Roster Caps at 28 - has it changed your recruiting process?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Don’t be obtuse. The term HS here is referring to the age and a player who is not currently on a college roster. But, of course, you know that!

How would they know you meant HS age and not HS soccer?

Boys are also HS age before college so saying HS is redundant

By reading the OP, but yes if you need it spelled out for you - no on one is recruiting high level players from High School games only. I feel like if you're on this forum that goes without saying.

[Anonymous]

I don't disagree that no one is recurring high level players form HS games only, but what i find comical about this is I've heard numerous DOC and Club Directors brag about how they can look at at field and within 3 minutes pick out the best player and the top 3 players and could tell you if anyone of the 22 is actually good - after three minutes.

i've heard the same people brag that can look at a 75 player tryout and have the entire team picked in 5 minutes.

this type of attitude lends to think, why couldn't a coach recruit from a HS game - if they can spot if a kid can or can't play that quickly and have implied they can tell if the kid has "it" within 5 minutes, then what is the difference.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I don't disagree that no one is recurring high level players form HS games only, but what i find comical about this is I've heard numerous DOC and Club Directors brag about how they can look at at field and within 3 minutes pick out the best player and the top 3 players and could tell you if anyone of the 22 is actually good - after three minutes.

i've heard the same people brag that can look at a 75 player tryout and have the entire team picked in 5 minutes.

this type of attitude lends to think, why couldn't a coach recruit from a HS game - if they can spot if a kid can or can't play that quickly and have implied they can tell if the kid has "it" within 5 minutes, then what is the difference.

Because one HS game has maybe 30 players to be watched. One ECNL or GA showcase will have 1,000. The time and cost of traveling to dozens of HS games just isn't worth it.

[Anonymous]

Yeah, the whole NCAA is really messed up and I posted along these lines before...

The settlement, NIL, transfer portal and roster caps have completely changed the landscape for the non-revenue sports.

The NIL system is completed messed up with zero guardrails in place and the transfer portal has completely changed the game.

My nephew is a 2026 grad year and will be playing U18 next year for an MLS Academy team. While he has had interest from colleges, there just hasn't been anything solid. He continues to push forward with the process but it's pretty tough.

My daughter is a 2027 and has just started the process and we are certainly aware of the challenges that are out there. I know that many of the girls on the 2026 team have really had things slow down for them and there are quite a few that haven't committed yet. It will be interesting in seeing where this all goes, but it is certainly different than it once was.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Yeah, the whole NCAA is really messed up and I posted along these lines before...

The settlement, NIL, transfer portal and roster caps have completely changed the landscape for the non-revenue sports.

The NIL system is completed messed up with zero guardrails in place and the transfer portal has completely changed the game.

My nephew is a 2026 grad year and will be playing U18 next year for an MLS Academy team. While he has had interest from colleges, there just hasn't been anything solid. He continues to push forward with the process but it's pretty tough.

My daughter is a 2027 and has just started the process and we are certainly aware of the challenges that are out there. I know that many of the girls on the 2026 team have really had things slow down for them and there are quite a few that haven't committed yet. It will be interesting in seeing where this all goes, but it is certainly different than it once was.

The next of recruiting years will have it the worst. Assuming there are the same number of college teams in a few years (not a given), they will still need to have the same number of players. Using the transfer portal works for now because they can take upper classmen. But they will run out of eligibility eventually and will need to bring new players into the system. From HS and I guess some internationals. Interesting times for sure.

[Anonymous]

What is the first class that will be less affected by this? 2029? We know 2025 was a mess, 2026 will be affected - more so on the back half of the recruiting cycle...2027 as stated above gets some fallout as well. maybe 2028 it starts to even and then is it 2029 that finally is less affected (and i mean less affected as all the mess if flatter - the limits have been in place and weeded out, etc and the schools are back in a normal pattern)

[Anonymous]

Probably D3s should move to become D1, in some sports not all.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:What is the first class that will be less affected by this? 2029? We know 2025 was a mess, 2026 will be affected - more so on the back half of the recruiting cycle...2027 as stated above gets some fallout as well. maybe 2028 it starts to even and then is it 2029 that finally is less affected (and i mean less affected as all the mess if flatter - the limits have been in place and weeded out, etc and the schools are back in a normal pattern)

I would say that probably by 2028 and definitely 2029, the new "norm" will become more clear (assuming things don't change again before then). But yeah, 2025-2027 are definitely getting hit the hardest by this. If your kid is a top 100 player nationally, they'll still find a spot. But beyond that, it's definitely not going to be like it used to be in years past. I read all the arguments against the proposed House settlement and a number of them were specifically related to the roster caps. The judge didn't seem unsympathetic to those arguments but it sounds like the attorneys on either side care to discuss it. So the question will be does the judge ultimately sign off on the settlement with the caps as they have been proposed. My guess is that she will but we'll know soon enough.

[Anonymous]

2026 DD - things have totally slowed down. She's been playing ECNL since U13 - this is all she wanted and all ECNL told her she was destine to have. She's given everything. I'm not sure it's going to happen now. Really bad timing. The school fit is priority now, not the soccer fit. D1s are cutting then grabbing from portal. D3s are hoping to catch good players. D3 will probably be a better fit for the majority of players. D1s had average 8-10 recruits per GY, now it's like 4-5. Brutal. And if you do make it, the cuts will continue, the portal will always threaten and cut throat seasons in college if you're not at the top of the roster. 2026s have it the worst, but 2027s beware. Don't over shoot your conference. Find the right conference. Portal open May 1. We'll see what happens. I think the boys side will struggle with the influx of international players. Hope I'm wrong.

[Anonymous]

In general the number of D1 college roster spots will become known and set unless colleges add/drop the sport. The biggest driver of additional pressure will be the growth of youth soccer and in particular the expansion of “higher level” teams that play on the national level. More and more players and parents will expect to have college as the natural next level option. The transfer portal will continue to add to the uncertainty because the coach and program needs will vary based on many other factors. NIL for football and basketball will be responsible for changing the entire youth sport landscape.

[Anonymous]

We are good friends with a hockey family. In order to play D1, the kids have to go to the minors for 2 years first. I have to wonder if such a model will start to develop for soccer.

Girls may have to go play in USL-W league for a few years in order to be competitive for D1.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:We are good friends with a hockey family. In order to play D1, the kids have to go to the minors for 2 years first. I have to wonder if such a model will start to develop for soccer.

Girls may have to go play in USL-W league for a few years in order to be competitive for D1.

Valid point, but there are far few hockey players in the NCAA compared to soccer. A big transition period for sure.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:We are good friends with a hockey family. In order to play D1, the kids have to go to the minors for 2 years first. I have to wonder if such a model will start to develop for soccer.

Girls may have to go play in USL-W league for a few years in order to be competitive for D1.

Yeah, hockey is tough for sure. My cousin's son went through this and playing in New Hampshire for two years and is now playing at a D3, still hoping to move to a D1 program.

Today, for girls soccer, the USL-W just isn't the right league for that unless the structure changes quite a bit. Right now, it's a short season summer league mostly for current college players, some high level HS age players and some recent post grads. Really only runs earlly May through end of July and the teams play around 12 games. Similar to USL2 on the mens side.

[Anonymous]

Anybody have any insight around whether the goalkeeper position is marginally better, worse, or in the same boat with all these changes. Seems there are far less good goalkeepers to be had than Swiss Army knife field players.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Anybody have any insight around whether the goalkeeper position is marginally better, worse, or in the same boat with all these changes. Seems there are far less good goalkeepers to be had than Swiss Army knife field players.

I feel like keepers will probably be the least impacted position, especially on the girls side, because most teams have to carry 2-3 and I don’t see that changing. But there are some teams that will carry 4, and that won’t be happening anymore. Because there are fewer good keepers, you will probably see some hoarding too.