NYT: High School Players Forced to Choose in Soccer’s New Way

i think that college soccer serves a role but it should eventually end up being a picking ground for MLS coaches that dont get what they want/need in their own academies. I basically want to see the college game end up being used for supplemental drafts of players into MLS/USL/PDL etc.

I am talking when the USSF changes and soccer continues to evolve in this country.

The part where college soccer/highschool soccer in this country is clearly upside down is the financial disconnect regarding talent. Not all talent out there is poor, but its safe to assume a percentage of it is. To join a premier team you have to have money and time. Not all the talent (some does-but not all) in america has the money and time for high school level permier teams.

The way the system is now does not allow for the highest possible percentage of talent to make it onto the pitch in front of coaches.

Granted...I also have some serious reservations about high-school level coaches soccer IQ. I doubt many, maybe most, can truly recognize raw talent.

As a HS coach at a small school where some of our players play club, some play rec league, some don't play at all, and a few play for DA teams, I think there CAN be a lot to be gained by club players playing HS. In my experience at least, some young men who were end of the bench guys fighting to get on the field for their club (and training at a much higher level than we can at my HS) get a lot out of being a real leader and being forced to play in different positions (again due to the limitations of our roster). Its not just the social aspect. It may not outweigh the better training they can get at their DA clubs, but its a different (and valuable for some) type of experience they can get a lot out of.

As someone who covers high-school soccer (among other HS sports) for a living, I can tell you that this isn't correct, for a couple of reasons.

First, most of the HS coaches in my area, Lansing, MI, also coach club teams in the HS off-season, so the distinction is largely absent.

Second, a player with any kind of real talent, raw or otherwise, will obviously stand out on the vast majority of HS teams. Few if any of the coaches in my experience would be unable to identify any amount of actual talent.

Even in my area, from which the top players have to travel to Detroit or Grand Rapids for even decent club experience, the HS coaching IQ is not nearly as deficient as one would think, or as it used to be. There are few if any gym teachers who coach soccer because nobody else can or will, as was typical when I was in high school.

Dempsey at best on rare occasions.
What flaws??

Nick Rimando, Brad Guzan, Steve Cherundolo, Clarence Goodson, Carlos Bocanegra, Michael Parkhurst, Geoff Cameron, Maurice Edu, Sacha Kljestan, Clint Dempsey, and Edson Buddle to start.

In case you missed it that's over half the team that just beat Italy in Italy. As I (and others) have shown you on multiple occasions you can find a similar number of players on the U.S. roster with college experience in the recent meaningful matches as well.

But you know all this and still continue to make claims like "they don't have 'real talent'" despite the copious amount if history that shows otherwise. You do that mainly because you're a troll.

Except that there really aren't that many scholarships. On paper, I'm guessing there's less than a thousand per year available (9.9 per team for a four year program in NCAA Division I, less for lower divisions and NAIA). I'm guessing, however, that less than half of those are funded. Of the ones that are, most are split amongst multiple players.

Counting on a college scholarship for soccer is a fool's dream - no matter how good you are.

I'm really not sure I agree with your first paragraph too. Look at a kid like Zach Pfeffer. He might wash out at the end of the season, but in the meantime over 2 seasons he'll have banked 120k pre-tax while living at his parents' house. Think a kid can pay for college with that? Even in a state that funds its schools like PA, I'd say hell yes. He may never get NCAA eligibility to play, but he'll still be a lot better off than if he'd stayed amateur and played for somewhere like Maryland...and this is the worst-case scenario of getting cut early.

Eh this is a none factor in the long run. There will be some backlash from some players/parents that really wanted to play high school ball. I feel bad for those kids. But for the younger kids they'll know the commitment in advance, and it won't be nearly as big a deal. Even before the DA, major programs recruited pretty much exclusively by how a kid plays for his club team.

I love the argument that no other countries have their kids play in college when pretty much every other country has had a real pro league for more than 16 years.

There are plenty of good non DA club programs in most places around the country that allow kids to do both. I'm sure colleges and MLS will pull players from DA programs (including their own) and from other clubs just as they do now.

Yea.. so again Dempsey at best on rare occasions.
That was still nice to beat Italy in a friendly match while Italy was experimenting this and that.

For every guy who makes it onto an MLS team and makes a mediocre salary, there are probably several guys floating around the lower levels making even less. Pursuing a professional sports career is a long shot for most kids. Soccer in the US is especially tough.

Realistically, most middle-class and up parents probably look at their kid's sports activities as a good thing to be able to list on college applications. If that results in a scholarship, even better. But, I think for most kids, turning down playing soccer at a good school (with or without a scholarship) to chase the dream of a professional soccer career is not a bright move.

fixed your post for accuracy. If we're going to nitpick, let's at least do it for both sides and remember that Italy was at home.

Also, Dempsey IS our best player currently. If you're saying that Dempsey is the ceiling for college players, I'd be totally fine with that and totally fine with players playing college soccer for a couple years. I wouldn't want to have to field a full 23-man roster with only players that played in college, but I'm also not disqualifying anyone who spent time in college. I prefer to look at a player based on what they can do for the national team now.

As an Ex HS player, I have a huge problem with HS sports. I was benched not because the other player was better then me, but because his Mom was on the school board. So i with USSF on this.

That's a pretty random way to make a decision. The same exact thing could have happened at a club team. I'm not sure where those kids of decisions are more rampant, but they happen everywhere. Heck the same type of favoritism is alleged on club teams, college teams, and national teams. Also, *I'm not saying its true in your case because I know nothing about your situation*, but it sometimes happens that people think they're being benched for a particular reason or despite the fact that they are better. Those people aren't always right. It isn't always easy to make lineup decisions and coaches sometimes screw up at all levels for a variety of reasons.

Being "with the USSF" on this issue isn't going to stop favoritism at all.

How very unamerican of you.

He's clearly a snob!

Which is, of course, exactly what I expected you to say, which is why the part about prior tournaments was in my post.

Well I should also add that if you also create more opportunities by having Academy Players play Academy Soccer and letting non academy kids play hs / rec soccer. Sure the academies are better but it also gives the kids more of a chance to play.