Three Penn State men’s soccer players were named to the Big Ten Players to Watch list, the conference announced on Tuesday.

Joe Buckley, Noah Forster, and Deniel Peluffo-Wiese will all boss the defensive half for the Nittany Lions this season and have been tabbed as some of the conference’s best.

All eyes on these guys pic.twitter.com/2Jrpbdd4nt

— Penn State Men’s Soccer (@PennStateMSOC) August 18, 2026

Buckley joins the Nittany Lions for the first time in 2026 after playing with Lexington SC and Orange County SC in the USL Championship for the past three seasons.

While in Orange County, California, the defender also trained with the FC Barcelona academy team there, earning a training invite from La Masia, Barcelona’s famed academy in Spain. He also spent time with the New England Revolution academy.

Forster is another newcomer for Penn State, coming from Fortuna Düsseldorf in Germany. The junior defender was a mainstay in the defensive line for the club’s second squad in the Regionalliga.

He has also played 46 matches in the under-19 team and the under-17 Bundesliga with Bonner SC and Fortuna Cologne.

The youngest of the three on the list is freshman goalie Peluffo-Wiese, who is likely to be thrust into a starting position for the Nittany Lions.

The 6-foot-7 Miami, Florida, native has bounced around, starting his career with Cyclone Miami and Weston FC before making stops at the New York Red Bulls academy team, SpVgg Unterhaching in the Bundesliga system, Fonsi, and Albion in Uruguay.

Peluffo-Wiese represents Uruguay internationally and has made multiple appearances for the under-20 team, most recently in the 2022 South American Games.

The Nittany Lions will open their season on Thursday, August 20, against Mercyhurst. Folks can watch the match on BIG+ at 7 p.m.