Republic’s 2026 Pre-Season Roster Review: Who’s In, Who’s Out, and What Comes Next
Republic’s pursuit of new silverware took its first on-field steps this week as the club kicked off training camp on Monday. But those steps came with a host of personal changes - to date, Sacramento has had 12 player departures and 9 arrivals, with a few more new signings still on the way. Outside of the loss of Republic staples such as Rodrigo Lopez (retired), Russel Cicerone (contract expired), and Louis Felipe (contract expired), the biggest departure was that of Republic’s long-term Club President and General Manager, Todd Dunivant, who took up the job of Sporting Director for MLS-side NYCFC.
And while it’s always sad to see long-term players go, the turnover has also brought a host of positives. Head Coach Neill Collins, who joined the club with only a month left in the offseason in 2025, has now had an entire offseason to work on his roster. The offense and midfield are getting a much needed injection of talent after several seasons of struggle. And the second best defense in the league is returning largely unchanged.
So where does the roster stand right now and what pieces does Republic still need before the season gets underway? Let’s take a look:
GOALKEEPERS (2):
Out: Jared Mazzola (Las Vegas)
In: Jacob Randolph (Pittsburgh)
Staying: Danny Vitiello
The goalkeeper position contained the least number of surprises this offseason. Losing Jared Mazzola, who won Republic’s 2024 and 2025 Community MVP, was all but inevitable given his fantastic performances this season. He departs the club for Las Vegas, where he will be fighting for a starting position. Jared is a fantastic keeper and an even better guy, and really deserves a shot at a starting job somewhere in the USL-Championship.
Stepping into Mazzola’s shoes to be Republic’s backup keeper is 24 year old Jacob Randolph. At 6’5”, Randolph adds a physical presence to the squad that is tough to match. He joins Republic after 2 seasons (11 appearances) as the backup goalkeeper for Pittsburgh. I fully expect him to take on the same role here in Sacramento, with some quality upside given his young age.
However, no keeper is going to beat out Danny Vitiello for the starting spot. Vitiello’s 2024 and 2025 seasons were arguably more impressive than his 2023 season, where he won both the USL Championship Golden Glove and Goalkeeper of the Year award. Over the last 10 years, Vitiello’s 2024 and 2025 seasons rank 5th and 2nd respectively in USL’s all-time best goalkeeper seasons. The only player to beat him? Former Republic player Josh Cohen’s 2018 season, which landed him a contract with Champion’s League side Maccabi Haifa. Vitiello is easily the league’s predominant goalkeeper and Sacramento is extremely fortunate to have him.
Unless there is an injury or surprise player sale (à la Cohen), Republic doesn’t need to make any further moves here.
DEFENDERS (11):
Out: Cody Baker (Loan Ended), AJ Edwards (Free Agent),
In: Luke Strassburg (Academy), Rohan Chivukula (Academy)
Staying: Jared Timmer, Chibi Ukaegbu, Ryan Spaulding, Dominik Wanner, Rayan Djedje, Jack Gurr, Lee Desmond, Michel Benitez, Freddy Kleemann
At the back, Republic remains startlingly intact. The lack of changes is a welcome sight, as one of the best defensive back lines in the league of Gurr, Timmer, Desmond, Kleeman, and Benitez can continue doing what they do best - shutting down opposing offenses. Republic only allowed 0.83 goals per 90 minutes last season and had a league leading low of only 1.11 xG against.
Both departures were largely rotation pieces - Cody Baker was brought in on loan late in the year to assist with depth after Timmer’s injury and AJ Edwards was largely a bench piece, making only 4 starts. Expect to see Chibi Ukaegbu take on a more prominent rotational role this season - the 18 year old made 16 appearances (8 starts) last season and has spent his offseason playing for the USA’s U19 team.
Newly coming into the squad is a pair of Republic Academy players who have signed USL Academy Contracts: Luke Strassburg and Rohan Chivukula. A USL Academy Contract allows young players to sign, train, and compete in matches for the professional team - without affecting their NCAA eligibility. Notably, Blake Willey had his start with Republic through the same contract. While I’m not sure that Stassburg or Chivukula will make noticeable impacts for the club this season in an already crowded backline, they do show Republic’s commitment to fostering young talent.
The only moves Republic may make at the backline is potentially downsizing - don’t be surprised if one or two rotational pieces move on at some point to free up salary space elsewhere.
MIDFIELDERS (4):
Out: Roro Lopez (Retired), Louis Felipe (Lexington), Justin Portillo (Free Agent), Nick Ross (Free Agent)
In: Danny Crisostomo (Tampa Bay), Pierre Reedy (Spokane), Arturo Rodriguez (Charleston)
Staying: Blake Willey
The midfield is getting a complete overhaul - and Republic is going out with the old(er) and in with the younger. Gone are Roro, Felipe, Portillo, and Ross, a group that have a combined 17 seasons with Sacramento and an average age of 33.5. Coming in are Danny Crisostomo, Pierre Reedy and Arturo Rodriguez, with just 8 USL-Championship seasons total between the 3 of them and with an average age of 28.
Of the new signings, I expect Crisostomo and Arturo to regularly slot directly into the Starting XI. Crisostomo has traditionally played as a more defensive midfielder, while Arturo plays as more of an attacking midfielder - and this could point to Republic switching to a 3-man midfield, as opposed to 2025’s 2-man midfield. Reedy, meanwhile, has traditionally played as a midfielder on either side of the pitch, but not the middle. As a pre-season prediction, he’ll likely be a rotation player, stepping into the midfield occasionally when needed but also as a super sub for either Jack Gurr or Michele Benitez at wingback if Republic needs to prioritize offense over defense late in a game.
The lone midfield player from 2025 returning for 2026 is 18 year old Blake Willey who, rather unexpectedly, cemented himself into last season’s Starting XI. Willey was in the top 10 in minutes played for Republic players last season, led the team in long pass accuracy, and was 5th on the club in passing accuracy in the opponents half. 2026 is an opportunity to break out even further and become one of the USL’s premier youngsters. Similar to Chibi, Willey spent his offseason playing for the USA’s U19 team.
With such a heavy turnover here, it really is impossible to tell what the depth chart looks like in the midfield right now - but it does give Collins and Co. a variety of different options and looks. Republic also needs to sign an additional midfield player or two, even if they are just rotational depth pieces. Three central midfielders (Crisostomo, Arturo, and Willey) is not sufficient for the high and heavy press that this Republic team is expected to utilize. It’s probably safe to say that a midfielder is among one of new player signings Republic is expected to announce in the coming weeks.
ATTACKERS (4):
Out: Lewis Jamieson (Newport County), Sebastian Herrera (Fortaleza CEIF), Russel Cicerone (Tampa Bay), Cristian Parano (San Antonio), Kohri Bennett (Colorado Springs)
In: Foster Ajago (Real Salt Lake), Mayele Malango (Monterey Bay), Kyle Edwards (Hartford)
Staying: Da’vian Kimbrough
Similarly to the midfield, Republic’s attack has been completely overhauled. With the exception of 15 year old Da’vian Kimbrough, who played 42 minutes over 7 appearances last year, every single Republic attacking player is gone. Frankly, the overhaul needed to happen.
A good bench mark for a solid, quality striker is often said to be 0.5 goals per game - or a goal every other game. Republic has only *ever* had 3 players reach that value: Dariusz Formella (2020 shortened season), Cameron Iwasa (2018 & 2019), and Tommy Stewart (2014). While it’s a shame to see some long-time Republic players depart, especially guys with grit and heart like Herrera, Cicerone, and Parano, starting completely fresh with attackers that fit Neill Collins vision was at the top of the front office’s offseason to-do list.
So what do the new guys bring? The first striker signing of the offseason was Foster Ajago, who joined Sacramento from MLS-side Real Salt Lake, though he had been loaned to Lexington for the 2025 season. The 6’2” striker brings a physicality to the side that Collins has been looking for. Joining the squad from a Hartford team that won the USL Cup is Kyle Edwards, a 6’1” prolific goalscorer that led Hartford in goals in 2025 - despite 8 of his 12 goals coming as a substitute. 28 goals in just 3,697 minutes in his USL career gives him 0.68 goals per 90 minutes, far above the standard of a quality striker. Republic further added Mayele Malange, a 6’1” Malawi international who joins from Monterey. Though Malanga has struggled to find the goal at times, with just 5 goals in 25 USL-C appearances, much of that time was spent with a Monterey team that was the 3rd worst team in the league.
Part of the issue Republic had last season was getting someone on the end of all the chances they created. Jack Gurr led all USL-C fullbacks in chances created, while both Benitez and Wanner sat in the top 20. But the problem was there was no one to get on the end of many of those crosses. The 5 players leaving had an average height of just 5’9” - the new guys coming in average just over 6’1”. Republic is getting taller and stronger on the front line to take advantage of all the chances they can generate from the wings.
Speaking of the wings, the most interesting in all this is the lack of wingers being brought in. Last season, Republic operated with one striker in the center, and 2 wingers on either side who would cut in when the defensive wing-backs pushed up. The lack of wingers, combined with the midfield signings, seems to indicate a switch to a 3-man midfield and 2 central strikers. This would allow Republic to get more bodies directly in the box instead of on the outside. And the signings likely don’t stop here - at training camp, Collins hinted at a new striker signing:
There’s a couple of pieces that we still need to address… still an attacking player short to give us the full compliment.”
Collins also said that one player had signed but was waiting for a visa, though if that player is a forward or a midfielder is unknown. One player that would be a massive pickup for Republic is Cal Jennings, who is still a free agent. Jennings has set numerous USL records, such as the fastest player to 50 goals and most consecutive matches with a goal contribution at 9. He’s also 6th all time on the USL goals scored list, despite only being 28 and having played only 6 seasons. Regardless of who Republic pick up, expect 2-3 signings here to bolster the attacking force.
Front Office:
Out: Todd Dunivant (NYCFC)
In: Neill Collins (Kind of?)
Arguably the largest move of the offseason was the departure of Todd Dunivant. Dunivant, who arrived in Sacramento in 2018, has been a driving force for Sacramento’s future. On multiple occasions, Dunivant spoke at city council meetings, met with local leaders, and was available to supporters in his successful push to get Republic their new downtown stadium. Under his leadership as General Manager, Republic made the 2022 Open Cup Final and made the playoffs every year except one.
Dunivant worked very closely with each Republic manager to build the squad - which is what makes his departure so significant. While a replacement has not been announced for either General Manager or Club President, it does seem that Neill Collins is now the driving force behind roster creation. Collins said that he and Dunivant worked very closely leading up to Dunivant’s departure, but Collins is now fully in the driver seat for player acquisition and sales.
And that’s where Republic’s roster currently stands at the start of pre-season! With so much turnover, at least half of Republic’s starting XI on opening day will differ from 2025. I suspect we’ll also see a slight formation tweak - from a 5-2-3 to a 5-3-2, though this likely will change throughout the season. We’ll get our first look at the new guys in action on March 7th when Sacramento hosts Tulsa to open the season. As soon as we get that first look at any new formation or tactics, we’ll bring you our first tactical breakdown of the season.
Awesome piece Valor. Seems like we are all raising the bar in the content we are delivering.
Great read Valor. I agree, the midfield and attack needed an overhaul. My takeaway from 2025 was Blake Willey’s progress. Hoping to see a continued climb in his career. Looking forward for this season. COYBIR