By OkayGoal 
Conference realignment and the introduction of NIL have changed everything in college sports. We’re in the early stages of assessing the impact of these events and whether the power dynamic has shifted. In women’s college soccer, the dominant conference has always been the ACC. With Pac-12 and Big 12 schools dividing themselves up between the Big 10, ACC, and SEC, what was the impact on women’s college soccer? Let’s take a closer look at the ranked teams from the Power Five conferences. Memphis, Rice, Georgetown, and Xavier are not in power conferences, which is why they are not listed here. Here’s the breakdown.
Big 12 – Ranked Schools (3): #10 BYU, #13 TCU, #19 Kansas
The Big 12 was hit the hardest by conference realignment as it lost two major programs in Texas and Oklahoma. Oklahoma is now in the SEC and would’ve helped the Big 12’s profile significantly as a ranked team right now. BYU has been an elite program for the last decade and was an excellent addition to the conference. TCU has also been one of the premier programs in the conference. Kansas is a surprise this season, but other schools like Texas Tech and Oklahoma State are usually in the top 25 rankings. The Big 12 might not be as strong as other conferences, but its ranked teams are a strong group who can make noise in the NCAA Tournament.
Big 10 – Ranked Schools (4): #4 UCLA, #8 Penn State, #12 Iowa, #22 Ohio State
When the move was first announced that UCLA and USC were joining the Big 10, everyone expected those two schools to help elevate the conference in women’s soccer. It has, but with mixed results, UCLA has been as advertised with elite teams the last two seasons. USC had a great team last year, but has fallen out of the rankings as of this week. They’re still a tournament team. Add in the rest of the strong defensive teams like Penn State and Iowa to go with an upstart Ohio State, and the Big 10 is solid as always.
SEC – Ranked Schools (7): #5 Tennessee, #11 Arkansas, #12 Mississippi State, #15 South Carolina, #17 Vanderbilt, #21 Georgia, #24 Oklahoma
The SEC’s football power is what helped it add Texas and Oklahoma to its conference, and it has also significantly benefited women’s soccer in the conference. As of now, they have the same number of ranked teams as the ACC does. Tennessee has been the biggest surprise with their upset of North Carolina early on in the season, and they’ve maintained it since then with just one loss. Arkansas, Mississippi State, South Carolina, and Georgia have been mainstays in the Top 25, with Vanderbilt and Oklahoma also entering the rankings. Overall, the SEC is deep and has plenty of great programs that can make the tournament, but I still have them ever so slightly behind the ACC.
ACC – Ranked Schools (7): #1 Virginia, #2 Stanford, #3 Duke, #6 Notre Dame, #7 Florida State, #16 Wake Forest, #18 North Carolina
The ACC is still the best conference in America, but it’s not by much. The SEC and ACC have the most ranked teams in the Top 25 as of now. Of course, these rankings will change, and more teams will shuffle in and out of the rankings. However, all the elite teams with staying power who aren’t leaving the rankings any time soon are a majority of the ACC teams. What’s the most significant indicator for why the ACC is the best? They have the top three teams in the country and five of the top 10 teams in the country.
That’s ridiculous for almost any collegiate sport, let alone soccer. North Carolina ended their national title drought last year, with Stanford and Florida State having won 5 of the previous seven national titles before that. Wake Forest and Duke made the Final Four last year, Notre Dame has been in the Top 10, and produced numerous pros. To top it all off, Virginia is having one of their best seasons as one of the premier programs and is back at No. 1 in the rankings. The other power conferences are strong on their own, but the ACC reigns supreme as the best conference in America.
These rankings are based on the NCAA rankings from the United Soccer Coaches Poll as of September 16.
Featured image via @uvawomenssoccer on Instagram
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