NCAA · Men's Water Polo
Men's Water Polo programs
53 programs across 3 divisions, each with its coaching staff, roster, budget and the school behind it.
53
Programs
29 D1 · 7 D2 · 17 D3
1,176
Roster spots
last season
21,756
High-school players
2024-25
1 in 19
Odds of any NCAA spot · 5.4%
1 in 32 (3.1%) for Division I
24
D-I roster cap
17 of 29 programs over it last season
$638k
Median D-I budget
$23,364 per player
Division IDivision IIDivision III
When coaches may contact you
The first date a coach in each division may email or call a recruit, by high-school graduation year — the general NCAA rule for men's water polo. You may write to any coach at any time.
| Grad year | Division I | Division II | Division III |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2027 | June 15, 2025 | June 15, 2025 | Any time |
| 2028 | June 15, 2026 | June 15, 2026 | Any time |
| 2029 | June 15, 2027 | June 15, 2027 | Any time |
| 2030 | June 15, 2028 | June 15, 2028 | Any time |
The full guide: eligibility, what to send, and how the roster cap changes the math.
Division by division
| Division | Programs | Spots | Median budget | Per player |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division I | 29 | 676 | $638k | $23k |
| Division II | 7 | 155 | $248k | $13k |
| Division III | 17 | 345 | $117k | $7k |
Division I roster cap 24 from 2025-26: last season 17 programs carried more, 2 were exactly at it and 8 had room. Players already on a roster may stay, so the squeeze lands on the next classes. How the caps work.
Odds: 5.4% of high-school players hold an NCAA roster spot (1 in 19); 1 in 32 (3.1%) in Division I. Transfers and international players hold some of those spots. The honest version · every sport.
Biggest team budgets · Division I
| # | School | Team budget | Roster | APR | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Stanford University Mountain Pacific Sports Federation - Men's Water Polo | $1.6M | 26 | 1000 | |
| 2 | University of California, Los Angeles Mountain Pacific Sports Federation - Men's Water Polo | $1.5M | 28 | 994 | |
| 3 | Pepperdine University West Coast Conference | $1.4M | 29 | 991 | |
| 4 | University of California, Berkeley Mountain Pacific Sports Federation - Men's Water Polo | $1.3M | 32 | 980 | |
| 5 | University of Southern California Mountain Pacific Sports Federation - Men's Water Polo | $1.3M | 26 | 981 | |
| 6 | Loyola Marymount University West Coast Conference | $970k | 25 | 1000 | |
| 7 | Fordham University Mid-Atlantic Water Polo Association (Men's) | $921k | 25 | 1000 | |
| 8 | Brown University Northeast Water Polo Conference | $863k | 19 | 1000 | |
| 9 | University of the Pacific West Coast Conference | $783k | 36 | 983 | |
| 10 | California Baptist University Big West Conference | $754k | 24 | 967 |
Best Academic Progress Rates · Division I
| # | School | APR | Roster | Budget | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Brown University Northeast Water Polo Conference | 1000 | 19 | $863k | |
| 2 | Fordham University Mid-Atlantic Water Polo Association (Men's) | 1000 | 25 | $921k | |
| 3 | Stanford University Mountain Pacific Sports Federation - Men's Water Polo | 1000 | 26 | $1.6M | |
| 4 | Loyola Marymount University West Coast Conference | 1000 | 25 | $970k | |
| 5 | George Washington University Mid-Atlantic Water Polo Association (Men's) | 995 | 16 | $648k | |
| 6 | Harvard University Northeast Water Polo Conference | 995 | 18 | $331k | |
| 7 | U.S. Naval Academy Mid-Atlantic Water Polo Association (Men's) | 994 | — | — | |
| 8 | University of California, Los Angeles Mountain Pacific Sports Federation - Men's Water Polo | 994 | 28 | $1.5M | |
| 9 | Wagner College Mid-Atlantic Water Polo Association (Men's) | 994 | 22 | $409k | |
| 10 | Pepperdine University West Coast Conference | 991 | 29 | $1.4M |
Most room on the roster · Division I
| # | School | Room under the cap | APR | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | George Washington University Mid-Atlantic Water Polo Association (Men's) | 8 | 995 | |
| 2 | Long Island University Northeast Water Polo Conference | 8 | — | |
| 3 | Bucknell University Mid-Atlantic Water Polo Association (Men's) | 7 | 977 | |
| 4 | Harvard University Northeast Water Polo Conference | 6 | 995 | |
| 5 | Brown University Northeast Water Polo Conference | 5 | 1000 | |
| 6 | Mercyhurst University Mid-Atlantic Water Polo Association (Men's) | 3 | — | |
| 7 | California State University, Fullerton Big West Conference | 2 | — | |
| 8 | Wagner College Mid-Atlantic Water Polo Association (Men's) | 2 | 994 | |
| 9 | California Baptist University Big West Conference | 0 | 967 | |
| 10 | Iona University Northeast Water Polo Conference | 0 | 957 |
Lowest net price · Division I
| # | School | Net price | Roster | APR | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | California State University, Fullerton Big West Conference | $6,283 | 22 | — | |
| 2 | Long Beach State University Big West Conference | $9,731 | 28 | 990 | |
| 3 | University of California, San Diego Big West Conference | $13,293 | 29 | — | |
| 4 | San Jose State University West Coast Conference | $13,833 | 26 | 933 | |
| 5 | University of California, Irvine Big West Conference | $14,647 | 27 | 981 | |
| 6 | University of California, Los Angeles Mountain Pacific Sports Federation - Men's Water Polo | $15,166 | 28 | 994 | |
| 7 | University of California, Santa Barbara Big West Conference | $15,283 | 28 | 960 | |
| 8 | University of California, Berkeley Mountain Pacific Sports Federation - Men's Water Polo | $16,997 | 32 | 980 | |
| 9 | University of California, Davis West Coast Conference | $17,315 | 29 | 967 | |
| 10 | Harvard University Northeast Water Polo Conference | $17,900 | 18 | 995 |
Every men's water polo coach's email, filters for roster room, budget, admission rate, majors and cost — and one reviewed email per school from your own Gmail.Start your board