Your Monday morning links and an introduction

Hi folks, Alicia Rodriguez here. I’ve been hired as a community editor for SB Nation’s California team sites, and you’ll be seeing me around here more in the future. I’ve been involved at SB Nation since 2011, and I’ve also previously worked at MLSsoccer.com. I’m a keen watcher of American soccer, especially MLS, NWSL and USL.

We do want to hear from you: What do you want to see here? What story did I miss in today’s roundup? The easiest way to let us know is to leave a comment below. Above all, we’re here to bring professionalism, passion and a sense of fun to coverage of Sacramento Republic FC on Indomitable City Soccer.

With that, on to the big news to start your week:

• Full USL Championship schedule is out: The league announced the full drop last week, and Sacramento kick off the 2020 campaign March 7 at home against the newly-rebranded FC Tulsa. You can find the full league schedule here.

• RoRo returns: The big signing news so far was club legend Rodrigo Lopez returning to SRFC for the 2020 season. Lopez had a pretty good stint in Mexico, split between Celaya and top flight sides Toluca and Veracruz and at 32 still likely has a few tricks up his sleeve back in USL.
• Hilliard-Arce signs on: Other than Lopez’s signing, last week also featured an intriguing signing in defender Tomas Hilliard-Arce joining Republic FC for 2020. The 24-year-old was the former No. 2 overall pick in the MLS Draft by the LA Galaxy, but they never seemed to give him a chance with the first team. The Stanford product has nearly 50 USL Championship games under his belt, and don’t be shocked if he’s the next Daniel Steres or Aaron Long, a center back who didn’t get a fair shake in MLS but who comes good in the USL.
• One Game of the Week: Along with the schedule, USL also released the Championship Game of the Week slate for 2020, and Sacramento get...one game for the season on national TV. That game is at home against Colorado Springs Switchbacks on Sept. 9. Seems pretty low, but considering how many teams there are, it seems slots are at a complete premium.
• USLPA bargaining update: The big news this offseason is the CBA negotiations between MLS and the MLSPA, but the USL Players Association is also busy, and had a recent update about progress with the league:

Monday’s question: Which away game road trip would you most like to take in 2020? Let us know in the comments below, along with any travel tips you might have!