June 12, 2009
SAN DIEGO - San Diego State men's soccer head coach Lev Kirshner has announced the signing of six student-athletes to National Letters of Intent. The accolades of this six-player group include, but are not limited to, an under-17, 18 and 20 U.S. national team starter, numerous high school All-Americans, another adidas ESP participant, multiple starters on regional ODP teams, a nationally-ranked goalkeeper and one of the top defenders from the state of Texas.
The highly-praised group could become the program's third top-20 nationally ranked recruiting class in the last four years. College Soccer News ranked the Aztec's 2005 group at No. 39, while the subsequent classes were ranked No. 17 and 19 in 2006 and 2007, respectively. Although SDSU returns eight of its 11 starters and 97 percent of the program's scoring from a year ago, this class will push his veteran team for significant playing time.
"It's nice when a class sells itself," Kirshner said. "We will lose some very significant players in 2009 (due to graduation), so it was important for us to find a number of gamebreaker type players. On paper, we were very successful."
Jose Altamirano (5-7, 135), a midfielder from local Southwest HS in San Diego County, comes to The Mesa as the most heralded recruit in recent history. Altamirano is a member of three U.S. national team age groups (U-20, U-18, U-17) and is a three-time NSCAA Youth All-American (2006-08). Altamirano, who ESPNRISE.com ranks as the third-best prospect in the country and Top Drawer Soccer.com rates as the fifth, also garnered All-America accolades from EA Sports, Parade Magazine and ESPNRISE.com after the 2008 campaign. Additionally, Altamirano was picked as the CIF Player of the Year and San Diego County's Player of the Year. This marks the second consecutive year the Aztecs have nabbed San Diego's best player (Sweetwater HS standout Joe Corona won the award in 2008).
Blake Hylen (6-3, 180), who played with Altamirano for the multiple state championship team Del Mar Sharks, will add to the rich tradition of Aztec goalkeepers when he comes to San Diego State this fall. According to Top Drawer Soccer.com, Hylen is ranked as the seventh-best goalkeeper in the nation and made the top-100 player list. Hylen was a four-year starter for local Torrey Pines High School, where he won this year's CIF Championship and was a multi all-Palomar League selection and all-CIF performer.
At 6 feet, 2 inches, and 215 pounds, Chadd Johnson brings size and a bruising mentality to the backfield at SDSU. Johnson was a member of the prestigious adidas Elite Soccer Program (ESP), which pulls in the top players across America to compete in a combine-style format each summer. Johnson was also a four-year starter at Brea Olinda High School where he earned all-Century League honors four times, including the MVP award in 2008. Johnson also garnered all-CIF and all-Orange County team accolades and ran one of the fastest 100-meter times in Orange County for track. Johnson has also played for the LA Galaxy US Academy team.
Jordan Phillips (5-11, 170) comes from powerhouse Woodlands High School and the U.S. Academy League Texas Rush team. Phillips was a three-year starter for the South Texas ODP from 2006-08. In addition, Phillips, who earned TASCO 5A all-region honors in 2009, was a 15-5A all-district player for two seasons (2007-08 and 2008-09). Like Johnson, Phillips will look to compete right away for the Aztecs in the backline with his speed and athleticism.
Morgan Sacco (5-8, 140), another NSCAA High School All-American, comes to San Diego State from U.S. Academy League power Colorado Rush. A midfielder, Sacco was a Colorado ODP starter from 2003-07 and racked up numerous accolades while at Greeley Central High School, including the Colorado Gatorade Player of the Year (2007), the Colorado High School Player of the Year (2007) and an all-state player in 2006-07. Sacco will reunite with former Rush members Hermann Award candidate Nick Cardenas, all-Pac-10 performer Evan Toft and 2008's leading scorer Raymundo Reza, among others.
The final member of this year's talent laden class is one of New Mexico's top strikers, Devon Sandoval. At 6 feet 1 inches and 200 pounds, Sandoval could fit perfectly into the college game's need for power and athleticism. Sandoval was a two-year Region ODP starter (2007-08) and three-time New Mexico ODP starter (2006-08). The two-time District Player of the Year (2007-08) and three-time all-state selection (2006-08) was named the ESPNRISE.com National Player of the Week on Sept. 10, 2008 before a season-ending injury halted Sandoval's efforts at being selected New Mexico's Player of the Year and HS All-American.
"We look forward to having massive competition within our 2009 squad as we prepare to take on four former national champions and multiple 2008 league champions," Kirshner said. "This schedule will certainly test our veteran group and talented recruits. It will be fun to see how they handle the challenges."
The Aztecs will play two exhibitions - on Aug. 22 (1 p.m.) at home against local derby UC San Diego and on Aug. 26 (7 p.m.) at 2008 NCAA tournament participant Cal Poly in San Luis Obispo. SDSU's first official game is Sept. 1 versus Loyola Marymount at 4 p.m. on SDSU Sports Deck.