Hahaha yeah I got blasted for that one at the time and I would expect the same now. I wasn't aware of Brian's true history and thought he had been at LA longer. That one's on me, and it's fine, because this is a message board. And I'd like to point out that I don't disagree with what I said about Llanez. Llanez was very good, but he still wouldn't have made this team if everyone was released. I also don't think Mendez would've started if everyone was available, which is a testament to our depth.
Final qualifying stats: Alex Mendez - 7 games, 6 starts, 570 minutes, 8 goals, 4 assists Paxton Pomykal - 8 games, 6 starts, 564 minutes, 3 goals, 2 assists Chris Gloster - 7 games, 6 starts, 548 minutes, 0 goals, 1 assist Brady Scott - 6 games, 6 starts, 540 minutes, 2 goals allowed, 11 saves Mark McKenzie - 6 games, 6 starts, 540 minutes, 3 goals, 1 assist Ayo Akinola - 8 games, 6 starts, 530 minutes, 7 goals, 1 assist Brandon Servania - 6 games, 5 starts, 450 minutes, 2 goals, 1 assist Matt Real - 5 games, 5 starts, 450 minutes, 0 goals, 0 assists Frankie Amaya - 6 games, 5 starts, 425 minutes, 0 goal, 0 assists Justin Rennicks - 8 games, 4 starts, 412 minutes, 4 goals, 6 assists Juan Pablo Torres - 7 games, 4 starts, 388 minutes, 4 goals, 2 assists Samuel Rogers - 3 games, 3 starts, 270 minutes, 0 goals, 0 assists Ulysses Llanez - 6 games, 4 starts, 266 minutes, 7 goals, 4 assists ^Serginho Dest - 3 games, 3 starts, 260 minutes, 0 goals, 0 assists Jaylin Lindsey - 3 games, 3 starts, 254 minutes, 0 goals, 1 assist Emanuel Perez - 4 games, 2 starts, 208 minutes, 1 goal, 1 assist *Griffin Dorsey 4 games, 2 starts, 198 minutes, 1 goals, 3 assists *Anthony Fontana - 2 games, 2 starts, 180 minutes, 4 goals, 1 assist ^Chris Richards - 2 games, 2 starts, 180 minutes, 0 goals, 0 assists Julian Araujo - 2 games, 2 starts, 180 minutes, 0 goals, 2 assists David Ochoa - 2 games, 2 starts, 180 minutes, 0 goals allowed, 2 saves ^Sebastian Soto - 2 games, 2 starts, 169 minutes, 0 goals, 0 assists *Issac Angking - 4 games, 2 starts, 161 minutes, 0 goals, 1 assist ^Added after the conclusion of the group stage *replaced after the conclusion of the group stage
More improbable: That Uly Llanez contributed to 11 goals in just 266 minutes (despite being age-eligible for the next U20 cycle) or that Frankie Amaya didn't get a goal or an assist in 425 minutes?
There is one team that has a current head coach who has a longer history with their club. Brian Schmetzer started playing with the Sounders in the NASL as a teenager. Coached them to championships in the USL and multiple deep runs in the usoc, top assistant in MLS until he got his shot as head coach and promptly went to two MLS Cups in a row winning one of them.
Not only could I argue, I will argue. Ben Olsen has had a longer stint with DCU than Pareja had at Dallas and it's been far more continuous, especially considering Olsen was already a DCU player when Pareja joined the Burn and was still playing after Pareja retired as a player. Pareja has left Dallas three times now - to join the 17s an an assistant coach, to coach Colorado and now to TJ. Olsen, save for a brief loan to Nottingham Forest, has been with DC as a player, (briefly) as an assistant coach and head coach since January of 1998. When Ben Olsen joined DCU, Bill Clinton hadn't been impeached, Titanic was the top movie and this schlock was the No. 1 song in the country.
I'm going to go ahead and un-sticky this thread, but keep it open for further discussion, if we want.