MIAMI (Aug. 30, 2020) - The FIU men's soccer team has the 19th-ranked recruiting class in the nation for 2020, according to a poll by CollegeSoccerNews.com (CSN).

The latest release by CSN marks the second time that FIU's recruiting class has earned a top-20 national ranking this year, after earning a No. 18 ranking in a poll by TopDrawerSoccer.com (TDS) back in May. FIU is the only Conference USA squad to rank in the Top 20 of both the CSN and TDS polls. Additionally, FIU is one of only two programs in the state of Florida to reach CSN's Top 20 along with UCF.

Under the leadership of new head coach Kyle Russell, and with support from assistants Dannie Merida and Cameron Sauro, the FIU men's soccer program is heading in the right direction just one season into the staff's tenure.

FIU's group for 2020 features 13 additions, including eight transfers and five incoming freshmen. The signees include two forwards (Rasmus Tobinski, Vermont; and Kerry Sarmiento, Inter Miami CF Academy), seven midfielders (Mauro Bravo, Iona College; Kareem Riley, Florida Gulf Coast; Renato Kauzlaric, UMass-Lowell; Jeremiah Edouard, East Tennessee State; Coby Atkinson, Portland Timbers; Tavon Mussenden, Atlanta United FC Academy; and Omri Ezra, Maccabi Herzliya FC), two defenders (Philip Hildebrandt, East Tennessee State; and Johannes Vedin, IF Elfsborg), and two goalkeepers (Johan Peñaranda, Pittsburgh; and Brison Moorhead, George Mason).

With only 13 combined days on campus between the three coaches before C-USA suspended spring sport activities back in March, Russell and his staff were able to overcome challenges and haul in a class that ranks among the best in Division I men's soccer.

Russell, who had his first training with the Panthers on March 2, only had the opportunity to spend nine days on campus before the shutdown occurred. 

Coach Merida, who was Russell's first assistant hire, joined the team shortly thereafter and was only able to spend four days on campus.

And Coach Sauro, who was hired after the C-USA shutdown, graced the university grounds for a whopping total of zero days. 

With no working relationships prior to arriving at FIU and little time to get acclimated with one another, Russell and his staff proved their ability to make adjustments on the fly and eliminate surrounding distractions in order to produce positive results.   

"The staff is fantastic," said Russell at practice this week. "We all have high standards. We're all speaking the same language."

Now with the entire team finally together on campus, Russell and his staff are working hard to help meet expectations that have been set for the program, not just by outside observers but from well within the program itself. 

College Soccer News' full release on its top 40 rankings can be seen here. 

CollegeSoccerNews.com 2020 Men's DI Recruiting Rankings:
1 - Duke
2 - Indiana
3 - Georgetown
4 - SMU
5 - Virginia
6 - Wake Forest
7 - Louisville
8 - North Carolina
9 - Clemson
10 - Stanford
11 - Portland
12 - Syracuse
13 - Akron
14 - Michigan
15 - UCLA
16 - San Diego State
17 - UCF
18 - Maryland
19 - FIU
20 - UNCG

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