2028 Recruiting: The New England Colleges That Won September

This is the time of year when the top-tier college programs are on the prowl for new talent. While New England is home to dozens of Division II and III teams, the Division I offerings are slightly more sparse, with fewer than two dozen D-I men's programs in the region. However, four New England schools are off to a flying start at the beginning of this recruiting window, and they're all in the Ivy League. But who is having the best start so far?   The Case for Boston University (9 Commits)   BU was one of the Patriot League schools that wasted no time in getting players into its system. It's very clear that the Terriers had a plan going into this first part of the window, and they seemingly executed on a fair amount of their targets. The two New Hampshire commits, [player_tooltip player_id='213740' first='Finn' last='Murphy'] and [player_tooltip player_id='214853' first='Austin' last='Callahan'], stand out for their versatility and utility - two things that this coaching staff always values in potential student-athletes. Murphy can play multiple spots and will develop even more offensive tendencies as he advances up the midfield depth chart at Bishop Guertin. Callahan has all the tools to be a successful LSM, and even more prep school seasoning will make him that much more dangerous when he arrives at Commonwealth Avenue in two years' time.   The Case for Brown (12 Commits)   On sheer volume, it's hard to top what Brown was able to do in September. In an age where every program seems to be bracing for five-in-five impact, the Bears are working on bringing in a wider swath of talent. Going outside the region to bring in Culver products [player_tooltip player_id='175341' first='Sanchez' last='Rucker'] and defenseman [player_tooltip player_id='202379' first='Owen' last='Scarlett'], from Chicago and Ontario, respectively, head coach Jon Torpey and his staff have a more cosmopolitan lineup than most of their contemporaries. Brunswick defenseman [player_tooltip player_id='171335' first='Will' last='Motland'] is one of their most highly rated pickups, but adding Loomis Chaffee midfielder [player_tooltip player_id='199796' first='Kellen' last='Shields'] rounds out this early sample of the Bears' class succinctly.   The Case for Dartmouth (10 Commits)   It seemed like Dartmouth just had a checklist of impact players in specific positions that they needed, and they got almost all of them to commit to their admissions process. In particular, specialists like Choate goalie [player_tooltip player_id='125548' first='Mac' last='Privateer'], who will join his older brother and current freshman Bryce Privateer in Hanover, looks to be a sensational commitment. Add in Avon old Farms face-off man [player_tooltip player_id='179135' first='Gus' last='Cherenek'], and you have some serious Founder's League firepower in the holster for the Big Green going forward.   The Case for Fairfield (8 Commits)   New head coach John Odierna started slowly, but managed to pull all of the Stags' September commits in 16 days. It's really a testament to his and his staff's work ethic that they were able to bring in that many recruits when other teams in their conference struggled to get more than a handful of this first bumper crop of ballers. Getting St. John's Prep ace lefty [player_tooltip player_id='166062' first='Mac' last='Crawford'] is less of a feather in the cap and more like an entirely new hat to add to the bandbox. Add on to that 3d New England and Dexter star [player_tooltip player_id='213660' first='Alex' last='Fuller'], and you have a truly sensational debut class for the Stags' staff.   The Case for Harvard (9 Commits)   Last fall, the Crimson were all in on defenders and got them early in the window. This season, Harvard was a little late to start by comparison, but their end-of-class quality was still exceptional in the first weeks of the window. Getting more impact defenders on the books is a strategy that has helped bolster the class overall. Just look at [player_tooltip player_id='200455' first='Griffin' last='Bowman'], who headlines this class as a smother and cover defender. Roxbury Latin star scorer [player_tooltip player_id='163164' first='Matthew' last='Young'] also adds some scoring flair to Harvard's haul, as does the criminally underrated St. Paul's (N.H.) midfielder [player_tooltip player_id='178618' first='Matthew' last='Iler'].   The Case for Yale (7 Commits)   Even though the Elis finished with the lower number of recruits on this list, they still managed to grab some exceptional local talents in this class. Three of their commits stand out more than the rest, if only because they combined excellence and proximity: [player_tooltip player_id='171185' first='Colton' last='Strazzini'], [player_tooltip player_id='172858' first='Tyler' last='Pinardi'], and [player_tooltip player_id='166488' first='Jacob' last='Beskin']. I truly think Strazzini is one of the better prospects in this class because he plays with a blend of toughness and finesse that is, frankly, not normal. Pinardi is a unique talent in his space, an outlier in terms of production and technique in the NHIAA. Beskin has D-1 size right now, is two-handed, and has a bag full of different jump-shot releases that would make Kevin Durant yell at casuals about what "hesi-jumper" means.

This is the time of year when the top-tier college programs are on the prowl for new talent. While New England is home to dozens of Division II and III teams, the Division I offerings are slightly more sparse, with fewer than two dozen D-I men's programs in the region. However, four New England schools are off to a flying start at the beginning of this recruiting window, and they're all in the Ivy League. But who is having the best start so far?