This is all in the plan. Miss the ACC tournament. Lose first round NCAA. Just think of all the extra rest they will have for the 2022 season. Genius!
I actually agree. I believe next year will be the best team we have had in a really long time. We have recruited extremely well the last few years (I know we always recruit well, but we have turned it up a notch the past 3 years or so) should have all our players back into full fitness (Talia, Murphy, Elgin) and I’m pretty sure FSU, UVA and Duke will all take a decent step back next year (obviously this is a guess based on 5th year players and those turning pro at those programs). This is dependent on if no one turns pro early, but despite how disappointing this year was, I am quite excited for next year.
So wait, you have recruited well for the last three years, fail to make the ACC tourney and get bounced in R1 and think that is the platform for your best team? you assume others are taking.a step back with no information at all. Then talk about your players turning pro off tis seasons performances. Wow. UNC fans are a rational breed.
I’m not saying we didn’t play poorly today, but that was probably due to not playing for a couple weeks. Go back and rewatch any game this season. Outside of the game against FSU, we outplayed everyone. We just really struggled to bury our chances and had a few bad mental lapses on D that cost us. This is soccer where you can dominate for 90 minutes, give up one bad play on defence and lose. Doesn’t happen in basketball, but it does in soccer. I’m not saying we dominated UVA or Duke, but I believe we had the better team than both of them. And unlike those two teams, we aren’t losing a bunch of 5th year players. I’m not saying they are going to be bad, but I don’t think Duke or UVA will be better next year. You might have more info than me but isn’t Hopkins, Ivory, Torres all out of eligibility at UVA? Isn’t that the same case for Boade and Cosme for Duke? Same with FSU. Likely lose Howell and maybe Zhao too. That will likely cause FSU to take a step back. Everyone at UNC has eligibility to come back… not to mention that we consistently dealt with injuries all season long. I still don’t think Murphy or Talia were fully healthy by end of season. I am always happy to have a debate, but I truly think next years team, on paper, will be the most talented team UNC has had in a decade. We shouldn’t overreact to one bad game at the end of an injury plagued season. So many talented Freshman/Sophomores on this team that will be one year older and better next year.
See, 'we're really good but struggle to bury chances' just doesn't fly with me. Good finishing is part of being a great team! Same with 'mental lapses on D.' Great teams don't do that. How hard is it to just say 'This year's UNC team had plenty of talent as usual, but just never really clicked like we know it could've'? If you don't want to say that, I challenge you to rewatch the BC game. Then tell me you're better than Virignia. Come on.
how about we rewatch the UNC UVA game. Ivory is the reason the game ended in a tie. Both fan bases know that. Remember, we have a lot of freshman/sophomores. Execution should improve as they gain more experience. As should the defensive lapses.
Speaking for Virginia.... I'm only going by the players who were celebrated on Senior Night, but presuming that none of those players is coming back, Virginia will lose Ivory, Torres, Sieracki, Zandi and Ordonez. Hopkins has a year of eligibility left. This is the fourth year for Spaanstra, Jarrett and Constant. If they were leaving, then I have to presume they would have been feted, so I'm guessing they are returning. So Hopkins replaces Ordonez, only at her natural position. Cayla White is a better shot stopper than Ivory, so I'm guessing we'll be all right there. Torres is going to be replaced by Alexis Theoret, who I think will be even better. If Sarah Clark comes back then she'll be able to cover for the loss of Sieracki. It's Zandi who will not so easily be replaced. Emma Dawson is competent -- and she got better last season when she got regular playing time following Zandi's injury -- but she's mechanical and not intuitive. Sarah Brunner will attack better than Zandi but her defense is markedly worse. If the only players who depart are the Senior Night seniors, I think Virginia will not take a step back next season. Of course, if we lose Spaanstra and Jarret, then all bets are off.
UNC actually won the championship in 2021. Look at the UNC 2021 thread. 14 pages. No other team is close. And we are already off to a big lead for 2022
Whoa!! Up to this point I had thought that ony seniors who were by definition compromised by the COVID truncated 2020 season could play an additional (5th) year this season. Am I now to understand that every player on the team gets a 5th season if they want it? (This would explain Val's conjecture that Spaanstra and Jarret who have now played 4 undergraduate years could stay for a 5th year.) This would also mean that all players who are sophomores, juniors or seniors this fall each will have a crack at playing 5 seasons in addition to having played the 2020-21 season. Am I getting this right? If so we will have 5 years of eligibility right through the fall of 24 when today's sophomores complete their 5th (or 6th if they payed in 20-21) year of eligibility. Frosh starting this season (2021) and subsequent classes will revert to the old system of 4 years of eligibility. No?
The goalkeeper is part of the team, and finishing well is part of playing well. *shrug* You want to think the future is bright, I'm sure it is! It's Carolina, you're full of talent and you get more every season. But you wanted to talk about this season, and this season you have historic shortcomings that are a matter of record.
The easiest way to think of it is this: the Fall 2020 and spring 2021 seasons did not count as a year of eligibility for anyone who played. It was a freebie. However, it's not as simple as saying 'everyone' can play an additional year now. Technically, yes, but for players on course to graduate in May 2022, for example, who want to play the Fall 2022 season, they would need to either delay graduation until December 2022 but remain academically eligible to compete (not super easy, since there is a minimum number of hours you must complete each semester), or get admitted to a graduate program at the same school. That's why you're going to see a fair number of 5th year seniors transfer to play their extra year somewhere else, due to a graduate program they want to do not being available at their current school. There's already a bunch of those this season, like Jenna Menta at Wake Forest who transferred from Georgetown for grad school.
Um….ouch…when “historic shortcomings” still result in draws vs arguably the top 2 teams in the country in UVA and FSU and wins over Notre Dame and Stanford, well, it’s a great day to be a Tar Heel . UNC has a great shot at the NCAA title next year in my opinion.
Stanford profile similar to UNC in some ways. A great program that is going thru some issues. Failed to make the tourney last year and got defeated in R1 this year. Stanford is not a marquee win right now. I dont understand jumping straight to "UNC has a great shot at the NCAA title next year" . UNC did not win with the likes of Ruuso, Wubben Moy, Pinto, Bell, Dickey, Otto on the same team. What players on the current team are close to that level? If your freshmen and sophomores turn out to be that level, you would be ecstatic. Add that to you having no idea on how other programs will look with 5th year players and it just sounds rash. The talk about inexperience that crept into all thing UNC only really became an issue once the results dipped. A UVA team that had experience was ranked below UNC to start the season so clearly no one factored that in at the beginning. I
The first page of UNC 2022? Hmm ... The optimism of UNC fans and the push back from it's critics and haters is truly unique.
I honestly enjoy every season regardless of the outcome. Sure, winning is fun, but I enjoy all the games and the journey of the season. And now that we have a truly phenomenal field and stadium, it just makes it all the more fun. I think UNC women’s soccer has a unique culture on their team that is just a pleasure to see unfold each year. I do think they will be extremely strong next season, but who knows? “Historic shortcomings” seems a bit hyperbolic to me. Personally, it just make it more apparent to me how incredible it is that it took them nearly 40 years to lose in the first round. Think about that. Hard enough to put together a strong team for a decade, but 4 decades? They have still never missed a tournament which no one else has done. They also drew a historically difficult first round game for a #2 seed. I am not saying it is unfair as someone has to play the best unseeded teams. But, it’s not like they had a huge upset loss against a mid or low major. South Carolina has been trouble for them for years. I think this is at least the 3rd loss to South Carolina for UNC at UNC in the last 10 years. I respect the South Carolina coach a lot and they have a strong program. Good for them.
@uncchamps2012 All fair.Part of the disconnect is you are immersed in UNC history and culture which makes your perspective very different to a neutral just looking at this team vs others THIS year. UNC will always be unmatched in terms of history, like the NY Yankees. No one can dispute that and any evaluation of this years team is not an attack on any of that. UNC will always be extremely strong and its a credit to them that they are judged by those standards. Its a compliment to the decades of excellence. All that said, If you go by RPI, which was the basis of UNC 2 seed, then South Carolina are not one of the best unseeded teams, but they are a bad matchup for the current UNC team. Pretty much any loss by a UNC team at home is an upset. Heavy is the head that wears the crown.
But that's what happened. It's not a matter of degrees or subjective opinions, or the semantics of how to word it. You missed the ACC Tournament and got bounced in the first round, and neither of those had ever happened before. Maybe there's a more palatable way to say it, but the facts remain. As 007 says above, it's a measure of your past excellence that this has never happened before.
I have always had tremendous respect for AD and UNC and still will. (Notwithstanding the Keller settlement business) I've read the books and learned alot from AD at clinics, conventions, and courses. They have set the standard for literally decades. But 2 things seem true now for sure - 1. the dynasty is over. UNC is not "just another program" over one game for sure but when 32 teams are still playing from 14 conferences, and UNC is sitting at home....it's a tectonic plate shift for college women's soccer. It just is. 2. If AD had any ideas about leaving this year, he can't now. I don't care if he's 95, his ego will require him to 'end on a high note'. UNC has already gotten into the trenches recruiting as hard and as smartly as everyone else so it will be interesting to see how they respond to the challenge. A lot more coaches then ever before can now say they finished higher, won more games, advanced farther than UNC...
What is your objective here exactly? It’s not like there is any UNC fan here saying UNC is the best team in the world or anything, yet you seem determined to come on here and have a debate no one else is interested in having about how monumental this season and loss are? What team DO you root for or are you more about just trying to bother other earnest fans of their team? Really man, what is your issue exactly? Tectonic plate shift…Historic Shortcomings. Do you have a book called “Pretentious Phrases to Try to Sound Smart” on your desk? If UNC is so irrelevant (14 conferences still playing, etc) , then it seems you are still here because : 1. You actually think they are still pretty relevant. 2. You are just a sadistic person intent on degrading UNC for some unclear reason 3. You have some axe to grind with UNC either as a women’s soccer team or maybe more broadly as an institution. Whatever it is, get over it and leave us first round losers alone. We all have egos, dude. You have a big one , too. No problem. But, AD is about as humble as a person can be who has been historically successful for decades in a completely unprecedented way.
I thought it was discussion about UNC on a public forum. Who just had their worst post season in school history I believe. Some are not used to eating the humble pie that So many UNC opponents have been eating for YEARS! You want sugar coating... UNC was only 6 wins away from another National Championship! I happen to be an Arsenal fan. If you want to bash them, you can wait in a very long line!