2026 NCAA Men's Volleyball Player of the Year Frontrunners

With the start of a new men's volleyball season let's get way ahead of ourselves and make some predictions for the 2026 NCAA Men's Volleyball Player of the Year. To start, let's cover the front runners for this crown:

Andrew Rowan - Setter for UCLA

Rowan enters his senior campaign as one of the most decorated players currently in NCAA men's volleyball. He has been to the NCAA championship every single season winning the title in 2023 and 2024 while only being bested by Long Beach State and Moni Nikolov in 2025.

Rowan spent the "offseason" competing for Team USA in the VNL and brings a wealth of international and NCAA specific experience to a Bruin team that will need to replace the presence of All-American Cooper Robinson, Sean McQuiggan, and Matthew Aziz.

Dillon Klein - Outside Hitter for USC

Klein is a multi year AVCA All-American and led the Trojans to the top of the volleyball world briefly last season before injuries plagued the USC roster. Look for Klein to approach the 2026 season with vengeance as his Trojan squad was caught on the outside looking in at the 2025 NCAA tournament.

Klein averaged 3.84 kills per set last season and is likely to be one of the highest volume attackers in the country as the Trojans need to replace the offense of graduated opposite Jack Deuchar.

Skyler Varga - Outside Hitter for Long Beach State

Varga returns for his senior campaign after helping Long Beach bring home the 2025 National Championship where he was named a First Team All-American. Varga was the leading attacker for Long Beach with 2.73 kills per set hitting a blistering .368 on the season.

Varga spent the Summer playing with Team Canada at the VNL where he had a breakout performance. Along with fellow pin hitter Alex Kandev Long Beach State likely has the most lethal combination of left sides in the country. With the departure of Moni Nikolov for the pros, the spotlight moves to Varga from a volleyball community that has come to expect championships.

Ryan Barnett - Outside Hitter for Pepperdine

Barnett and the Waves were the surprise of the 2025 season as they caught fire heading into the MPSF tournament knocking off #11 GCU, #2 UCLA, and #3 USC to earn their automatic berth into the NCAA tournament.

Barnett was the cog that made the Pepperdine machine work. He carried the offensive load with a team high 402 kills and steadied the passing rotation with the second highest efficiency on the team. The New York native has taken drastic steps forward in each of his three seasons and expect his redshirt senior season to be no different.

Let's introduce the dark horses

While these four athletes remain at the top of the heap, there are multiple contenders knocking at the door for breakout seasons:

Jaylen Phillips - Opposite Hitter for CSUN

Phillips was the second highest volume attacker in the entire country last season and is capable of going off against any team in the country, showcased by CSUN's sweep of #3 ranked Hawai'i last season. If Phillips is on his A-game, then the Matadors are more than dangerous.

Kristian Titriyski - Opposite Hitter for Hawai'i

The sophomore was on track for a stellar season before being sidelined for injury. Look for Kristian to have a breakout season for the Bows in what is likely one of the most competitive pin hitter stables in the nation.

Andrej Jokanovic - Outside Hitter for UC Irvine

NCAA men's teams are no strangers to foreign talent and coach Kniffin brought in just that with Andrej who was named the MVP of the U19 World Championships for France. Jokanovic is poised to be a high volume attacker for the Anteaters and if his international experience is any indicator, Andrej is going to put up some ridiculous numbers.

Theo Snoey - Outside Hitter for Stanford

Snoey was the highest volume attacker in the country last season as he lead the Stanford Cardinal. The senior laden Stanford squad is not one to be underestimated and if Snoey's production remains even remotely close to last seasons numbers he is capable of putting up a jarring stat line.