Is there a path to college play for DD?
![[Post New]](/jforum/templates/default/images/icon_minipost_new.gif){kind=icon}
Anonymous
|
Agree with the others that they're really no chance at all.
My daughter is on the U14 B team in a club with a top ECNL team. She practices with the ECNL players and the speed of play is just much, much faster. Now only a fraction of these ENCl players will play Division 1 (look at the listing posted above--it doesn't have the full rosters from the area's ECNL/DA programs--just the top XX players). And behind them are: ECNL/DA players from weaker programs. Top B team players from the top ECNL programs. B team players from the lesser clubs. Top players from EDP programs. Top players at CCL clubs. And on and on. Being a middle-of-the-road B team player for an OK club is just not college material. If this is her goal I would have her focus on improving her skills now to move up to an ECNL or DA program! |
Anonymous
| I think he means D1 college material. I know players fitting that description at the D3 level. |
Anonymous
| Just don't. Don't go down that rabbit hole. It will make you insane. If your dd loves it and wants to play it in college, she will take the lead and she will insist on your enrolling her in some HP program. |
Anonymous
|
Not a chance. Which is liberating, in a way, because now you know and can plan for other things well in advance! |
Anonymous
|
Without knowing more about the kids and club, I wouldn't be ready to tell the parent of an 8th grader that their kid has no shot at D3. I've known many girls from our area who moved up to higher level (but not DA, ENCL or whatever this unnamed "next level down" league is) cub teams during their HS years and were able to get recruited by one or more D3 schools with decent academics and middling soccer teams.
I would start this process by asking the current club coach what is keeping OP's DD from being on a higher level team within the club, and whether he or she thinks DD has college potential and can make suggestions about how to improve. If there are things the kid can do to improve significantly and puts in the effort to do so, then the next couple of years are the time to look to move to higher level teams, most likely at a different club. I certainly agree that the idea of playing in college should not drive the college search for a student who would otherwise be able to get into a great academic school that is a great fit, but sometimes all the stars do align. |
Anonymous
Topdrawersoccer is a joke. It's a pay website for parent egos. The random star assignment based on a secret formula is so dumb. And I love the "players of the week" are those who scored. RARE to have defenders mentioned. The list boys in the "best girls" list. And my personal favorite is when one of our players received a huge write up for her fabulous performance at the Phoenix showcase - when actually she was home with a broken foot. |
Anonymous
+1000 totally agree |
Anonymous
| For the Topdrawersoccer haters, is there a better source for seeing college commitment lists? I haven't found one. |
Anonymous
| Nope. But nobody likes the site that ignores their little Mia superstar. Food for thought... |
Anonymous
For that one aspect, it's the best I know of. Just keep in mind not all commitments make it on there because it does have to be submitted by someone who cares that that player is mentioned. For college recruitment, I haven't met a single person who said thank God we had drawer. That really gave my DC exposure. For player rankings, they have no value at all, and you have to pay to have your DC be in the ranking system. And the articles are mediocre. |
Anonymous
|
OP here. Thanks for your thoughts so far...it's been an education.
Not necessarily looking for scholarships (though wouldn't it be nice!), and definitely not willing to sacrifice quality of the school for a chance to play soccer. (Of course, we'll see what DD thinks/wants when she's a little older.) Again, just want to put her in the best shape possible in case she does want to play. Right now she thinks she does, but she doesn't really know what goes into getting there. So what about good D3 schools like Amherst, Bryn Mawr, Dickinson, Johns Hopkins, MIT, NYU, Rutgers, Smith, etc.? Is it any easier to get a spot playing there? |
Anonymous
Rutgers is D1. D3 NESCACs like Amherst and Smith are very competitive. MIT less so, but soccer won’t help her get into the school. |
Anonymous
In terms of soccer commitment lists, I know of no better site. Just note almost all commitments are self-reported, although TDS will add players to the list after colleges announce their recruiting class. Self-reporting can lead to (i) many players not being listed, (ii) a few false commits, and (iii) out-of-date info in terms of decommitments, scholarship withdrawals, etc. In terms of player ratings, as noted above, TDS is a joke. A player just has to score a goal in a game TDS watches and get mentioned in their "players that impressed article and suddenly she's a 3 star prospect for the next five years. For others, TDS may have never seen them play but if their stat line in the DA reports were impressive, then suddenly they're ranked. |
Anonymous
It's hard to respond to your question. Your list of schools is a bit all over the map in terms of both academic selectivity and strength of soccer program (and, BTW, I believe Rutgers is D1.) And you should also know that D3 schools don't offer athletic scholarships. So why play a D3 sport? An athletic recruit may have an advantage in the application process -- though how much of an advantage will vary considerably depending on the school and the student. Once they're enrolled, D3 athletes usually enjoy having an immediate circle of friends to hang out with, especially as first-year students when it's nice to know you'll have people to sit with at dinner or when it helps to know older teammates who can offer advice on professors and courses. D3 athletes work hard, but they can major in whatever they like and go on study abroad -- options that are often more limited for athletes at D1 schools. And sometimes alum networks of former players will be helpful in offering career advice. That all sounds pretty good -- but the question of what you and your daughter are willing to do to get to that point is really tough to answer -- and that answer is probably going to change a lot over the next few years. I can say, as the parent of 3 current or former D3 athletes, that we didn't do anywhere near all the stuff that other families on our kids' club teams did -- no highlight videos and no personal trainers and no driving at rush hour to practices that were an hour away. It just didn't seem worth it to us. But we still had to do a lot and that was costly in terms of both money and time. My bottom line advice would be that if your daughter enjoys playing soccer and gains confidence, discipline and resilience from the sport, keep doing it. Even more than the admissions bump, etc., that's the real benefit to playing a sport. But be aware that an injury can end her playing career as can burnout, so don't put all your college hopes and dreams on the line. |
Anonymous
|
Hopkins soccer is competitive:
Their freshman class of 6 kids (I'm bored at work). -Peruvian national team player -DA player who was defender of the year for her club -Arlington soccer CCL1 player, VA state cup winner -first team all state, NPC league national finalist -ECNL, high school all region, NC state cup champion -ENCL, Colorado state cup champion So these kids are the top of their very competitive teams. |