The national conversation around 2026 NCAA men’s volleyball is loud, crowded, and allergic to fraud. Three names keep forcing their way into the same sentence: Andrew Rowan at UCLA, Andrej Jokanovic at UC Irvine (you’ll also see Andrija in wild posts online — same guy, same problem for defenders), and Tread Rosenthal running the show for Hawaiʻi. Here’s the UVN version — receipts, rabbit holes, and video receipts.
Before we split them apart, remember the last time UCLA and Hawaiʻi shared a postseason spotlight with this much gravity: the 2025 NCAA semifinals. NCAA Championships posted the highlights — Rowan vs Rosenthal energy before most people had finished their coffee.
For live brackets, selection drama, and the road to Pauley Pavilion, keep NCAA men’s volleyball and UVN scores open in two tabs like a civilized person.
Andrew Rowan, UCLA — this is his circus
Andrew Rowan is not a setter in the cute, background-extra sense of the word. He is the guy running the whole damn show. At 6-foot-6, he brings the kind of size that makes opposing blockers nervous before the first whistle even blows, and then he backs it up with the hands, vision, and nerve of a player who knows he’s not supposed to merely participate in the match — he’s supposed to hijack it.
Photo: UCLA Athletics.
What makes Rowan so dangerous in 2026 is that he doesn’t just move the ball around. He orchestrates chaos. UCLA can attack from every angle because Rowan keeps the tempo sharp, the distribution unpredictable, and the whole offense feeling like it’s two steps ahead of the poor souls on the other side of the net. One second he’s feeding the pins, the next he’s slipping in a quick set, and before you know it the blockers are stuck in volleyball purgatory guessing wrong while the Bruins pile up points like they’re being paid per spike.
And let’s not pretend this is just about pretty assists. Rowan is the kind of setter who changes the emotional weather of a gym. When he’s locked in, UCLA looks calm, mean, and annoyingly efficient — the exact kind of team nobody wants to see in April. Great setters don’t just deliver the ball. They deliver confidence. Rowan does that in bulk.
The bigger truth: Rowan has become the rare college setter who feels like the center of the entire national conversation, not just the engine of his own team. That’s elite-company behavior. That’s “you’re not sneaking up on anybody anymore” behavior.
Go deeper on UVN: Andrew Rowan — full setter profile · Rowan player hub
Off-site receipts: UCLA roster / bio · UCLA All-MPSF / Player of the Year release · USA Volleyball athlete page · MPSF
Clips help the vibe land — UCLA Athletics dropped UCLA vs. USC from March 6, 2026:
Socials worth parking on for fresh cut-ups: @uclambvb on X and @UCLAvolleyball on Instagram.
Andrej Jokanovic, UC Irvine — the freshman VIP list doesn’t miss
Andrej Jokanovic has that delicious kind of energy that makes opponents regret scouting reports before the warmup is even over. Freshmen are supposed to be figuring things out, taking a few lumps, learning the speed of the college game, and generally acting like they got invited to the party by mistake. Jokanovic clearly did not get the memo. Irvine lists him as a 6-foot-7 outside hitter — not the setter stripe — which makes his early AVCA National Collegiate Men’s Player of the Year watch list and National Player of the Week noise even ruder: he’s not hiding in a specialist role. He’s out on the pin making the scoreboard sweat.
Photo: UC Irvine Athletics.
What’s fun is that he doesn’t feel like a one-trick freshman blast of sunshine and adrenaline. He’s giving UC Irvine a real all-around presence — offense, defense, pressure from the service line — which means he’s not just useful; he’s annoying in the best possible way. In sports, annoying is often another word for winning.
He plays like someone who assumes he belongs in the thick of it, and that mindset is rocket fuel when the game speeds up. Coaches love players like this because they don’t need babysitting. They need a target.
Go deeper on UVN: Jokanovic player hub
Off-site receipts: UCI roster / bio · AVCA watch list release · AVCA National Player of the Week release · The Big West
For high-volume swings in a ranked-weekend environment, this BYU vs. UC Irvine cut from College Men’s Volleyball is a good watch-party cheat code:
Follow @UCIAthletics on X and @uciathletics on Instagram for Anteater drops.
Tread Rosenthal, Hawaiʻi — calm that still leaves bruises
Tread Rosenthal sounds like a name invented by a novelist who wanted the hero to feel dangerous and composed at the same time, and honestly, that tracks. Hawaiʻi has long been one of those programs where the setter doesn’t just have to be good — he has to be cool under pressure, precise under fire, and sturdy enough to keep the offense from turning into a bonfire. Rosenthal looks like he’s handling that job with the kind of calm authority that makes everyone else on the court breathe easier.
Photo: University of Hawaiʻi Athletics.
He’s the player who keeps the machine humming while the rest of the gym is trying to set itself on fire. Elite setters rarely get enough credit unless people understand how much a team’s identity depends on them. Rosenthal gives Hawaiʻi rhythm, trust, and balls the hitters can actually terminate instead of forcing volleyball improv class. When a team has that, it gets to play free and fierce at the same time.
There’s swagger to running Rainbow Warrior volleyball: the expectations are huge, the Stan Sheriff energy is real, and every match feels like it has a pulse. Rosenthal seems built for that pressure cooker — command without theater.
Go deeper on UVN: Rosenthal player hub
The Big West’s own championship-run cut — No. 1 seed Hawaiʻi in the 2026 league semifinals:
On socials: @HawaiiAthletics on X, @HawaiiMensVB on Instagram (handle may vary — search Hawaii MVB if the app throws a fit).
Why these three hit (yes, even with two setters and a pin)
These three are built differently, but they all do the same glorious thing: they control the match instead of letting the match control them. Rowan does it with size, precision, and unapologetic command. Jokanovic does it with raw breakout energy and fearless production from the OH spot. Rosenthal does it with calm, steady, deeply important orchestration at setter. That’s the trifecta college volleyball nerds argue about at 1 a.m. — power, poise, and presence that makes other teams start sweating in the handshake line.
That’s why they’re worth the ink. Not because they’re trendy. Because they matter when the ball is in the air and the season is getting real. Stars get made in those moments — and Rowan, Jokanovic, and Rosenthal are very much making noise.
Source list (bookmark these)
- UCLA men’s volleyball — roster, stats, releases.
- UC Irvine men’s volleyball — roster, releases, Big West context.
- Hawaiʻi men’s volleyball — roster, releases, postseason path.
- NCAA men’s volleyball hub — bracket, schedules, history.
- AVCA — awards, watch lists, championship event info.
United Volleyball Network — April 28, 2026.
