The new US Soccer Academy program is the first youth league ever organized by US Soccer and not US Youth Soccer. That, in essence, is why it is so different. All other youth soccer leagues and events (including ODP) is under the umbrella of US Youth Soccer. Decisions on the rules and regulations for those are made by the Regional Director’s and State Presidents. Rules and regs for the Academy league are made by US Soccer (significant input coming from our national youth team coaches). The Academy program is actually just another league with specific rules that the organizers feel will be better for the development of the players.
The Academy program will have identification events to select players for opportunities with the National teams. Some national camps have already occurred with players from a Thanksgiving event. (We are very happy that 6 guys who played for MD ODP were selected out of those events to be on US teams in the NIKE Friendlies. At the same time that event was going on there was an “inter regional” with the ODP programs in Disney. Likewise players were selected from that event to join various national team events.
So what I believe we have are 2 programs that both have the ability to present players for the next level. The Academy program does it through club events while the ODP does it through state and regional events. Both have merit. I certainly hope that the Academy Program reaches it goal of providing a top developmental environment for the players involved. Important to keep in mind is that each club will be different based on coaching staff, facilities, finances, etc. That is not different than it has ever been. In many ways the Academy teams that really have the most on the line are the MLS youth teams. They probably have the most vested interest as they hope to directly benefit from the development of the players in their program.
Having said all that I do believe that the most important indicator of whether the Academy program is successful is if it does attract the college coaches. That is the main by-product for 99.9% of the players that are on top club teams. One thing I know for sure – college coaches will go to all tournaments and events that have good players regardless of whether they are “Academy”, US Youth Soccer/ODP or anything else. As there are not enough Academy teams to cover all the top players in the country (or even in any one area), all programs will continue to play an important role in the game’s development.
Saturday, December 22, 2007
Friday, December 21, 2007
ODP INTERNATIONAL TRIPS
) How does participating in or not participating in the overseas trip hurt / help a player? What if we are financially constrained?
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I have been on many, many international soccer tours with club, college, national teams, ODP teams. I have yet to have a poor soccer experience. It is the world's game and these trips expose the players to a passion for the sport that unfortunately cannot be replicated in this country - although we can only hope we are moving that way.
We play teams that are made up of same age players from the professional clubs of Argentina
(91 and 93 teams) and Scotland (95 trip). These are players who are trying to work their way up to the professional level. They were born with the soccer ball at their feet and the game in their hearts. Exposure to this environment never ceases to motivate me. The players will go against talent and sophistication that they are not use to. This will push them to be there best and find ways to be better. They simply do not get pushed this way at home - even when playing against older players. It is hard to describe the effect this has on the players.
In Argentina we take the U-15s and 17s. They play back to back games and that night they "critique" each other. We see the soccer brains developing at these team meetings. We see older payers helping younger players the same way a true club system would be... unfortunately not found here either.
For some players the opportunity to return to train with a professional club has happened. We had 2 players last year get invited to train with Celtic for 2 weeks in the summer. The year before we had a U-15 player invited to train with a Brazilian club.
Regarding finances for these trips - all I can say is that we price them at the absolute east we can. MSYSA makes no money off the trips - actually they lose money sue to costs of the staff. Is it worth it? I can't answer that. We can find ways to help with a payment plan and things like that, but unfortunately this is the one area where we do not have any financial assistance.
Does it hurt or help to go or not go?? Well naturally your son will have a unique opportunity for improvement and for a significant cultural education. It certainly won't be held against anyone for not going, but those who do go have an experience that they can bring back to help their game, their club team and teammates.
Hope that helps. It is an amazing culture we expose the boys to - on and off the field.
---------------------------------
I have been on many, many international soccer tours with club, college, national teams, ODP teams. I have yet to have a poor soccer experience. It is the world's game and these trips expose the players to a passion for the sport that unfortunately cannot be replicated in this country - although we can only hope we are moving that way.
We play teams that are made up of same age players from the professional clubs of Argentina
(91 and 93 teams) and Scotland (95 trip). These are players who are trying to work their way up to the professional level. They were born with the soccer ball at their feet and the game in their hearts. Exposure to this environment never ceases to motivate me. The players will go against talent and sophistication that they are not use to. This will push them to be there best and find ways to be better. They simply do not get pushed this way at home - even when playing against older players. It is hard to describe the effect this has on the players.
In Argentina we take the U-15s and 17s. They play back to back games and that night they "critique" each other. We see the soccer brains developing at these team meetings. We see older payers helping younger players the same way a true club system would be... unfortunately not found here either.
For some players the opportunity to return to train with a professional club has happened. We had 2 players last year get invited to train with Celtic for 2 weeks in the summer. The year before we had a U-15 player invited to train with a Brazilian club.
Regarding finances for these trips - all I can say is that we price them at the absolute east we can. MSYSA makes no money off the trips - actually they lose money sue to costs of the staff. Is it worth it? I can't answer that. We can find ways to help with a payment plan and things like that, but unfortunately this is the one area where we do not have any financial assistance.
Does it hurt or help to go or not go?? Well naturally your son will have a unique opportunity for improvement and for a significant cultural education. It certainly won't be held against anyone for not going, but those who do go have an experience that they can bring back to help their game, their club team and teammates.
Hope that helps. It is an amazing culture we expose the boys to - on and off the field.
Wednesday, December 19, 2007
ODP TRYOUT EVALUATIONS
ODP TRYOUTS – WHAT SEPARATES PLAYERS
Trying out for ODP teams can be a very stressful time - before, during and after. When tryouts are over I often get e-mails and calls asking for evaluations of the players so they can work on what they need to do to improve. With hundreds of quality soccer players trying out it is impossible to give individual evaluations. However, there are some areas of the game that are the MOST COMMON in separating players from one level to another. These may be helpful in evaluating one’s own child, oneself or the player you coach.
1) First touch on the ball. Do you control the ball or does the ball control you? This is easy to see and those who have the ball controlling them can never make the step to a high level. First touch may well be the first thing to look at.
2) Speed of play. This is more in relation to what I cal “soccer speed”. How fast can one execute a technical requirement of the game. Can a payer (under pressure) take a pass and as quickly and efficiently as possible execute the next play.
3) Tactical decisions. Even if the player does things with effective speed, then the question becomes: is the player making the best decision possible and how fast does that player see the options.
4) Does the player make the game better? This can be due to overall ability, athleticism and a good “soccer brain”. It can also be because that player does something extremely well that a coach may feel overrides the deficiencies. For example – the player is a great 1v1 player, but lacks defensive instincts or great passing. Maybe the player is a fantastic defender but lacks elsewhere. The essential question is does the player have a chance to make the team better as opposed to just holding his own (not a good standard to use in making an ODP team).
Needless to say, there are other things that can factor in – especially at the younger age groups where sizes of players are so varied. Coaches are always asking the question: “While this player may not be able to compete athletically now, can he be one of the best when he does catch up with the athletically advanced players?” We certainly try and select those players even if they do not seem to be as effective as some who do not make it.
At the end of the day our staff can safely say that anyone who is selected has deserved to be, but we also know there are some not selected who are very good players. For those the greatest challenge is to now look at their game and really try and improve the above areas in particular. The higher the level the less time and space players have to be effective. Work on speed of play, speed of execution and speed of thought.
Feel free to give your thoughts…
www.ktsoccerworld.com
Trying out for ODP teams can be a very stressful time - before, during and after. When tryouts are over I often get e-mails and calls asking for evaluations of the players so they can work on what they need to do to improve. With hundreds of quality soccer players trying out it is impossible to give individual evaluations. However, there are some areas of the game that are the MOST COMMON in separating players from one level to another. These may be helpful in evaluating one’s own child, oneself or the player you coach.
1) First touch on the ball. Do you control the ball or does the ball control you? This is easy to see and those who have the ball controlling them can never make the step to a high level. First touch may well be the first thing to look at.
2) Speed of play. This is more in relation to what I cal “soccer speed”. How fast can one execute a technical requirement of the game. Can a payer (under pressure) take a pass and as quickly and efficiently as possible execute the next play.
3) Tactical decisions. Even if the player does things with effective speed, then the question becomes: is the player making the best decision possible and how fast does that player see the options.
4) Does the player make the game better? This can be due to overall ability, athleticism and a good “soccer brain”. It can also be because that player does something extremely well that a coach may feel overrides the deficiencies. For example – the player is a great 1v1 player, but lacks defensive instincts or great passing. Maybe the player is a fantastic defender but lacks elsewhere. The essential question is does the player have a chance to make the team better as opposed to just holding his own (not a good standard to use in making an ODP team).
Needless to say, there are other things that can factor in – especially at the younger age groups where sizes of players are so varied. Coaches are always asking the question: “While this player may not be able to compete athletically now, can he be one of the best when he does catch up with the athletically advanced players?” We certainly try and select those players even if they do not seem to be as effective as some who do not make it.
At the end of the day our staff can safely say that anyone who is selected has deserved to be, but we also know there are some not selected who are very good players. For those the greatest challenge is to now look at their game and really try and improve the above areas in particular. The higher the level the less time and space players have to be effective. Work on speed of play, speed of execution and speed of thought.
Feel free to give your thoughts…
www.ktsoccerworld.com
Tuesday, September 18, 2007
More on the Non-Academic/soccer factors in the college decision
Non-academic-athletic factors – These include the location of the school (urban or rural), size of school (and of classes), off-campus activities, housing, social life, etc.
Consider where you are when you step off campus. What does the city or town offer and is it what you are looking for. This is not saying that one scenario is better than another, but your entire college life will not just be within the confines of the campus. If you are in a major city, then you have the option of taking advantage of the many cultural and social outlets that will be there. At the same time you will have the challenges that a big city brings – transportation, safety, noise, etc.
If you come from a small private school with small class sizes you may wish to continue that. Ask the average class size at the school. There is usually a direct correlation of class size to total student body size. What are you comfortable with?
Clearly you need to see what other the school offers within its campus that will enhance your experience. That may be concerts, clubs to join, speakers and many other events.
Spend a night in a dorm if you can. Certainly if you are a potential student-athlete then you should take an overnight visit to get to know the team. Remember that the dorm room is critical to your enjoyment as you will end up back in that room everyday you are in college.
Truly, just walking around and looking at the current students gives you an idea of what you would be joining. The best thing that can happen is that at some point during your visit to a school you are able to say – “I know this is for me”.
Consider where you are when you step off campus. What does the city or town offer and is it what you are looking for. This is not saying that one scenario is better than another, but your entire college life will not just be within the confines of the campus. If you are in a major city, then you have the option of taking advantage of the many cultural and social outlets that will be there. At the same time you will have the challenges that a big city brings – transportation, safety, noise, etc.
If you come from a small private school with small class sizes you may wish to continue that. Ask the average class size at the school. There is usually a direct correlation of class size to total student body size. What are you comfortable with?
Clearly you need to see what other the school offers within its campus that will enhance your experience. That may be concerts, clubs to join, speakers and many other events.
Spend a night in a dorm if you can. Certainly if you are a potential student-athlete then you should take an overnight visit to get to know the team. Remember that the dorm room is critical to your enjoyment as you will end up back in that room everyday you are in college.
Truly, just walking around and looking at the current students gives you an idea of what you would be joining. The best thing that can happen is that at some point during your visit to a school you are able to say – “I know this is for me”.
Wednesday, September 5, 2007
more on the college decision process
Parts 3 and 4 of a decision...
3. Non-academic-athletic factors – These include the location of the school (urban or rural), size of school (and of classes), off-campus activities, housing, social life, etc
4. Financial Factors – Obviously this is critical, but I put it last for a reason. I strongly urge people to try and decide on the college they want to go to and then see if they can make it work financially. You will be amazed at the many ways of working out a plan to pay for school. Your best resource for help is the financial Aid Department at that school. Many of the high cost schools have some creative ways of funding the education. Naturally, you may have the opportunity for athletic scholarships (if you are the best of the best), but there are other ways to get to the school you want).
I will expand on these 2 areas in the next blog.
3. Non-academic-athletic factors – These include the location of the school (urban or rural), size of school (and of classes), off-campus activities, housing, social life, etc
4. Financial Factors – Obviously this is critical, but I put it last for a reason. I strongly urge people to try and decide on the college they want to go to and then see if they can make it work financially. You will be amazed at the many ways of working out a plan to pay for school. Your best resource for help is the financial Aid Department at that school. Many of the high cost schools have some creative ways of funding the education. Naturally, you may have the opportunity for athletic scholarships (if you are the best of the best), but there are other ways to get to the school you want).
I will expand on these 2 areas in the next blog.
Friday, July 27, 2007
Advice for Recruiting - #2
“The Main Ingredients”
Part 1
I often give talks on the college recruiting process to HS, club and camp groups. I break down the process into 4 categories of consideration:
1. Academics – Find the schools that are the best challenge for you. Be sure they have the areas of study you are interested As many will not know yet what they want to study and some of you will change your mind, make sure you find out how one goes about deciding on a major at each school. Is it easy to change direction after a year or 2? NCAA rules give you 2 years before you need to declare a major – plenty of time to figure things out (and change your mind!)
Category 2 next... Athletics/Soccer
Part 1
I often give talks on the college recruiting process to HS, club and camp groups. I break down the process into 4 categories of consideration:
1. Academics – Find the schools that are the best challenge for you. Be sure they have the areas of study you are interested As many will not know yet what they want to study and some of you will change your mind, make sure you find out how one goes about deciding on a major at each school. Is it easy to change direction after a year or 2? NCAA rules give you 2 years before you need to declare a major – plenty of time to figure things out (and change your mind!)
Category 2 next... Athletics/Soccer
Monday, July 9, 2007
RECRUITING ADVICE FOR HIGH SCHOOL STUDENTS
Georgetown – 22 years – Advice for contacting coaches for recruiting..
Part 1
Above all else – the student-athlete must be the one to contact the coach first. There is always a “yellow flag” that goes up when the parent calls or e-mails first. I am sure you can think of some of things a coach may conclude:
The player is not really interested – just the parent.
The parent does everything for the player.
The player does not have good interpersonal habits, so the parent is covering.
A player making the first contact is much more impressive. We will be coaching and mentoring the player, not the parents (or not supposed to mentoring the parents). You only have one chance to make a good first impression. Almost no matter what, that is best done by the player. Common excuses are that “I am calling for my son because he is in school and can’t call you from there. By the time he is home, you probably wouldn’t be in the office.”
Obviously, if the player tries to call after school, then he may find the coach is in the office. We don’t work 9-5s – much more than that. We all have voice mail – even if you just leave a message that I am trying to contact you and will call back is better than the call from someone other than you. If you leave your number and ask the coach to call you back, then you are also finding out how interested they may be in you and/or how professional they are.
Remember NCAA rules prohibit a coach from calling you until after July 1st prior to your senior year of HS. So if you are calling before that and leave a message, then you will not (or should not) receive a call back.
After the initial call it would not be improper for a parent to touch base. However, if it now becomes just the parent, then the same conclusions as above may apply. Parents are an important part of the process and can affect things. Obviously a parent should do all he/she can to allow the process to work for the student-athlete. Too much or none at all could spell out certain cautions in the mind of the coach.
Remember that we recruit players whom we feel will help our programs on and off the field and, obviously, fit into the academic profile of the school.
To find out more information on NCAA rules for the College Bound student-athlete you can go the following site:
http://www.ncaa.org/library/general/cbsa/2006-07/2006-07_cbsa.pdf
Part 1
Above all else – the student-athlete must be the one to contact the coach first. There is always a “yellow flag” that goes up when the parent calls or e-mails first. I am sure you can think of some of things a coach may conclude:
The player is not really interested – just the parent.
The parent does everything for the player.
The player does not have good interpersonal habits, so the parent is covering.
A player making the first contact is much more impressive. We will be coaching and mentoring the player, not the parents (or not supposed to mentoring the parents). You only have one chance to make a good first impression. Almost no matter what, that is best done by the player. Common excuses are that “I am calling for my son because he is in school and can’t call you from there. By the time he is home, you probably wouldn’t be in the office.”
Obviously, if the player tries to call after school, then he may find the coach is in the office. We don’t work 9-5s – much more than that. We all have voice mail – even if you just leave a message that I am trying to contact you and will call back is better than the call from someone other than you. If you leave your number and ask the coach to call you back, then you are also finding out how interested they may be in you and/or how professional they are.
Remember NCAA rules prohibit a coach from calling you until after July 1st prior to your senior year of HS. So if you are calling before that and leave a message, then you will not (or should not) receive a call back.
After the initial call it would not be improper for a parent to touch base. However, if it now becomes just the parent, then the same conclusions as above may apply. Parents are an important part of the process and can affect things. Obviously a parent should do all he/she can to allow the process to work for the student-athlete. Too much or none at all could spell out certain cautions in the mind of the coach.
Remember that we recruit players whom we feel will help our programs on and off the field and, obviously, fit into the academic profile of the school.
To find out more information on NCAA rules for the College Bound student-athlete you can go the following site:
http://www.ncaa.org/library/general/cbsa/2006-07/2006-07_cbsa.pdf
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