On the daily calendar, we are less than a month into summer.

On the UConn men’s soccer calendar, we’re less than a month from fall.

The Huskies are gearing up for the fall 2026 season, with their first of two exhibition matches set for Aug. 7 at Rhode Island.

UConn will be looking for a back-to-back berth in the NCAA Tournament. Last season, the Huskies finished 12-5-4 – their most victories since 2018 – and earned an at-large entry into the tournament.

They defeated Cornell 3-1 in the first round of the tournament last Nov. 23. Six days later, UConn, seeded 13th, lost to fourth seed Maryland on its home turf, 3-0.

UConn will take the field under fifth-year head coach Chris Gbandi with five players in the Class of 2030.

Defender

Owen Bland

Bland is from Murfreesboro, Tenn., and played for the Nashville SC Academy, training with the second team. Before joining the academy, he played for the Tennessee Soccer Club.

Goalkeeper

Summerville Beckford

Beckford is a graduate of Ossining High School in New York and earned all-league honors. His resume is impressive outside of high school, having played for the New York City FC Academy and earning a call up to the Jamaica U20 men's national team camp.

Forward

Justin Hubbard

Hubbard, from The Woodlands, Texas, attended Tomball High School and played club soccer for GFI of Houston.

Midfielders

Lucas DePinho

DePinho attended Arthur L. Johnson High School in Clark, N.J., and also played for the New York City FC Academy for four years. He topped that with one year with NYCFC's MLS Next Pro team, NYCFC II in 2025.  His older brother, Mateo DePinho, competed with the Huskies over the past two years.

Grant Emerhi

Emerhi, from Mansfield, Mass., comes from YSC Academy in Chester, Pa. He has high-level experience with the New England Revolution Academy from 2024-26, and he also played 36 matches and scored six goals with the U16, U17 and U19 national teams for his native Lithuania.

What else do these players have in common? Four of the five plan to study finance, and Gbandi is very pleased with each of them.

"We are excited to welcome a new group of outstanding student-athletes to the UConn men's soccer family. I want to give a great deal of credit to my staff for working tirelessly to put together this outstanding recruiting class,” he said. “Throughout the recruiting process, this group of young men consistently showed a passion for competing and a willingness to grow.”

He continued: “As we went through the recruiting process with each of them, it became clear that they possess both the competitive spirit and the desire to always improve that we value so highly at UConn. We are excited to welcome them to our program.”

The Huskies have an 18-game regular season, which includes eight Big East clashes. UConn will play 12 of those matches at home at Ray Reid Field at Joseph J. Morrone Stadium.

Aug. 7: at Rhode Island (exhibition)
Aug. 15: Albany (exhibition)
Aug. 20: Syracuse
Aug. 23: at UMass
Aug. 27: Fairfield
Aug. 30: Western Michigan
Sept. 3: Brown
Sept. 6: Fisher
Sept. 9: Sacred Heart
Sept. 12: at Harvard
Sept. 18: Seton Hall*
Sept. 22: Siena
Sept. 26: at St. John’s*
Oct. 2: at Villanova*
Oct. 6: Bryant
Oct. 10: DePaul*
Oct. 16: at Marquette*
Oct. 24: Providence*
Oct. 31: at Xavier*
Nov. 6: Georgetown*
* Big East matches

Big East Tournament

Nov. 12: Semifinals, Maryland SoccerPlex, Boyds, Md.
Nov. 15: Final, Maryland SoccerPlex, Boyds, Md. 

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