Superdraft 2003

Discussion in 'College & Amateur Soccer' started by halfnelson31, Jul 29, 2002.

  1. halfnelson31

    halfnelson31 New Member

    Jul 23, 2002
    NOVA
    who r the best college players at each position? i need to prepare myself for Superdraft 2003. also is their a website where i can get all this info?
     
  2. Dsocc

    Dsocc Member

    Feb 13, 2002
    There was actually a pretty good thread on this a couple of months ago, before all the earlier posts were removed.
     
  3. Emile

    Emile Member

    Oct 24, 2001
    dead in a ditch
    Anyone want to do this?

    Any interest in starting to think about this? I have to admit that the last Superdraft really took away a lot of my interest in following pro prospects. The Superdraft has always been weird, but this year really seemed to cement the reality that several teams just don't care at all. Case in point is Ray Hudson drafting Daouda Kante. Kante may turn out to be good and his failure to stick at DC may have been based on personal/immigration issues - but still. If you are the worst team in the league, you have no business taking a huge flyer on a lesser prospect without roster protection or clear American work permit status.

    There have been other mind-boggling choices too. I was stunned in 2001 when Edson Buddle lasted into the third round, despite being a P-40 and having had proven himself at the A-League level. Yet there he was, passed up for luminaries like Josue Mayard, Ali Ngon, Brian Ching and Kerwin Jemmott.

    There seems to be a feeling that the Superdraft is not that key, and certainly not past the first 4 or 5 picks. Yet a team like Dallas seems to have improved by smart drafting just as well as their good discoveries and foreign allocations.

    I continue to believe that good players are being lost each year because teams don't take scouting seriously enough and don't have the roster space to accomodate many prospects. But the quality of Jeff Stewart and Jeff Moore, for example, shows to me that there is good quality out there for a team that makes an effort. Hopefully there will be expansion and expanded rosters that will give the ever-increasing flow of young players a chance.

    Anyway, the quality of the 2003 draft, like all drafts, will be based on early entrants. But there seem to be some good seniors that might be heard from. Also, it seems like Yi and Akwari have a good chance of being in - so that will certainly add some depth.

    Doug Warren and Curtis Spiteri are the clear goalkeeping favorites. Warren seems to have universal appeal, but I wonder about Spiteri. Despite his youth national achievements, he's never won WCC Goalkeeper of the Year and might get aced out again this year if Steve Cronin breaks out. Princeton's Jason White seems like the #3 senior prospect to me.

    There are not as many top senior defenders as last year. I'd guess that Guy Abrahamson and Todd Dunivant are the leaders. The two Coles - Jon and Jason - are probably next. Sleepers might be Chad Dombrowski from UMW and Garrett Turk from San Diego.

    Diego Walsh is the clear prize of the midfielders. Ryan Mack, Trevor Perea, Mike Mariscalco and Frank Sanfillipo are interesting possibilities and Aaron Thomas was doing pretty well before getting booted from Wake. I think a top prospect who gets little pub is Matias Asorey from Florida International - he's small but I think he is in MLS' sights.

    This looks to be a pretty good crop of American senior forwards. I'm still not quite sold on Pat Noonan, but he seems to be #1 - just ahead of Mike Tranchilla and Ryan Gibbs. Then you have some other really productive players like Arturo Torres, Roger Levesque, Jordan Quinn, Ryan Coiner and Jack Jewsbury.

    Who else should be added and how should they be ranked this early in the year?
     
  4. Dsocc

    Dsocc Member

    Feb 13, 2002
    Re: Anyone want to do this?

    Good list. I imagine it will be affected if Eskandarian decides to leave UVA. He'd end up a prime forward pick.
    Except for a couple of teams, MLS is in decent shape when it comes to forwards (although Eskandarian would be snagged immediately). Noonan will get a look, although there's a split opinion about whether he turns into another Chris Albright. There's also the matter of where you play him in MLS. He can't play outside because he doesn't defend well, and he wouldn't be an asset as a target forward because of the mental endurance. Tranchilla's a very solid (and undersold) prospect, as is Levesque.
    I think this may be the year for attacking midfield types since many of the league's oldest players currently fill that slot (Cienfuegos, Etchevarry, Valderamma, Nowak, Preki, et.al.) Sooner or later the league is going to have to develop this position around American players (collegians not withstanding).
    Walsh is technically the most gifted and should be highly prized by any number of teams. Mack is very mobile and defends well, and can play inside or out wide. Mariscalco, former teammate of KC's Stephen Armstrong, may be one the most balanced attackers around in terms of creating team scoring opportunities. Thomas would have been a prominent candidate, but his problems at Wake look to be a detriment to his MLS chances. He'll need to get break.
     
  5. kickme

    kickme New Member

    Jul 16, 2002
    Club:
    AC Milan
    Let not forget Hamid Mehreioskouei from Bradley. He's putting up all the necessary numbers to be 1st team All American, but seems to get shafted by the selection committee. I think its because he plays at Bradley. Put him on a team like UCONN, Indiana, or SMU, and he will definitely get recognized for the numbers he puts up. You can make the same argument for Gavin Glinton. Regardless players like Hamid and Gavin will make an impact in the MLS.
     
  6. Karl K

    Karl K Member

    Oct 25, 1999
    Suburban Chicago
    Re: Anyone want to do this?

    This is an interesting point and worth discussing.

    I don't think it's so much an issue of "effort" but really one of "imagination." Ray Hudson -- and don't get me wrong, I like Ray as a coach -- seems to be very weak at looking at a young player he has neither seen before or who he hasn't had from the get-go, and "imagining" that player as a suitable player for MLS.

    Contrast this with Bob Bradley, whose knack for imagining someone as a key contributor in the Fire uniform is highly developed. Jim Curtin? Whose radar screen was HE on? Watch Craig Capano pan out too.

    Funny too that you mention Dallas as a team using the draft to good effect, given that Mike Jeffries sat at Bradley's feet.

    The other think you need to have is a three year plan for these kids. Curtin, and Gray this year, have been dragooned into serious playing time because of injuries and nat team call ups. But that's not the way it should work. The way DMB and Josh were brought along is really the ideal -- significant game time, but no expectations that they would IMMEDIATELY become top-flight starters. You work 'em in.

    You are right that the superdraft is waning in importance, especially as the league has fewer teams and rosters, overall, are getting somewhat younger. Still, there are gems to be had, only if you can exercise some imagination.
     
  7. turnaround

    turnaround New Member

    Jul 10, 2001
    A couple players from the ACC that need to get considered are GK Mitchell Watson of NC State, and F David Testo from UNC.
     
  8. The Wanderer

    The Wanderer New Member

    Sep 3, 1999
    Is Jason Thompson from EIU a senior this year? I noticed he scored on the U23s trip to England.
     
  9. DigitalTron

    DigitalTron New Member

    Apr 4, 2001
    Arlington, VA
    Frankly many of these names aren't the people I'd expect to go at the top of the SuperDraft. What about Jaqua and Ricardo Clark of Furman, or Knox Cameron of Michigan? Guys like Ricky Lewis of Clemson, Alecko Eskandarian of Virginia, Chad Marshall of Stanford were the guys I had expected to hear. Also, many younger guys like Arturo Alverez, Guilliermo Gonzalez, Brandon Owen, Brandon McDonald and Hunter Freeman in U-17 Residency are all MLS prospects IMHO.

    Any thoughts? Anybody else? Does anyone have any more talent or potential than Eskandarian at forward? Is there an impact forward at all?

    -Tron
     
  10. Dsocc

    Dsocc Member

    Feb 13, 2002
    As I noted in my earlier post, I think Eskandarian is the one forward who would attract the most serious attention. The draft will be loaded with forwards, but I'm not sure how many of them (save Eskandarian) will really be in demand, at least at high draft choices. Jaqua should get some looks for sure if signs for the draft, as will the others (with his size, Cameron might end up as a defender).
    I agree with Karl. I think MLS approaches collegiate draftees much more cautiously than in earlier years, especially when it comes to the younger players, so that the allure of big name colleges isn't the same as it once was.
    I think you'll find more coaches trying to mimick Bob Bradley's knack of finding mature, professional players like Villanova's Jim Curtin, rather than selecting bigger name role players from top 10 programs.
     

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