I found this site doing a related search today. It looks like the site owner, Bill Reno, posts to BigSoccer. Anyway, lots of interesting posts about goalkeepers, including this class-by-class ranking of this year's NCAA goalkeepers.
Couldn’t find D2. I should say I found a list but it didn’t have positions. D3 Keeper of the Year 2018 AJ Marcucci Connecticut College
That is me : ) I don't cover D2/D3/Juco/NAIA gks as their likelihood of going pro is so low, it's not really worth the time digging into the talent pool, fwiw.
When I saw the list was D1 it just piqued my curiosity about D2-3. To me, it is quite possible the best GK in D2-3 are in the discussion for best in NCAA
Oh, hi Bill. Thank you for posting. I'd love to know some of what went into your choices. Is it where the boys are from--that is whether they're under homegrown regions or whatever? I recall having seen your GK rankings previously because some of my son's friends have been on it before. I look at it differently now that I've spent 2 years researching GKs and schools to help my son find a good fit. (btw my son is on your list this year, so this is entirely selfish) Thanks for your work.
Haha, well I hope your son continues to work hard. For the upperclassmen, it's all about gauging who is pro-ready. I really try to take accolades/records with a grain of salt. The real litmus test is what they can do in goal, media recognition aside. So this is why Wake Forrest have multiple gks on the list, for example. They have a very strong goalkeeping core with lots of pro potential. As for the freshmen, I openly admit it's a crapshoot. I try to identify gks who (1) I have at least watched a little bit of (or a good coach has highly recommended them) and (2) are going into a good situation for them to get some minutes sooner than later. It's very hard for a freshman gk to be pro-ready down the line if they don't see minutes until their senior year. But looking at the 2015 and 2016 rankings, most of them didn't work out. So I wouldn't expect much from this group just yet. The next 18 months will be very important for all of them in terms of getting ready for the next level.
I think there is a discussion there but it's almost moot as the system is set up to reward D1 gks almost exclusively. USL teams sign goalkeepers they're familiar/confident with. It's a very subjective view on meritocracy because the head and/or goalkeeping coach will say "Well this is our number one" but there are rarely numbers backing it or any widespread consensus. Most USL coaches aren't looking to reward a D2/D3 goalkeeper who worked hard to overcome the odds. They almost always pick a D1 gk (or a foreign gk) over a D2 or lower one. So I have a very hard time digging into that area but for whatever it's worth, I did put a D2 gk in my rankings last year.