2021 National Signing Day coverage

Check out some of the 2021 Girls IMG Academy ranked players and where they are heading on National Signing Day.
by Travis Clark
November 16, 2020

National Signing Day is here!

The window for 2021 graduates to sign their National Letter of Intent to play college soccer opens today.

Signing Day Links

National Signing Day Storylines to follow | 2021 Boys IMG Academy rankings | 2021 NSD photo gallery |

2021 Girls IMG Academy rankings | 2021 Men's Recruiting Rankings | 2021 Women's Recruiting Rankings | 

Top recruit boys highlight reel | Top recruit girls highlight reel | Women's Recruiting Class announcements |

Men's Recruiting Class announcements | Women's Transfer Tracker

How to get involved

--Please email your commitment to commit@topdrawersoccer.com if you haven't already.

--If you'd like to take part in our coverage, which is presented by IMG Acadmey, please send your Signing Day photos or any other information to editor@topdrawersoccer.com.

--Tag us on Instagram or Twitter and we'll share your photos, both on Wednesday and beyond.

Congrats to the class of 2021!

Live coverage (all times EST)

November 18

9 am: A week on from the opening of the signing window, and major men's DI programs are getting in on the act. UCLA released its first six signees, while Indiana has started to unveil its class on Twitter. Both have pretty solid classes, with the Bruins in particular bringing in a top five class.

November 16

8 am: Signing Day surprises are few and far between, generally speaking. But this year, while it may not have come on Signing Day itself, Ally Sentnor, the No. 1 ranked player from the class of 2022, announced on her Instagram that she is reclassifying and graduating in 2021. She'll be part of North Carolina's class for next fall, instead of two years from now.

November 13

2 pm: The University of St. Thomas is making the move to Division I across all of its sports, and announced its first recruiting classes for 2021. The women's and men's teams will both play in the Summit League, and began laying the foundation for next year. While 12 were announced by the women's program, only one signee has been confirmed so far for the men's side.

1:30 pm: Browsing the 2021 Boys IMG Academy player rankings, and it's clear that several of the top players aren't heading to school these days. One player that is on his way -- at least for now -- is Atlanta United Academy midfielder Will Reilly, who is heading for Stanford. Ranked as the No. 26 player, he's one of the highest-rated recruits in the boys side to be announced a few days into the signing period. He heads to the Pac-12 program after seeing significant minutes in the USL Championship this season, playing the third most minutes on Atlanta United 2. 

11 am: Speaking of the aforementioned Portland men's soccer program, their No. 2 class is now official and announced as of Thursday evening.

November 12

1:30 pm: The surprises are few and far between for recruiting classes. But international additions -- even ones from Canada -- can be the ultimate X-Factor. Portland, which has a Top 5 class, announced that Muslim Umar, from the Vancouver Whitecaps Academy, is part of this year's class. That's the kind of pedigree that could tilt a class towards an even higher ranking.

1 pm: Can California compete for the Pac-12 title over the next four years? The Golden Bears currently have the No. 1 ranked Women's DI class, which they've officially announced as of today.

12 am: Purdue is the latest program to put out its release, confirming a class of eight additions. Official confirmations continue to come out at a high rate; check out the links above for women's and men's DI programs.

11 am: Recap 11 of the IMG Academy graduates set to play college soccer with the class of 2021. The girls side is particularly impressive, with players heading to major programs in the ACC and beyond.

9 am: Some of the best expected classes for 2021 have already been announced. Vanderbilt and Texas are two that immediately come to mind. Meanwhile, the 2019 men's DI champs continue to roll out their class for next year. More updates will come today but at a slower rate, with much more coverage to come next week and beyond for 2021 recruiting classes.

November 11

5 pm: That'll do it for today's coverage. Don't forget to check out the photo gallery, which will be updated in the coming months, as well as the other links listed above. There will be periodic updates here from time-to-time as more classes are confirmed and decisions revealed.

4:10 pm: Assessing recruiting classes before players step on campus is a fun exercise. But the actual impact of the players is where the rubber meets the road. The aforementioned Lexi Missimo is one of several players from Solar SC's dominant Under-18/19 team (currently in the ECNL) that was excellent in the Girls DA. Several of those players are off to Division I schools in the fall, and it will be interesting to see just how good they are. Missimo and Trinity Byars are obviously the top two, but don't sleep on Makhiya McDonald, the No. 24 ranked player that was announced as an addition by Texas A&M.

4 pm: Ranked as a Top 5 class in the most recent recruiting rankings update, Notre Dame's class continues to be revealed on social media. Matthew Roou is one of the top forwards in the class heading to college after spending time with Indiana Fire Academy and the Indy Eleven in 2020.

3:55 pm: Expected to have one of the top classes in women's DI soccer, Texas has started to reveal its newcomers. Lexi Missimo was confirmed as an addition, although she has previously graduated in June 2020 and could be available during the 2021 spring season as well as next fall. There were rumblings that she could turn pro, but the COVID-19 pandemic cast those plans aside for now.

3:45 pm: A six-member class (at least for now) is heading to Indiana under head coach Erwin van Bennekom, his second signing class in Bloomington. Can they take a step forward, either in the spring of 2021 or next fall? The group is comprised primarily of regional talent, with Southern Indiana standout Rylee Anslinger and intriguing name to watch. The Creighton men's soccer program has added four.

3 pm: The South Dakota State soccer program is the latest to confirm its class of 2021, as the Summit League side adds seven.

2:30 pm: UNC Wilmington usually features a handful of international additions, and their first annoucned signing is a player from New Zealand. Adam Hills will head from Wellington to join the CAA program. He's one of two Kiwis just revealed, with the other Finn O'Connor, who has experienced with the New Zealand Under-17s.

2:15 pm: Another official release has dropped, as the UTSA soccer program confirmed the addition of five players.

1:45 pm: Interesting to note that not one, but two Canadian players are set to join Oklahoma with this class. Sheridan Michel, another youth national team defender from up north, has also signed with the Big 12 program. Speaking of Canada, the Vancouver Whitecaps have announced that 10 players are set to play college soccer from their 2021 class.

1:20 pm: Along with Mia Justus signing with Florida State, other top recruits are making it official. UCLA announced the addition of Lily Reale, the No. 14 ranked player in the class.

1 pm: Division II powerhouse Grand Valley State announced its 10-player class as they look to defend their 2019 national championship.

12:45 pm: Another player set to make the jump from overseas, Colorado(w) announced the addition of an English youth national team veteran for 2021.

12:20 pm: Charlotte Independence SC have put out list of where their 2021 graduates are heading for both the boys and girls programs.

12:15 pm: Pittsburgh had made strides in the ACC over the past couple of seasons. Can local talent continue that surge? The women's program started to announce its 2021 class, after previously revealing transfers over the past week.

12 pm: Another international commit becomes official. Eno Nto is set to join the Notre Dame men's soccer program from Derby County in the United Kingdom. Can he be an impact player in the ACC?

11:45 am: It's always interesting to see what programs are first to put out their releases. Some take months, some never come up, and for a few, it's a matter of hours. Both the Liberty and South Carolina women's soccer programs put out their respective releases before noon on the East Coast.

11:30 am: Curious to know which players from the Michigan Hawks are set to play in college? They posted an infographic on their Twitter account that gives the rundown.

11 am: One of the storylines to watch for Signing Day this year was going to be the pandemic's impact on international recruiting. Obviously, coaches and programs have been willing to bring players in based on video in past classes. Some players could have been recruited for the class of 2020, never announced, and then introduced for 2021. Alabama was one of the first programs spotted to announce a European addition.

10:10 am: It wouldn't be National Signing Day without news of a Canadian player heading to play at West Virginia. The first player making that move is defender Annika Leslie, who comes to Morgantown from Nova Scotia.

9:50 am: It wasn't the first season in college soccer that Mark Carr had in mind, whether considering the pandemic or the struggles of his Oklahoma side. A new recruiting class was kicked off by adding a Canadian attacking midfielder.

9:30 am: Sticking in the D.C. Metro area, FC Virginia was quick to put out impressive coverage of its class of 2021, sending many players to top Division I program in the state of Virginia.

9 am: Several teams have started to roll out Signing Day announcements. The Clemson men's soccer program announced the addition of Adam Lundegard from the D.C. United Academy, the No. 58 ranked player in the class.

8:30 am: It's still early on the East Coast as NLIs are sent in to programs. Both club teams and college programs will release plenty of content that will sift through and highlight. Check out the signees heading to college from Houston Dash youth soccer.

7:30 am: The photo gallery is officially live. Please submit your Signing Day photos! 

Related Topics: Atlantic Coast, ASUN, Big 12, Big East, Big Ten, Coastal Athletic Association, Conference USA, Pacific 12, SEC, Summit League, West Coast, Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference
Trending Videos
Upload Videos for Free
 

Headlines

Read more
IMG Academy Top 150 Rankings
see full ranking:
Boys Girls