North Texas SC enters the 2026 season looking exactly like what this club should always be aimed to be: a bridge.
A bridge between the FC Dallas Academy and the first team in MLS. A bridge between a raw 17-year old potential and actual professional production. And in some cases, a bridge for a first-team depth player needing minutes.
Another season is on the way, starting this weekend against Real Monarch on Sunday, March 1. The team has undergone a ton of changes from the roster that crashed out in the first round of the MLS NEXT Pro Playoffs a season ago. Let’s dive into the roster.
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🧤 Goalkeepers
North Texas currently has three goalkeepers under contract for the upcoming season. This will be an interesting group to see who emerges as a viable option for the team this season and who could eventually be a third string or backup option down the road for FC Dallas.
Here are the three on the roster:
- Thomas Burchfield - The 16-year old was acquired from Austin FC II earlier this year. He’s the biggest player on the roster (at 6’7”!). Last year he was called into the US U-15’s national camp.
- Eryk Dymora - Out of the three keepers, Dymora is the oldest in camp. He recently was at Duke University, where he made 19 appearances with the Blue Devils.
- Nico Montoya - The lone returnee from last year, Montoya is also an Academy alum and has spent a lot of time with the FCD first team this year in preseason.
Who will likely start: Dymora had a lot of ‘reps’ as a starter in preseason for NTSC. I would expect him to get some early season minutes before manager John Gall rotates through these three.
Who has the chance at moving up to FCD: We can’t sleep on Montoya here for this down the road. As we all know, that HGP tag is valuable. I wouldn’t be surprised if he ends up with a hybrid deal next year that sees him on the club’s ’off-budget’ roster.
🛡️ Defenders
This group usually tells you how serious North Texas is about competing for a playoff spot. Just look back at their title win in 2024, that defensive group has a lot of experience and it showed.
Here is who is signed for the upcoming season:
- Àlvaro Augusto - It is widely expected that FCD’s young Portuguese center back will get more time again with NTSC this year. He’ll be the true ‘veteran’ of the group, too.
- Jonah Biggar - He is one of the most recent signing of the roster. In 2024, he was drafted 70th overall by D.C. United. He’s a tall center back that will be an intriguing watch for this backline.
- Ian Charles - The academy product signed with NTSC after finishing a year with UCLA. He does enter the spring with an injury that he picked up in college, but he is on track to join the team by early April.
- Zach Molomo - One of the few returnees from last year’s group. Molomo featured for North Texas SC six times in 2025.
- Enzo Newman - Coming off an ACL injury in 2025, the former first round SuperDraft pick is going to spend the year with NTSC. He spent all preseason with NTSC, and looks ready to get back in action after missing last year.
- Kaka Scabin - After returning from an injury in 2024, Scabin was set to be one of the new HGPs to lead the defense at NTSC. Unfortunately, he picked up a season-ending injury last week in training and will miss 2026.
- Slade Sternes - The former academy star and SMU leader, Sternes earned a HGP deal with FCD over the winter. Expect him to be one of the captains of this group in 2026.
- Josh Torquato - The 18-year old made headlines last season for FC Dallas when he quickly earned a first team contract after a couple of appearances with the team. Expect him to be a guy that rotates a lot between NTSC and FCD this year.
Who will likely start: NTSC will likely continue to use the 3-5-2 formation that FC Dallas is running. Expect to see Torquato and Newman as the wingbacks, with Sternes, Biggar and Augusto as the center backs.
Who has the chance at moving up to FCD: This group already has a slew of HGPs on it, but don’t sleep on Charles once he is back from his injury. I would expect to see more of him in the future with FCD.
🎯 Midfielders
This is where North Texas SC gets spicy. Like the defensive group, you’ll see a slew of HGPs already signed to first team contracts, along with players trying to break into the mix. This is usually the developmental heartbeat of the roster.
Here is who NTSC has in their midfield crop:
- Favour Aroyameh - He is one of the few midfielders returning this season to NTSC.
- Diego García - I still believe Garcia would be better served with a loan to a USL-Championship club this season. Maybe that is still in the works for him. But early on, he’ll get minutes with NTSC.
- Natty James - The club has him listed as a midfielder, but in preseason he’s played a lot as a striker.
- Isaiah Kaakoush - The U.S. Men’s Youth international signed a new one-year deal in Jan. 2026. He is coming off an injury that has sidelined him for a while. He is expected to join the roster sometime this spring.
- Timmy Ospina - The 23-year old is the club’s most recent signing. He had a solid career in college before joining NTSC.
- Umberto Pelà - One of the two SuperDraft picks for FC Dallas that is in this group. Pelà is currently sidelined with a torn labrum, but is expected to return soon.
- Marlon Luccin - The FC Dallas Academy product made his professional debut last year on July 3, 2025. He is one of the few returning players from last year’s roster.
- Edu Nys - The other FCD SuperDraft picks in this group is Nys. I believe most around the club believe they have a second coming of Sam Sarver here with him, maybe not in the goals scored department, but in the quality of play that will get him noticed.
- Caleb Swann - The HGP product had a lot of time this spring with FCD’s first team. He’s still got a bit to go before he can truly break into the first team with FCD, so he’ll get a lot of minutes this season with NTSC.
Who will likely start: This is going to be a heavily rotated group from game-to-game until Gall figures some things out. I would imagine we’ll see Swann, Garcia and maybe a surprise like Nys earn starts early on.
Who has the chance at moving up to FCD: Don’t sleep on either Pela or Nys to get some first team minutes down the road. The club is hoping to see their late round SuperDraft picks follow in Sam Sarver’s footsteps here.
⚡ Forwards
The true “who’s next” section. North Texas has consistently used MLSNP to:
- Accelerate young wingers
- Give academy number 9s their first reps on the professional level
- Rehab first-team attackers
Here is who NTSC has:
- Jaidyn Contreras - Is he a midfielder? Is he a forward? Why not both? Last year he was more in the attacking side of things with NTSC before earning a HGP deal. Expect Contreras to be more in the attacking side of the midfield, with the occasional move up into a second striker from time-to-time.
- Daniel Baran - He has to find a way to earn more minutes with NTSC, though. So far, he hasn’t established himself enough as a regular starter.
- Samuel Sedeh - This up-and-coming project for the club has a lot of people excited. He finally broke through and earned minutes last year with NTSC. If he can find ways to earn some starts, he won’t be with NTSC for very long.
But also don’t sleep on these players appearing:
- Ricky Louis - Is he a fullback? Is he a striker? I think his time with NTSC will help us determine that a bit more.
- Nicholas Simmonds - The first round SuperDraft pick will likely earn plenty of minutes with NTSC this season as Gall and FCD manager Eric Quill sort out where his best playing spot actually is with these teams.
Who will likely start: Given that we haven’t seen a ton of Simmonds with the first team, I’d imagine he’ll be one of the guys to start for NTSC this weekend, possibly alongside Baran.
Who has the chance at moving up to FCD: I think a lot of us who have watched some academy soccer in recent years, along with NTSC games, are excited to see what Sedeh can do.
