March 10, 2026
By Evan Lepler
The UFA season starts six weeks from Friday, and with today’s official roster-release announcements, the 2026 frisbee landscape is starting to feel very real.
The offseason has featured a bunch of bright headlines, from Alex Atkins and Daan De Marrée joining New York to Lukas Ambrose and Noah Coolman reconnecting in Minnesota. Furthermore, the Indy AlleyCats arguably won the winter from a news perspective, adding over a dozen key playmakers from all around the league, while the Toronto Rush continued their bold reboot by acquiring several Team Canada talents that should bolster their chances to compete in the dauntingly deep East Division.
Beyond these bigger headlines, however, there have also been a plethora of under-the-radar moves that haven’t gotten much mention, but are still super meaningful in the complex race toward Championship Weekend. We’ve got a bunch of players making triumphant returns to the league, and there are others who are changing teams, but, for one reason or another, have been overshadowed in the hectic offseason news cycle.
So if you’re only interested in the headliners, like Sean Mott deciding to join DC after a decade in Philly, or a young standout like Will Selfridge finding a new home in Atlanta, this may not be the article for you. Both of these transactions are fun, exciting, and massively important, but they are almost too buzz-worthy for today’s Toss.
Instead, this column will dial into a slew of key but oft-overlooked signings, as there are a bevy of under-discussed players that will absolutely factor into how the story of the upcoming season will unfold.
Players are listed alphabetically by last name.
Carson Armstrong, Salt Lake Shred
There are not many frisbee players who start on offense for a playoff-bound UFA team prior to attending their senior prom. But Carson Armstrong held his own as an 18-year-old high school senior on Austin’s O-line last year. The youngest of the team’s three Armstrong brothers finished third on the squad with 323 completions, and among the nine players on the team that accumulated over 100 throws, Carson’s 95.0 percent completion rate also ranked third. Clearly, he’s a kid with a bright future.
Last fall, when Armstrong ventured to Utah to enroll at BYU, he did not think he’d be playing in the UFA in 2026. But after meeting and connecting with many members of the Shred organization, he reconsidered and decided to join the reigning West Division champions.
Armstrong is also hoping to use this opportunity to develop his versatility and show the entire frisbee world that he is one of the best young players in the entire country.
“I kind of lost the drive to play frisbee after not making the U-20 Team USA this October,” said Armstrong. “But playing in some leagues with the Shred guys helped me get that drive back, so I’m kind of considering this Shred season as a hopeful revenge tour to prove that Team USA missed out on me.”
Nate De Morgan, Minnesota Wind Chill
Another prospect who made his UFA debut as a teenager, Nate De Morgan is also preparing to wear a new jersey in 2026. As a current college star at Carleton, one might argue that he’s not exactly under the radar. But considering the Wind Chill also signed Ambrose and Coolman and De Morgan won’t make his Minnesota debut until June, it might be easy to overlook the impact that this Utah-native might make when he finally takes the field.
De Morgan actually decided he’d be signing with Minnesota while he was abroad in Barcelona this past fall. Coincidentally, Wind Chill General Manager/Head Coach Ben Feldman just happened to be vacationing in Spain too, and the two met up overseas for a conversation. One thing led to another, and De Morgan agreed to take his talents to the Twin Cities.
“I have been to a couple practices, a scrimmage, and some team-bonding stuff, but nothing too serious yet,” said the 19-year-old De Morgan. “I’m looking forward to competing with a new group of guys, play in new systems, and continuing to learn and get better from new perspectives.”
De Morgan likely won’t see the field until after his college season concludes, but he certainly hopes to be in the lineup by the time his new team faces his old team. The Wind Chill host the Salt Lake Shred on Friday, June 19.
“Competing against the Shred will be awesome,” he said. “There is definitely no bad blood and some of my best friends are on that team. That being said, I am super competitive and want nothing more to win that game.”
Ryan Drost, Austin Sol
In one of the most unexpected developments of the offseason, several of the greatest defenders in the UFA’s decade-and-a-half history are storming back onto the field after having been presumed ‘retired.’
Ryan Drost, who recorded all 207 of his UFA blocks in a New York Empire jersey, was announced as the newest member of the Sol on Monday, a super cool signing that’s been rumored for some time and finally came to fruition. A three-time UFA champion and veteran of 21 career playoff games, Drost will be 36 years old when he takes the field for the Sol this spring.
Along with another pair of former Sol standouts—Matt Armour and Evan Swiatek, who are also returning to the UFA after a year off—Austin has seemingly revamped its stable of veteran playmakers, adding some important experience and firepower into the South Division.
Time will tell if Drost can still be an impact defender, but he’ll be looking to create some space between himself and his twin brother Mike, who’s currently second on the league’s all-time blocks chart, just five behind.
“I think it’s really cool that Mike and I are number one and number two,” said Ryan, back in 2023. “I’m always happy to get more blocks, of course.”
Braden Eberhard, New York Empire
While Braden Eberhard knew last summer that 2025 would likely be his final season with the Shred, he was uncertain about what exactly his frisbee future held.
“Essentially, I knew I was coming out to Philadelphia for my PhD before last season, so I figured I’d be playing out East again, although I wasn’t sure where,” said Eberhard, who made his UFA debut with Boston in 2021 before joining Salt Lake in 2022. “I didn’t do any explicit outreach and really just registered for tryouts for a couple of teams [...] In the end, I weighed a lot of things in deciding where to play, considering the balance of school and frisbee, religious obligations, team strength, role, and buy-in. I’m not going to claim I know I made the right decision, but I’m feeling excited about the upcoming season.”
Eberhard certainly is not New York’s headlining offseason signing, but it’s easy to envision him slotting into an important high-volume handler role for the 2026 Empire. He averaged right around 30 completions per game for last season’s Shred, and while he rarely stretched the field with his throws, he was an important presence, particularly when the disc faced a double-team trap.
With the Empire, he’ll be perfectly content as a role player, someone who can help the bigger-name stars succeed.
“One thing I realized will be a new challenge for me is that up to this point in my career, I’ve always been on a team that outperforms expectations,” said Eberhard. “Both at BYU and on Shred, we found a lot of new success and had deep runs, but preseason people didn’t really expect that out of us. That comes with its own challenges, and I loved finding ways to build synergy and win together. Now I’m on a team with lots of big names, and on paper, looks really good. It’ll be a new challenge, but I’m excited to contribute in my own way and hopefully play a style that makes things easy for my teammates.”
Isaiah Masek-Kelly, Toronto Rush
A half-decade ago, Isaiah Masek-Kelly would’ve been far too big of a name to be on this list of under-the-radar additions. A staple of Toronto’s Championship Weekend teams from 2013-17, he was an absolute force for the Rush during their reign of East Division titles. Back in 2015, he finished in the top 10 league-wide in both goals and assists, ranking second in plus/minus for the year, and earning First-Team All-UFA honors.
But he largely stepped away from pro frisbee around the pandemic. He suited up for just one game in 2021, and the UFA has not seen him since. He’s gradually fallen from the first page of the all-time statistical leaders, but his career numbers—233 assists, 193 goals, and 119 blocks in 96 career games—still pop.
And now, at the age of 34—he’ll turn 35 in May—Masek-Kelly is back.
“I think people forget what a privilege the UFA offers players, getting paid to play, not worrying about travel arrangements or costs, the shorter season, and the ability to play in front of your family/friends are all things you don’t get in the club division,” said Masek-Kelly, who also became a father late in 2024. “So in short, I just wanted to play competitively again and the Rush were happy to see me interested in returning to the team.”
While he knows that he may be a different player than the last time he took the field, he remains optimistic that he can make a positive impact on the Rush’s 2026 playoff chances.
“Well, a decade ago I was basically at my peak athletically, being 25 in 2016, so I wouldn’t say I am the exact same player as I was back then, but I have been playing in some form since age 16-17 and have learned there are many different roles that you can play that can contribute to the team’s success. I don’t fully envision myself skying packs of players at the end of quarters like I used to 10 years ago, but I am confident I will be able to contribute to the team’s success.”
Steven Milardovich, San Diego Growlers
Here’s another former star who, by all accounts, had retired.
Steven Milardovich, whose 147 blocks is still more than double the next highest individual total in Growlers history, stopped playing in the UFA after the 2023 season. He remained semi-involved by contributing to San Diego’s local broadcasts over the past couple years, but he also had become a father and seemingly moved on from cleating up on gamedays.
Then, at team owner Will Griffin’s 40th birthday party in January, veteran Growlers Coach Kevin Stuart asked if he’d see Milardovich at practice the following week. Milardovich replied with a coy, unserious ‘maybe.’ But then, a few days later, the Growlers’ all-time blocks leader texted Stuart to ask about the schedule for the team’s upcoming closed tryout.
“And I’m like, ‘don’t bullshit me!’” said Stuart, who hadn’t really pondered seriously trying to recruit Milardovich back into the fold.
But truthfully, Milardovich had been contemplating a return for several months.
“He thought I was joking at first, but when he learned that I was really considering a comeback, he was fully supportive and pushed me to follow through on it,” said Milardovich.
Now 36 years old, Milardovich indeed attended the next Growlers tryout and played pretty well. He also had a message for Stuart, basically telling him to not roster him just because they are friends. He truly wanted to earn his spot.
Stuart insisted he would tell him if he sucked, but both he and the rest of the coaching staff were impressed. “Leadership was like ‘yea, sign him up!’”
“On defense, [Milardovich] just has this innate ability to understand where that disc is going, and he knows when to go and make that play,” said Stuart. “Especially when we run some of our transition sets or double-team stuff, he’ll be in the backfield lurking and waiting for those throws to go up and try to make a play in the air.”
Still tied for 12th all-time on the UFA’s blocks list, Milardovich enters the 2026 season three blocks shy of 150, a total that only four players who competed in the league last year have ever reached.
“I’m not as explosive as I once was, but I believe I can still make an impact, and the team leaders believe in me too, which is pretty motivating,” said Milardovich. “The Growlers community is made up of many of my best friends, and I’m excited for the opportunity to compete with and be coached by some of the best in the world once again. I have no idea if I’ll be on the gameday roster; we have a really great group of guys, and I’ll have to earn that right during our practices. This team has a ton of talent and great coaches that put us in positions to succeed, so I truly believe that if we play our best and reach our potential, we can beat anyone.”
Elliott Moore, New York Empire
Nine years ago, when Elliott Moore was just 18 years old, he made his debut for the Austin Sol. And over the course of eight seasons, he competed in 80 games representing the Sol, reaching career highs in both assists (28) and goals (12) in 2025. As one of “The Stench Bros,” along with Kyle Henke, Moore embodied so much of the Sol’s identity as a player who had developed from a young kid into veteran playmaker.
But he also was curious to see what he might be able to achieve somewhere else.
“I had reached out to Empire in October about the possibility of moving out to the big city,” said Moore. “I have been wanting to move out of Austin, where I was born and raised, and was trying to use frisbee as a way to make that possible. In the early stages of [Empire GM] Matt Stevens and me talking about the possibility, I had mentioned my experiences coaching at CUT Camp and my passion for teaching and coaching youth. He had mentioned how there was an opportunity to take over/create a Youth Director for Empire.”
Conversations continued, and Moore eagerly signed on for this new challenge. He’s planning to move up to the Big Apple next month.
“It will be very different for me, growing up in Austin and having such a hometown love for the Sol, and playing the past eight years with them has been really, really special,” said Moore. “I love the Sol and am gonna miss them dearly, but I’m extremely excited for the level of play at New York practices and the high level games of the East Division.”
