Penn State - 2023

Completely understand why she chose to transfer out at this point given that a) she already accomplished pretty much all there is to accomplish with Quinnipiac last season, b) she was clearly way too good for the MAAC and is seeking a step up in level of competition, and c) is looking to gain more national recognition with the goal of eventually making the senior Republic of Ireland WNT. However, Penn State seemed like an interesting choice of transfer destination given that they were the team that just eliminated Quinnipiac from the NCAA Tournament last year in what would be her final game as a Bobcat. Obviously PSU fits the bill in terms of being a big time program, but there are plenty of other big time programs out there which were not direct opponents of Quinnipiac last year that she could have chosen. Of course there are all sorts of other factors that go into these decisions like NIL deals and such so you never know what the exact reasoning was.

 

Why would that matter, or even enter into anyone's decision-making process?

If anything, it makes sense she'd end up at the only big time program that actually got to see her play in person last season.

 

Because the 2022 season was an incredible journey from start to finish for anyone associated with the Quinnipiac women's soccer program, with the program reaching heights that had never been seen before (or at least not since the year 2000). Because of this, having QU's best player move to the place where that journey eventually came to an end doesn't seem quite right. The purpose of the NCAA Tournament game at Penn State in 2022 was to see how Quinnipiac would match up with/if they could be competitive with an opponent of that caliber, not for it to serve as an unofficial campus tour of PSU that eventually would help convince Quinnipiac's best player- who almost singlehandedly led them to that point- to transfer there. Sure, there may be technically nothing wrong with it but from a QU perspective it doesn't really make sense. If it had been a direct opponent during the regular season, then it wouldn't matter.

 

Checked into this thread and all I get is sour grapes from @AMBreakers !!

Really? The feelings of a Quinnipiac fan are what's important here?
How about what's important to the player? Best for the player?

Are you saying she was at the appropriate level of college soccer for her own personal growth? Are you saying there are better academic options and programs at Quinnipiac? A school most people haven't heard of and can't spell correctly.
If they randomly drew Rutgers in Round 1, you'd say that school should be off limits?

Be happy you had time to watch this player at that level and wish her all the best. Like a true fan of hers should. I know nothing about this situation but I do know the PSU staff and I hope she kicks ass. Not an easy lineup to crack into but I am now rooting for this player.

 

That is a very disappointing and uninformed response to come back on here and read. First of all, we have every right to engage in this discussion in a Penn State thread because nobody would ever exactly create a thread for a MAAC school like Quinnipiac on a board like this, would they? Second of all, if you actually read both of my posts, I specifically said that she was NOT at the appropriate level of college soccer for her own personal growth at this point and thus her decision to transfer was the correct one- she absolutely deserves the chance to play against better competition than what she went up against in the MAAC last year. Read my first post and you will see those exact words. The only thing that was called into question was the destination, not her decision to transfer in the first place. And the destination and why she made that decision is something we have every right to debate on this forum as well. That is the whole purpose of a board like this, isn't it? I absolutely never claimed that there are better academic options and programs at Quinnipiac, either. Penn State has maybe slightly better academic options and certainly better soccer options, but so do many other schools as well.

You clearly do not follow college hockey if you are making the claim that Quinnipiac is a school most people haven't heard of. Quinnipiac like, um, just won the national championship in hockey a few months ago, in case you weren't aware....but the statement that some people still can't spell it correctly anyways is definitely true. I can attest to that.

I specifically said in the second post that the 2022 season was an "incredible journey" and yet you claim that I am not appreciative of the fact that I had time to watch her at that level? Seriously? Yet another very uninformed response which represents a basic misunderstanding of the content I posted.

The basic point I was trying to make is this: If she worked and trained so hard throughout the 2022 season just to get the opportunity to play against Penn State, and since her reward for delivering the MAAC title that had been elusive to Quinnipiac in women's soccer for so long was to have the opportunity to play against a program the caliber of Penn State in the tournament, then why would she want to actually play for the exact program she went up against as an opponent in the biggest game of 2022 the following year? No, that doesn't mean the school is "off limits" as you claim- I specifically wrote in the second post, if you actually read it, that there was technically nothing wrong with doing it- and yes, it is obviously the player's decision but that doesn't mean that observers like us aren't allowed to speculate as to why she made it. I wrote in the first post that there could have been other factors like NIL deals and such which we are maybe not aware of. So I don't claim to know the complete reasoning behind it, but we are certainly allowed to discuss and debate what the reasoning might have been.

Sour grapes? Hardly. She obviously can ultimately make whatever decision she feels is best for her, but given the way the 2022 season- which she obviously lived and breathed every moment of, more so than anyone else- went and ended, I am surprised that she would make that decision in terms of the particular transfer destination she chose. That is all I was trying to say.

But trust me- she will easily crack into Penn State's lineup now that she is there. She is that good.

 

Quinnipiac is well known to me, how could one forget such a great name? Of course, I went to college in New England.

I do not see anything odd about her picking Penn State. It is well known to have a very good coach, for one thing. Plus she played against them. She got first hand experience in how they play, maybe she really liked it. And, they got a real-time look at her, they obviously liked her. In most cases, I do not think players have the same attitude towards opponents as fans. They play their hearts out against each other, the game is over, and they can make good friendships with the players they just went up against. Fans tend to be more, I hate those guys.

 

This is a good example of how fans look at the game very differently than players. There is nothing wrong with your view; it's a fan's view, and it's a bit romantic and not terribly realistic, being based more on the emotion of supporting a team than the practicalities of what's best for the player. Quinnipiac and Penn State have nothing in common and are certainly not rivals. But even if they were...the history of this sport is full of players moving from one club to their deadly rivals, because that's what was best for them. That's the beginning and end of the story here.

 

Perhaps this is true. I am undoubtedly a very passionate fan of both collegiate women's soccer programs that I support- QU and also Boston University. Anyone who knows me will tell you that, including the QU head coach Dave Clarke himself.

However, given that Quinnipiac earned the right to host the conference final in Hamden last year for the first time in as long as anyone can remember and achieved something the program had not done in over 20 years, I think the players involved would certainly have just as fond memories of such a season as I do as a fan.

Despite what the other poster thinks, the fact that I view the manner of her eventual departure as being somewhat bittersweet certainly does not take away whatsoever from the countless memories that were made during her time at QU which I will always cherish. She departs as the greatest player in program history- that speaks for itself. She perhaps flew under the radar a bit when she was initially recruited and ended up at QU because of its Dublin connections (head coach was born there). And even before 2022 happened, there was fall 2021 when QU won a memorable penalty shootout against Siena converting all five kicks before eventually falling in the conference final.

 

I think the more accurate question is is PSU the best at developing that talent? They have one of the top, if not the top, rosters in college soccer and haven't been past the 3rd round in 5 years. There is a perception to that program that does not seem to live up to reality. They recruit at a really high level but the results seem far more inconsistent than the other top programs.

They had some high moments but the low moments beg the question:
3-0 loss to Ohio St
4-2 loss to Nebraska
1-1 tie to Iowa

Can you imagine UNC or FSU losing to Ohio State 3-0?

 

Your view is just as romantic as the QU poster! I don't know the player, but this is what covid and transfer portals have created. We can all create reasons for leaving one program for another, but only the player knows. Dave Clarke seems like the kind of coach who would be very good on the individual development side and is well connected. If the QU players goal is professional, she could achieve that at QU. Is exposure greater at PSU? Yes. More competition? Yes.

Fans tend to look at issues thru one lens. They root for the jersey. WoSo in particular, there is such limited access to objective information that its hard to debate facts.

 

Wow. Our posts must have crossed. You raise a fantastic point. What is developing talent and how do you define/measure it. You seem to associate team results with talent development. How many current pros have they been the last stop for as a better measure?

 

No, but surely nobody is putting them quite at that level? UNC and FSU are permanent members of the handful of programs who can win a natty every season. PSU is very damn good, and they've had their elite seasons, but their objective results do not put them in that group *every* season. They're in the next tier down for me.

 

I would put them in the same category as UNC, FSU and a few other schools. Offers the right mix of exposure, credibility and connections to offer a proven pathway to the pros. If you are good there, its good enough.

 

Yes and I do not mean to imply they are a bad program or bad coaches. Simply, are they underachieving with the talent they are able to recruit.

It is a good point about individual development and does that necessarily equal team results. There are many ways one could define that. It is a real question to ask. If their recruiting results do not equal their on the field results, what is the factor?

 

It does seem that Pa. State has underachieved somewhat in recent years given the strength of its rosters.

 

I think we're talking about two completely different things. I agree Penn State as a transfer destination for a future potential pro is in the same category as FSU and UNC.

But I (and the original poster) was talking about team performance. The question was raised about the 3-0 loss to Ohio State, and can you imagine FSU and UNC with a result like that? Nope. On that basis, they are not in the same category as UNC and FSU.

 

I honestly thought that Cooke was going to possibly end up at Florida State and that would have been a better destination for her because then she would have been teammates with Payne who is also Irish. But that's just my opinion of course, others can certainly disagree.

Penn State was not in the same category as the two other schools you mention last year, but I think they will be this year. They seem to be returning a fair amount of talent and depth. I made the bold prediction that Cooke would immediately crack their starting lineup because if you look at her numbers from last season, her stats against out of conference opposition were pretty much just as impressive as her stats against MAAC opposition. So it's not like all of her goals were against bottom half teams in the MAAC. She showed she could get it done against pretty good teams from out of conference as well.

 

Not very common, but I suspect this will become more common going forward. If young players are talented enough, they will attract agents who can get them contracts. And if that player's goals are to become a professional footballer, then they won't care about the college degree as much. I think the only chance the universities have to compete is to provide more NIL money to their higher profile players.

 

College involves academics. Some dont want that. NIL wont solve that.

 

Did you read the article? It said she attended for one year. It seems she did want a degree.
It would seem odder that an athlete would accept a scholarship to a school in order to use it as a steppingstone for a professional soccer career.
College life can be financially tough, even with a full scholarship. NIL money can help solve that, especially if you're being told that you can earn money by going pro right away.

 

Cooper left after two years. Albert left after two years. Opportunities are opening up all the time for younger women.