User:Quidster4040/sandbox/College conference season

The 2019 Big Ten Conference men's soccer season will be the 29th season of men's varsity soccer in the conference. The regular season will begin on August 30, 2018 conclude on November 2, 2018. The season will culminate with the 2019 Big Ten Conference Men's Soccer Tournament to determine the conference's automatic berth into the 2019 NCAA Division I Men's Soccer Tournament.

Indiana enters the season as the defending regular season and tournament champions. Maryland enters the season as the defending NCAA Tournament champions.

Previous season
The previous season was the 28th season of men's varsity soccer in the conference. The 2018 Big Ten regular season began on August 24, 2018 concluded on October 28, 2018. The season culminated with the 2018 Big Ten Conference Men's Soccer Tournament to determine the conference's automatic berth into the 2018 NCAA Division I Men's Soccer Tournament. Indiana went on to win both the regular season and the tournament, winning all eight of their Big Ten Conference games. They defeated Michigan in the Big Ten Men's Soccer Championship Game.

With the Big Ten title, Indiana earned the conference's automatic berth into the 2018 NCAA Tournament, where Maryland, Michigan, and Michigan State joined as at-large berths. The conference had the strongest showing in the NCAA Tournament, where three of their four berths reached the College Cup (Final Four) of the tournament. Big Ten side, Maryland, would defeat Akron in the National Championship Game to win their fourth NCAA title, and their first since 2008.

Concluding the tournament, Indiana senior and captain, Andrew Gutman, won the TopDrawerSoccer.com National Player of the Year Award as well as the Missouri Athletic Club's Hermann Trophy. Gutman would forgo an opportunity to sign a homegrown contract with the Chicago Fire and signed with Celtic in Scotland. Indiana sophomore forward, Griffin Dorsey was the highest Big Ten player selected in the 2019 MLS SuperDraft, being drafted by Toronto FC ninth overall. Eleven other Big Ten players were selected in the MLS SuperDraft, the most of any collegiate conference, and an additional four signed homegrown player contracts with their parent MLS clubs.

Coaching changes
Dan Donigan, the former head coach of Rutgers was fired following the 2018 season and was replaced by Fordham head coach, Jim McElderry.

Preseason poll
The preseason poll will be released in August 2019.

Preseason national polls
The preseason national polls will be released in July and August 2019.

Early season tournaments
Early season tournaments will be announced in late Spring and Summer 2019.

Big Ten Tournament
Details on the Big Ten Tournament will be announced in July 2019.

NCAA Tournament
The NCAA Tournament will begin in November 2019 and conclude on December 17, 2019.

2020 MLS Draft
The 2020 MLS SuperDraft will be held in January 2020.

Homegrown players
The Homegrown Player Rule is a Major League Soccer program that allows MLS teams to sign local players from their own development academies directly to MLS first team rosters. Before the creation of the rule in 2008, every player entering Major League Soccer had to be assigned through one of the existing MLS player allocation processes, such as the MLS SuperDraft.

To place a player on its homegrown player list, making him eligible to sign as a homegrown player, players must have resided in that club's home territory and participated in the club's youth development system for at least one year. Players can play college soccer and still be eligible to sign a homegrown contract.