A week after the book was closed on the 2019 season, it’s time to look ahead at what’s to come next spring. Rationally, it’s too early to do so effectively — there are transfers (hello, Chris Gray) still seeking new homes and (unfortunately) injuries still to surface. Nonetheless, it’s an exercise to ponder what’s next in the college game, a good thing since we're eight months out from the first game of 2020.
Up next: Nos. 6-10, all teams capable of making a run to championship weekend if they can catch the right breaks.
Way-Early 2020 Rankings
Division I Men
No. 25-No. 21
No. 20-No. 16
No. 15-No. 11
No. 10-No. 6
No. 5-No. 1
Division I Women
No. 25-No. 21
No. 20-No. 16
No. 15-No. 11
No. 10-No. 6
No. 5-No. 1
Division III Men
No. 10-No. 6
No. 5-No. 1
Division III Women
No. 10-No. 6
No. 5-No. 1
10. PENN
2019 record: 12-4 (6-0 Ivy)
Last seen: Falling in overtime in an all-time classic, a 19-18 quarterfinal loss to Yale to cap an exceptionally competitive trilogy of games between the teams.
Senior starts lost: 58 of 160 (36.25 percent)
Senior scoring departing: 129 of 373 points (34.58 percent)
Initial forecast: The Quakers were the best team not to advance to championship weekend, a statement that would have probably sounded absurd when they opened the year 0-3. Coach Mike Murphy offered plenty of credit to a senior class that included attackman Simon Mathias (37 goals, 25 assists), midfielder Tyler Dunn (20 goals) and goalie Reed Junkin (.531 save percentage), and that group will undoubtedly be missed. But the Quakers have enough back from an up-tempo offense that it’s hard to see bunch just fading back into a .500ish oblivion next year. Midfielder Sam Handley (35 goals, 26 assists) is coming off a first team All-America nod as a freshman, and Penn will have third team All-America picks back at defense (Mark Evanchick) and on faceoffs (Kyle Gallagher). That doesn’t even include 56-goal scorer Adam Goldner, fellow attackman Sean Lulley (19 goals, 17 assists) or long pole BJ Farrare (team-high 18 caused turnovers). Will the leadership be the same? Might Virginia transfer Patrick Burkinshaw be the answer in the cage? Can the Quakers match the hunger that led to a 12-game winning streak? All of those questions are hard to answer now, but it’s possible Penn will land in the same ballpark next year as it did in 2019.
9. DENVER
2019 record: 10-5 (4-1 Big East)
Last seen: Falling to Georgetown in the Big East final for the second year in a row — only this time, there was no at-large bid awaiting the Pioneers.
Senior starts lost: 83 of 150 (55.33 percent)
Senior scoring departing: 88 of 284 points (30.99 percent)
Initial forecast: There’s a lot gone from the Denver defense — the Dylans (Gaines and Johnson), long pole Matt Neufeldt and goalie Alex Ready. That’s a lot of collective performance exiting the fold in coach Bill Tierney’s program, and attackman Austin French and midfielder Colton Jackson are both key departures. Still, it’s worth remembering Tierney stockpiles a geographically diverse set of talent, and even as the Pioneers missed the NCAA tournament for the first time in a decade, they still won at Towson and dropped a one-goal decision at Duke. Brett Boos (59.3 percent) ably answered the faceoff question this spring, and Ethan Walker (39 goals, 13 assists) will again be the focal point on offense. The Big East shouldn’t have a heavy favorite next season, which means Denver will probably be the default choice. Tierney never shies away from trying to play the underrated card, and 2020 might be the first time in a decade he doesn’t have to look terribly far for such ammo. He won’t find it here. Someone else can bet against a Hall of Famer who’s been part of 26 of the last 29 NCAA tournaments and still has a lot of pieces on a deep offense set to return.
8. JOHNS HOPKINS
2019 record: 8-8 (3-2 Big Ten)
Last seen: Getting buried early in miserable conditions en route to a 16-9 loss to Notre Dame in the first round of the NCAA tournament.
Senior starts lost: 48 of 160 (30 percent)
Senior scoring departing: 79 of 311 points (25.40 percent)
Initial forecast: The Blue Jays and the rest of the lacrosse world got a pretty good look at their future this season. He wears No. 32, had 48 goals and 25 assists and was a third team All-America selection as a freshman. Joey Epstein was the first Hopkins attackman to earn USILA honors as a freshman since Steven Boyle was an honorable mention pick in 2007, but beyond that, Epstein looked completely at ease with the ball in his stick when it mattered most. Hopkins brings back two other 20-goal scorers (attackman Cole Williams and midfielder Forry Smith), and scoring really hasn’t been a problem for a while at Homewood. Fixing a defense that gave up double figures in all but three games and loses second team All-America selection Patrick Foley will no doubt occupy plenty of coach Dave Pietramala’s thoughts this offseason. At its best — basically, twice against Maryland and a couple other times — Hopkins played smart and unselfishly on offense and stuck to assignments on defense. But consistency was hard to come by throughout the spring. Epstein might already be the on-field face of the program, and achieving stability in other spots will be crucial if Hopkins is going to be a threat to play deep into May.
7. SYRACUSE
2019 record: 9-5 (2-2 Atlantic Coast)
Last seen: On the wrong end of a traditional role reversal, unable to keep pace with a dominant offensive talent as it lost a first round NCAA tournament game to Loyola and Pat Spencer.
Senior starts lost: 55 of 140 (39.29 percent)
Senior scoring departing: 93 of 277 points (33.57 percent)
Initial forecast: For those scoring at home, 2019 marked the sixth consecutive year the Orange didn’t advance to the final weekend of the season. This, needless to say, has not gone over well for those in central New York who grew accustomed to making Memorial Day weekend hotel reservations nearly a year in advance on an annual basis for a quarter-century. That it happened when Syracuse fielded arguably its best defense since 2011 had to make it all the more frustrating. The Orange lacked a dominant figure on offense, and now its two most productive players at that end of the field (Bradley Voigt and Nate Solomon) have graduated. That leaves five returnees who finished with between 23 and 39 points returning, but will there be a breakout star next year? Perhaps midfielder Brendan Curry, a third team All-America pick as a sophomore. Syracuse should still be solid on defense, with close defenseman Nick Mellen (second team All-America), long pole Brett Kennedy (third team) and short stick Peter Dearth (honorable mention) all back. It’s not hard to imagine a similar outcome next spring: Perfectly solid with no fatal flaws, but not quite enough oomph to get over the hump in May.
6. NOTRE DAME
2019 record: 9-7 (2-2 Atlantic Coast)
Last seen: Dropping the rubber game of the season series with Duke in the NCAA quarterfinals, falling to the program’s postseason nemesis yet again.
Senior starts lost: 32 of 160 (20.0 percent)
Senior scoring departing: 60 of 270 points (22.2 percent)
Initial forecast: The Irish are a team you can set your watch to annually. They rank second in the country in consecutive seasons at .500 or better (17) and consecutive NCAA tournament appearances (14), and they’ve earned a No. 7 seed or better in nine consecutive postseasons. So heading into a year when so much of their production returns, it would be inane to seriously undersell Kevin Corrigan’s team. Brendan Gleason (26 goals, 12 assists) is the big departure on offense, but the second-leading point-getter to depart is Ryder Garnsey — who played only in the Irish’s two NCAA tournament games. Midfielder Bryan Costabile (42 goals) should be one of the best offensive talents in the sport, and there’s enough depth in place to ensure Notre Dame is a tough out. Defensively, the Irish are always solid, and while short stick Drew Schantz is a notable loss, honorable mention All-America Jack Kielty will be back to anchor the close unit. Notre Dame lost a coinflip game to Duke in this year’s quarterfinals, and guessing the Irish will find themselves with a real chance to make it to the semifinals next spring feels like one of the safer guesses to make for any team 11 months out.