USL League 2 Playoff Watcher: Top 32

With USL League Two matches kicking off all week, every week, we’ve done our best to utilize the stats compiled from the league and use them in our very own THE 2HOW Top 32. Everything from points per game to games played and from goal differential to being a respective division leader, have been taken into consideration.

At the end of the road, only 32 teams from the league will enter the playoffs and we’ll be here every week to keep watch over the progress, and regress, of some of USL League Two’s top sides. So, without further ado, here are the Top 32 USL League Two sides according to Protagonist Soccer’s THE 2HOW.

32. Utah Avalanche
31. Albion SC Colorado (Division Leader)
30. Cleveland Force SC
29. Weston FC
28. Inter Gainesville KF (Division Leader)
27. Tampa Bay United (Division Leader)
26. AMSG FC (Division Leader)
25. Monterey Bay FC 2
24. Project 510: (Division Leader) In inarguably one of the deepest conferences in the nation, Project 510 has taken the lead through three games while living, and dying, on their offensive prowess. A shutout loss to SFCFC aside, the Lil’ Roots are scoring in bunches, just enough to gather three wins out of four games so far.
23. Lionsbridge FC: (Division Leader) A 0-2 defeat at the hand of Charlottesville might have caused the national lower league audience to blink, but Lionsbridge didn’t let the Blue Foxes beat them twice, securing an important win on the road against NoVa FC this past midweek. The defending national finalists are now back in first in the Chesapeake and look unlikely to relinquish that role.
22. Flint City Bucks: A changing of the Great Lakes guard could see the Flint City Bucks right back atop in the next two weeks, with the Bucks taking on Kalamazoo, Ann Arbor and Midwest United in quick turn. It's a stern test run, but no one will be shocked if Flint re-ascends the table.
21. Louisiana Krewe FC: The Krewe will keep the Mid-South title race spicy through the final match of the season, and two more meetings in their future with current leader Little Rock will give them chances to take the first divisional crown outright that can’t go to Texas United in several years.
20. Little Rock Rangers: (Division Leader) The Stags are in the driver’s seat of the Mid-South conference for now, having faced every conference opponent in turn thus far with exception of largely hapless Shreveport, and come out unscathed. A three-match home stand might make it difficult for 2nd place Louisiana to keep pace.
19. Dothan United: A twitter respondent noted that Dothan was assembling a monster roster in the offseason. The newcomers are living up to that observation early on, as the Dragons* have attained a second place spot in South Central through four matches, their only blemish coming to the Birmingham Legion second side.
18. St Charles FC: (Division Leader) StCFC supporters tweeted that we’d “wonder how we overlooked them” in our L2 matches and dark horses to watch pick-ems at the start of the season. We may need to ask them for the lottery numbers next as the Explorers* are holding their own quite well in the Heartland conference so far.
17. South Carolina United: With four matches in their belt against the bottom three sides in the South Atlantic, SCU is lurking in the shows of NCFCu23. They’ll be a bit more in the limelight when they take on conference #4 Charlotte Eagles this weekend.
16. Ventura County Fusion: (Division Leader) In three short weeks of play, the Southwest conference lead has changed hands four times, all to land bacon in the familiar hands of 2022 national champion Ventura County Fusion.
15. Tacoma Stars: After a couple stop-starts on fielding an outdoor side, the Stars have found a home in League 2, and it's been pretty cozy homemaking for the Tacoma side so far. A pair of 4-1 dubs the past two matches has the Stars just a single goal differential point behind the defending national champs in the Northwest table.
14. Ballard FC: (Division Leader) An ever-increasingly impressive draw at Tacoma in week one, a blowout win in their inaugural Memorial Stadium home match, and a resounding victory over “old rival” Olympia in the first couple weeks? The defending champs are sitting pretty heading into another home game vs West Seattle.
13. Peoria City: Since their respectable opening day draw away to Des Moines, the Carp have run up scores of 4-0, 6-0 and 6-0, to the chagrin of the Chicago metro area. Peoria will try to return to the well for another Chicagoland victory next week when they visit Aurora for a date with current 3rd place River Light FC.
12. Midwest United FC: (Division Leader) All the preseason attention was on Flint, Kalamazoo and Ann Arbor, but it’s the boys from Grand Rapids with the Great Lakes pole position through six matches played.
11. Long Island Rough Riders: Long Island is relishing the role of “underdog” in the season’s early days. With a game in hand, the Rough Riders are just a Hudson Valley slip up away from the Metropolitan's driver seat.
10. Bavarian United SC: (Division Leader) After some L2 year -one jitters in 2023, it's been nothing but celebration in the Bavarian Bierhaus through the first two weekends of ‘24.
09. Ocean City Nor’easters: (Division Leader) A midweek masterclass win over RCNJFC has the Nor’Easters slipping past West Chester in what should be a season-long marathon between Ocean City and the Predators.
08. RKC Third Coast: New crest, new colors, same RKC3C whipping Minnesota’s finest for two, potentially three, straight weeks.
07. Corpus Christi FC: The Sharks are back to their 2019-21 form, and then some. Any thought the Twin City Toucans could compete with them were dampened in Corpus Christi’s 3-0 feeding frenzy this past week.
06. Hudson Valley Hammers: (Division Leader) The Hammers won’t be losing their grasp on the Metropolitan this weekend, taking on table bottom feeder NJCFC.
05. Ashville City SC: (Division Leader) The Blues have scored four or more goals in every match so far, and have allowed just one. SC Utd missing from the conference schedule this year has left a hole that Asheville is taking full advantage of.
04. Fort Wayne FC: (Division Leader) FWFC is forging a resilient side capable of winning the close matches. They can extend their win streak to four against a middling Kings Hammer this weekend.

3. Seacoast United:

Sandwiched between Western Mass and Vermont, the Phantoms have to be feeling pretty good with an offense averaging nearly four goals a game, and a defensive unit giving up just a single goal so far this season. The New Hampshire lads play the middle of a three leg away run this weekend down the road against Black Rock before surefire Protagonist Pick-Ems away day to Western Mass that could set the done for the middle run of the conference season.

2. Western Mass Pioneers:

(Division Leader) In what’s shaping up to be the usual, thrilling 3-horse race for the Northeast, the Pioneers lead at the ¼ turn. Western Mass’ offensive output is terrifying, hanging four, four and five goals on the conference opponents in the past three matches while accruing clean sheet honors through all four games played. Their next match, back home in the friendly confines of Lusitano Stadium, sees Northeast #2 Seacoast United come to town.

1. North Carolina FC U23:

(Division Leader) Unblemished and scored against just ONCE through five games?! The NCFC academy side is the unanimous #1 for the initial postseason watch rankings. Many teams would love to have the “letdown” match the NC youngin’s managed against Salem City in “only” earning a draw and a point on the road. Having blanked the #4 and #5 sides in the South Atlantic conference, and drawn away to the #3 team, it’s difficult to envision NCFCu23 NOT being in this spot again next week.

Written by Ryan Stallings
Edited by Josh Duder