Pitt Men’s Soccer remains on top in latest United Soccer Coaches poll and RPI

Pitt Men’s Soccer retained their hold on the No. 1 spot in the United Soccer Coaches Poll released on Tuesday, October 1.

Week 6 @UnitedCoaches Men's Rankings ⚽️#NCAASoccer pic.twitter.com/FDRBNrU7EW

— NCAA Soccer (@NCAASoccer) October 1, 2024

The recognition comes as little surprise, as the Panthers went 1-0 last week, defeating the then-No. 17 Virginia Tech Hokies for their third ranked win of the season.

Pitt now sits at 8-1 on the season, winners of their last five in a row, and goalkeepers Cabral Carter and Jack Moxom have combined to blank their opponents for more than 270 minutes running.

This marks the first time since the COVID-altered 2020 season that the Panthers have held on to the top spot for consecutive weeks.

The Panthers have also landed at top of the *Ratings Percentage Index (RPI) rankings They held firm at No. 3 in the Top Drawer Soccer poll, trailing Denver—who they’ll host next Monday—and ACC foe Stanford.

Beyond the polls, one of the Panthers also received an individual honor, with defender Casper Svendby announced as the ACC Player of the Week. In addition to his contributions on his own side of the field, the Norway native netted an assist in Pitt’s win over the Hokies.

This week, Pitt Men’s Soccer will play one game, hosting Howard at 7pm Wednesday.

*The rating percentage index, commonly known as the RPI, is a quantity used to rank sports teams based upon a team’s wins and losses and its strength of schedule. In its current formulation, the index comprises a team’s winning percentage (25%), its opponents’ winning percentage (50%), and the winning percentage of those opponents’ opponents (25%). The opponents’ winning percentage and the winning percentage of those opponents’ opponents both comprise the strength of schedule (SOS). Thus, the SOS accounts for 75% of the RPI calculation and is 2/3 its opponents’ winning percentage and 1/3 its opponents’ opponents’ winning percentages.

Griffin Floyd