the University of Louisville. As a suitable replacement to Bradley Sample who had made a professional move to the Pittsburgh Riverhounds, Jordan made a transfer after only appearing 580 minutes at Southern Methodist last season as a junior. In the back half of the season, he was limited to 23 minutes per game as it appears that he fell out of favor.

He’s a ball winner, distributor and a good manager of the midfield, always scanning and checking his shoulders. During his most successful season at SMU as a sophomore, he was described as “one of the best ball-recovering midfielders in the country.” When his team are in the attacking third, he’s also capable of moving into a higher position to work in combination plays with the attackers, or hover around to provide slightly deeper support.

But let’s see what Jordan can do in a new environment. He was going to be in the ACC one way or another, as SMU have also now joined the NCAA’s current top conference. Jordan will face his former school on the last game of the regular season when Louisville hosts the Mustangs in a big conference showdown.

Recent Highlights (Credit — Sports Reels TX)

Kai Tamashiro — Sarasota Paradise (RCM)

I’ve usually seen Kai Tamashiro lined up on the wing, but based on his skill set and style of play, I could also see him in this kind of role within the 3-5-2 formation. Backed up by a wing back and a deep lying midfielder that both have good coverage and awareness, he’d have more freedom in the attack. Over the course of play, he could shift into the 10 spot right behind the two forwards or overlap into his natural wide playmaking position with the wing back supporting in connection with the central midfielder.

Similar to Danny Lugo, Tamashiro didn’t make an appearance during his freshman season, but maybe with the departure of David Bercedo, the IMG Academy product can get an opportunity to show what he’s all about. Tate Lorentz also had a great summer season, so Carlos Somoano will have a few good young wide playmakers vying for minutes, ready to officially prove themselves at the college level.

Tate Johnson — Tampa Bay United (LWB)

Tate Johnson was one of my favorites from the Spring Soccer Cup season earlier this year. It was my first time seeing him and he wasn’t listed on the roster, so I didn’t realize who he was until a couple months later. In the spring game against Wake Forest, he came on as a substitute and played at both the right and left full back positions over the course of the match. He was probably one of the more aggressive players I’ve seen lately, so his performance jumped off the page that day. Johnson’s definitely not afraid of a challenge and he can bring some solid physicality if required. His movements are well identified and he makes himself available by joining the midfield or overlapping into the wide areas. He’s also a good possessor, passer and crosser of the ball, so simply put, he has everything you’d expect from a modern left wing back with some added grit to his game.

He has the calmness and confidence under pressure that you’d expect from somebody who has played against higher competition. The recently turned 19 year old grew up in the area and he played his youth soccer with the Tampa Bay United organization. USL Championship side Tampa Bay Rowdies eventually offered him an academy contract in 2022. He made his professional level debut during a U.S. Open Cup match as a 16 year old before making his USL Championship league debut 5 months later against Las Vegas Lights FC in a 6-1 win. After he spent the first half of the 2023 season with the Rowdies, he ended up making the move up to Charlotte FC’s NEXT Pro team Crown Legacy where he appeared in 10 games between July and September.

They haven’t updated the North Carolina roster online, but it’ll be interesting to see more of Tate Johnson when he gets consistent minutes in ACC competition.

Reid Roberts — Tampa Bay United (LCB)

One of the best center backs in the West Coast Conference has been San Francisco’s Reid Roberts. He’s a native of Colorado, but has appeared in a handful of matches this summer with Tampa Bay United. He scored in his first game this summer when he joined the team in the middle of June and he added another against Miami AC at the end of the month.

As the first of two center backs in this starting eleven that was draft eligible in the 2024 MLS SuperDraft, he earned All-Freshman designation in 2022 and then an All-Conference First Team award in 2023. Collectively over his first two seasons with the Dons, he’s been the minutes leader while helping his team hold their opponents to an even one goal per game average. San Francisco have brought in National Championship winning forward Isaiah Easley from Clemson, so maybe that will help with the offensive side of things as they look to keep improving upon an 8-4-5 record.

Roman Holt — Sarasota Paradise (CB)

Roman Holt was a clear choice to be the center of the back three as he has experience with this formation and coaches have consistently talked about his maturity and leadership at such a young age.

It comes as no surprise to me though, as the Texan has had quite the early career after having grown up in a winning environment with San Antonio FC. He’s trained with the USL Championship side since he was a 16 year old where he was also named to the bench 4 times during the 2021 season. They finished 2nd in the Western Conference Mountain Division and reached the Conference Final, losing in penalties to eventual league champion Orange County SC. San Antonio returned the following year even better, ultimately winning both the regular season as well as the championship title after defeating Louisville City FC 3-1. It was during that 2022 title winning season where Holt made his official professional debut in U.S. Open Cup competition as a 17 year old. He was the starting right center back in a full match performance win in the Second Round. He was then subbed on in the first period of extra time in San Antonio’s upset win over Austin FC in the following match. He was also able to get experience against a few different Liga MX clubs during friendly matches that season, but didn’t make any USL Championship appearances despite again being listed in the substitutes in the early months of the year.

With appearances hard to come by on a top contending team, Ocean City Nor’easters Head Coach Kevin Nuss was contacted to see about getting him an opportunity in USL League Two to play against many college level players. Finally getting more of an opportunity to show his ability, Holt helped the Nor’easters to an unbeaten 11-0-3 regular season record.

In 2023, he played all 120 minutes and scored the match winner in extra time to see San Antonio FC advance out of the U.S. Open Cup Second Round yet again. After the previous summer’s success in USL League Two, Holt joined league newcomer Sarasota Paradise. Having such a positive experience for the 2023 New Organization of the Year winning club, Holt returned this season and helped lead the team to a South Florida Division title and a shot at the USL League Two Playoffs.

After committing to start his college career with San Diego State, he has since transferred to High Point University where he’ll play his 2024 season. With him as an addition, I’m really looking forward to seeing the Panthers and their defensive group in particular. Despite a spring season loss at UNC Greensboro, I thought there were few interesting players on their roster. As Head Coach Zach Haines looks to replace captain and minutes leader Finn McRobb in the back line, he’ll have a very experienced Roman Holt at his disposal along with a few other prospects. I thought James VandeHei showed some promise this spring, so I’ll be seeing how he progresses this fall. Haines also welcomes Lukas Kamrath who left the University of Notre Dame after their NCAA College Cup Final appearance. Kamrath also makes this team sheet in the substitutes section.

Holt doesn’t turn 20 years old until next March, so he’ll still be a young player at the college level, but he has an opportunity to make an impression in a region that attracts a lot of attention as he further develops towards the ultimate goal of becoming a professional.

Recent Highlights (Credit — Roman Holt Soccer)

Owen Travis — Miami AC (RCB)

With Reid Roberts on the 2024 MLS SuperDraft eligible players list was Florida International University’s Owen Travis. He spent his first three college seasons with the University of Alabama at Birmingham where he started all but one game since the very beginning, but after only 8 wins over the course of those seasons, he decided to transfer to FIU. It turned out to be a successful move so far. Last season, he continued his run of starts by starting every match for the 10-5-4 Panthers. He got a taste of NCAA National Championship tournament competition as well, and was named to the AAC All-Conference Second Team for his efforts. The 6’3” 200 lb. center back contributed to a Miami AC club that nearly won the division title, if not for Sarasota.

The Panthers might be the early season favorite to win the conference, having last achieved that feat in 2022. Last year’s regular season winner SMU has since left the AAC for the ACC.

Jason Bucknor — Weston FC (RWB)

Every time I’ve seen Jason Bucknor, his ability has been noticeable despite really only playing limited minutes in comparison to his peers. It’s kind of surprising because he’s a high skill, high talent guy who can play anywhere along the right flank. He originally joined the University of Michigan in 2021 where he immediately became recognized as a Big Ten All-Freshman team selection. Ever since that season, his minutes have been decreasing for some reason or another. The Wolverines have also been in an extended slump lately, despite all of the MLS NEXT Academy talent in that team.

He hasn’t appeared much for Weston FC this summer either, but his focus is still firmly on finding a professional opportunity. I’ve heard of a few MLS clubs holding invitationals this summer and Bucknor attended the one in Miami back in June. More recently, he’s been taking the opportunity to train with USL Championship side Charleston Battery along with Michigan teammate Bryce Blevins who is another favorite of mine at the college level.

Similar to other guys listed in this team sheet, Bucknor is an example of a player that has played at the professional level before attending college. He made 13 appearances in USL League One with Inter Miami’s second team at the time.

With everything Bucknor has in his locker, I think he’s worth a chance. With the right coach and the right system, he could be useful as a versatile wide player in a domestic roster slot. In this 3-5-2 formation, he’d do really well as an extension of the midfield and defense while also providing an attacking threat with his speed and delivery up to the two forwards.

He has a series on YouTube following his path towards the professional dream.

Jason Bucknor’s YouTube Channel

Devin Armstrong — Tampa Bay United (GK)

Devin Armstrong has transferred to the University of Akron after first attending Wake Forest University. Wake Forest have one of the best goalkeeping groups in the country, so it’s hard for anybody to overtake the likes of Trace Alphin and Jonah Mednard.

Akron went unbeaten at home last season, but will want to improve to double digit wins in 2024. Redshirt Junior Mitch Budler looks to continue being the starter with an impressive goals against average of 0.76 across his 15 starts, but the plan is probably for Armstrong to see some action as a back up now that Seth Wilson has head down to UNC Greensboro.

In this region of Florida, the Tampa Bay Rowdies stay busy when it comes to offering players academy contracts, so it’s great to see from a development standpoint. Upon Armstrong signing an academy contract with the club in 2022, Goalkeeping Coach Stuart Dobson said, “He has high standards and he’s a great distributor with his feet, as well as being an excellent shot stopper. The guys love having him around the locker room because he’s a very likable guy. He’s very outgoing, so he fits in well with the team, and the whole team’s happy for him to be a part of the squad. Not only because he’s a good guy, but because he’s a great keeper.” A positive locker room guy with a strong work ethic and high standards for himself? That’s my type of player. I’m excited to see him get more opportunities with the move up north.

SUBSTITUTES

Baylen Young — Tampa Bay United

During one of the Davidson College games over the spring season, I thought Baylen Young had a strong showing, so I was happy to see his name pop up on Tampa Bay United’s roster this summer. Davidson will be one of my favorite teams to watch when it comes to lesser followed schools from the national perspective, not only because it’s the closest in proximity, but there are several players that are worth watching more closely this fall. Hopefully Young gets some added minutes on top of his 500 from last season. He made an appearance in every match for the Wildcats, but he averaged 32 minutes per game. Young and company had a good 2023 season resulting in a 10-5-1 record, and they’ll look to make a run on the Atlantic 10 Conference title. It’s a tough task, but they finished the season tied for the most conference wins in 2023, and they look to have a better group this coming year.

Other favorites from this team include Ayman Maadir, Alonzo Clarke, Denis Krioutchenkov, Vincent Bennage and Myles Culley.

Lukas Kamrath — Tampa Bay United

I mentioned him earlier because of his transfer to High Point University, but Lukas Kamrath is another center back prospect that looks to get more opportunities by way of a move. His Notre Dame team made it to the NCAA College Cup Final and they’ll look to contend in the ACC and NCAA National Championship tournaments again this fall, so Kamrath might have felt like a surplus to their needs. HPU will have one of the top back lines to watch on my list because I want to see how Kamrath, Holt and VandeHei play now that they should have more chances.

John Killgore Jr. — Tampa Bay United

You can add John Killgore Jr. to the list of those to watch on High Point University’s team this fall. He’s one of those midfielder turned full back type players, but like many younger guys in the college game, he didn’t get any minutes as a freshman despite his versatility. As he enters his sophomore season, the IMG Academy product will look to make the kind of impact that Coach Haines has expected.

Brandon Munson — Tampa Bay United

As the youngest player in this team sheet, I can’t pretend to know too much about him, but as a Sporting Kansas City product headed to a solid Michigan State team, he’s worth highlighting just in case he sees significant action this season as a freshman. His teammates have talked about an improved environment lately with the graduation of certain players, which looks to be lifting the play in Lansing. The Spartans enter the fall season after winning the College Spring League title a few months ago.

Heechan Han — Weston FC

Heechan Han has the same on-paper resume as Jason Bucknor with Cypress Bay High School, Weston FC and Inter Miami. Similarly, Han only appeared in 480 minutes last fall season compared to Bucknor’s 492, but as a sophomore center back for Brown University, he still has plenty of time to develop.

Han has appeared with Weston FC at the USL League Two level since 2021 and he has also played at the U19 MLS NEXT level before college. In his 6 appearances in USL League Two in the beginning of this summer, the club only allowed 4 goals and achieved 3 clean sheets for a 2-2-2 record. I’m not sure why, but after Han left the roster, Weston FC lost the next 5 games and didn’t manage to score a goal. His Brown University team made it to the Ivy League Championship game despite only 2 regular season conference wins, but their leading scorer transferred to Penn State, so we’ll see what happens with this team in 2024.

Charlie Farrar — Sarasota Paradise

The 2023 Big South Conference First Team goalkeeping selection has helped Sarasota secure the division title in the club’s second season in USL League Two. Charlie Farrar started every match for UNC Asheville after having been the two year starter at NCAA Division II school Chowan University. During his freshman season, he contributed to a 13-4-2 record and a Conference Carolinas title, but in year two, the team couldn’t live up to the 44 goals for and 18 goals against in the prior season and dropped to 6-6-5 as a result. The Englishman got back to winning ways as a junior with Asheville and nearly won the Big South Championship, but lost in penalties to High Point and missed out on the NCAA National Championship tournament. As anywhere in the college level, it’s not always easy to sustain success with players coming and going every season, so the Bulldogs may call upon Farrar to have big performances if they want to challenge again. In terms of prospects, I gave Armstrong the nod given his domestic status. Unfortunately, it’s just harder to get in to professional teams here with limited international slots. I will give him credit for having an important role in Sarasota’s division title win, and having twice as many starts over the summer though.

Christian Leon — Sarasota Paradise

Christian Leon joined his Purdue Fort Wayne teammate Seth Mahlmeister down in Sarasota. Like Mahlmeister, Leon started every match for the Mastodons and was a big component of the Paradise starting line up as well. I mentioned above that not too many people from the national perspective probably tune into the Horizon League or Purdue Fort Wayne in particular, but between these two and another teammate James Maxwell, they might be worth checking in on this fall.

Kevin Gorbell — Miami AC

With only one substitute appearance this summer worth 18 minutes, Kevin Gorbell’s name is added to this list for future reasons. Gorbell is attending the University of North Carolina by way of the Inter Miami organization. The defender made his professional level debut in MLS NEXT Pro last summer and made several appearances throughout the season.

Cesar Cuellar — Miami AC

As another product of the Inter Miami organization, Cesar Cuellar also made appearances for the second team, but he did it at the USL League One level back before MLS NEXT Pro was developed. The 21 year old American-Salvadoran has bounced around from FIU to Northern Illinois before settling in at Central Methodist University at the NAIA level. I’m not sure what his ambitions include, but his citizenship helps if he were trying to find a move to El Salvador one day despite being a Miami local.

Diego Castillo — Miami AC

Diego Castillo was close to being in the starting eleven as the holding midfielder because I think he's good in the deep lying role while also having potential around the danger areas with his goal contributions. His ability to play through balls and provide crosses for the forwards was also under consideration for the position. Most recently playing his college soccer at FIU, he led his team in assists (5), and he’s added a couple goals to his recent account while playing an influential part with Miami AC this summer. During his freshman season at Utah Valley, the goal contributions were most prevalent as he registered 4 goals and 7 assists to become the WAC Freshman of the Year.

Castillo was born in Mexico City and grew up playing within the Pachuca youth levels. It’ll be a pivotal season now that he’s a senior.

RESERVES

Colin Elder — St. Petersburg FC

Colin Elder led the attack for St. Petersburg FC with 5 goals as the Louisville City FC Academy product gets ready to head back to Bellarmine University. His freshman season was cut short due to injury, but he made 4 starts for 226 minutes while dishing out 2 assists. Elder made his USL Championship debut in a cameo appearance a month after his 18th birthday, but had gained experience training with the Louisville City first team back in 2023. Hopefully we get to see more of the young forward this fall.

Will Pierce — Sarasota Paradise

With this being his first season with Sarasota Paradise, Will Pierce was an important signing for the club as they finished atop the South Florida Division. His 6 goals were crucial in the divisional title race with Miami AC. He plays his college ball with Fairfield University up in Connecticut where he also scored 6 goals during their fall 2023 season. Pierce came to the United States from New Zealand after having played the last two seasons in the country’s first tier National League for Christchurch FC, so one way or another, the attacking midfielder should have a career at the professional level eventually.

Recent Highlights (Credit — William Pierce)

Enzo Panozzo — Sarasota Paradise

Defender Enzo Panozzo started every match in the regular season for Sarasota Paradise as they produced the division’s best goal differential, so he’ll go back to SMU with a lot of quality minutes under his belt. During his freshman season in Texas, he played as a substitute in 10 games for only a handful of minutes, but the team had a great season with a 14-3-2 record. Though the Mustangs failed to win the American Athletic Conference title, they made a run to the Third Round of the NCAA National Championship tournament. Now in the ACC, we’ll see if they can raise their level of play to match the competition. The IMG Academy graduate will likely have more opportunities to contribute this fall.

Josh Caron — Tampa Bay United

I added in Josh Caron as another one of the players from the High Point University team given his shot stopping ability over the course of the 2023 college season. While splitting time with freshman goalkeeper Justin Stewart, he only allowed 9 goals in 12 games while garnering 7 clean sheets. This summer, Caron has also split the schedule between Devin Armstrong and Phillip Falcon III.

Recent Highlights (Credit — Josh Caron)

Xavier Rimpel — Swan City SC

It was a tough season for the bottom dwellers of the South Florida Division between Swan City SC and Weston FC. If you combined the two clubs’ goals scored, they’d still fall well short of the fourth place team. Regardless, Xavier Rimpel makes the list for his affiliation with one of my favorite youth clubs Vaughan SC up in the Greater Toronto Area. The winger really needs to have a breakout season now that he’s a senior at Temple University, but there’s probably a shot up in the CPL if he can make something happen.

Recent Highlights (Credit — Xavier Rimpel)