The Richland men’s soccer team has already started training for next season, led by head coach Raul Herrera. The Thunderducks were victors last season, winning their fifth national championship in a row. The coaching staff has finished recruiting and think the team has all the tools to defend their title in 2023.

The T-Ducks intend to play between seven and 10 regular season games next fall. They already have five games confirmed, but the coaching staff is planning on adding a few more. The first one scheduled is against the Texas A&M International Dustdevils on Feb.18 at the Richland campus.

“This phase is very important for the players because they could be scouted and seen by the different universities we are going to play with (in order to get a scholarship),” head coach Herrera said.

Unfortunately, the T-Ducks will lose 10 to 13 players this semester because it will be their last, but Herrera trusts the recruitment process to keep the talent level the team has. Assistant coach García says that recruitment was successful and already includes between 25 to 33 new players.

“It becomes easier to recruit new players because everybody wants to play with us. The hardest part is choosing the right members, and you have targets on your back because everybody wants to beat us after our five championships in a row,” García said.

Richland recruits from different parts of Texas, including the Metroplex, Houston, El Paso and even gets some international players.

Last fall, eight Richland soccer players transferred to different universities with full- tuition scholarships.