My Daughter just committed to a major D1 University - As Me Anything

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Just to be clear, your daughter committed to a D1 school and she is starting her Junior Year of High School today?

People bank a lot on verbals.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Just to be clear, your daughter committed to a D1 school and she is starting her Junior Year of High School today?

People bank a lot on verbals.

That is how the game is played, congratulations

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Congrats to your daughter. My son would love to play D1 but we understand the odds are minuscule. My question is is this a binding commitment on the part of the school? How does she know the school will admit her if she’s just starting junior year. It seems early for a pre-read.

The transfer portal has ruined it for the boys.

My son's school next year has only 2 Freshmen on the D1 team...but 10 seniors + 5th year students. They will go to the transfer portal to pick up older players now.

Further, the International players are coveted.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Congrats to your daughter. My son would love to play D1 but we understand the odds are minuscule. My question is is this a binding commitment on the part of the school? How does she know the school will admit her if she’s just starting junior year. It seems early for a pre-read.

The transfer portal has ruined it for the boys.

My son's school next year has only 2 Freshmen on the D1 team...but 10 seniors + 5th year students. They will go to the transfer portal to pick up older players now.

Further, the International players are coveted.

Yep! This is what we’ve heard.

[Anonymous]

My kid plays a different sport, but one thing I wonder, if a college coach reaches out to your coach before June 15 before your junior year, do you know? Can your coach tell you? If they come to your game, I know they can't talk to you but can they tell your coach who you're watching?

I'm trying to figure out if you go into June 15 with a sense of "X school seems to be interested" or if you really have no idea.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Also, some of the ECNL rosters have in excess of 25 kids on them. If your goal is to play in college, I thought playing time mattered more than just being on a team. How can the Coach see you play at a showcase event if you are the 2nd or 3rd string on your team? I've been told by coaches, it is important to have significant playing time over just being on a team. Or did just being on an ECNL team seem to open the 'doors of interest' for your daughter?

Not PP. 25 is a lot. Second string will play half the game so they are covered. Never heard of a third string.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Congrats to your daughter. My son would love to play D1 but we understand the odds are minuscule. My question is is this a binding commitment on the part of the school? How does she know the school will admit her if she’s just starting junior year. It seems early for a pre-read.

The transfer portal has ruined it for the boys.

My son's school next year has only 2 Freshmen on the D1 team...but 10 seniors + 5th year students. They will go to the transfer portal to pick up older players now.

Further, the International players are coveted.

Yep! This is what we’ve heard.

It’s near impossible now for incoming freshmen on the boys’ side

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Congrats to your daughter. My son would love to play D1 but we understand the odds are minuscule. My question is is this a binding commitment on the part of the school? How does she know the school will admit her if she’s just starting junior year. It seems early for a pre-read.

The transfer portal has ruined it for the boys.

My son's school next year has only 2 Freshmen on the D1 team...but 10 seniors + 5th year students. They will go to the transfer portal to pick up older players now.

Further, the International players are coveted.

Yep! This is what we’ve heard.

NP. High school boys are barely recruited now for D1. The major coaches don’t even go to the MLSNext and ECNL games/showcases, they send junior assistants. And if you get recruited, you are either good enough to play pro (some are) or are being recruited as a four-year practice player. It is okay if that’s your goal (there are some great D1 schools) but it is very hard for a soccer-loving kid to go in knowing he will barely touch the field for four years.

We will see if this changes with some of the roster size changes coming.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:She recently committed to an awesome school. The road to get there was was filled with many ups and downs (and a lot of travel).
She is a defender and is blessed with size (5'9) and speed. She was never known as a technical player but is extremely physical. Every few years since early middle school she bounced up to a better team finally playing for the one of the top teams in the area.
Here is my advice;
Get your daughter playing against boys at an early age. It makes a huge difference in speed of play and the level of physicality.
Get a dedicated trainer for speed and agility as early as possible. I think this is more important than a soccer trainer. If coaches see that she can really move and has adequate athleticism they will take a long look. Get fast, get strong, get quick!!!

Don't be a helicopter parent!!!! If she does not want to workout regularly then that is her loss. If she is not all in then it wont happen for her. You can't force the issue and you damn sure can't live vicariously through your kid. And by the way, STOP yelling and screaming on the sidelines. They already have too much pressure from coaches, teammates and themselves. Don't make soccer everything in your life. Go get some ice cream!!

Don't ever go to a general open tryout. Call the coach for the team you are interested in and see if they will let you come for a practice.

Try to separate yourself by being really good at one thing. Great left foot, super athlete, dynamic in the box, exceptional 1v1 defender, very physical, technically excellent. Be good at a lot but be great at one thing. And remember that 'going hard all the time' is a skill. I have seen a ton of girls with great skills who just don't go hard enough.

Do whatever you have to do to get on a ECNL team. Not ECNL RL, and not GA. Your odds of playing in college drastically go up. Even if you are riding the bench for an ECNL team its probably better than being on an ECNL RL or GA team. There are only a few decent GA teams in the area. Look at Arlington, NVA, Maryland United, Union, Bethesda (although I don't recommend Bethesda to anyone..very toxic). I'm sure there are a few others.
The absolute most important aspect of getting recruited is to play well at ECNL showcase events. Either showcase events or ECNL playoffs. Typically there will be coaches from tons of D1 and D3 schools wrapped around the field at all games. Most coaches DO NOT attend regular season ECNL games (they are busy in their own season). Its all about the showcase events.

If you are playing ECNL, try your best to skip the ID Camps. It is a money grab plain and simple. Colleges use these ID camps to pay their assistance coaches. We got bamboozled in to going to way too many. Most were a complete waste of time and money. The only good part was that she was able to see the schools and from there narrow her focus on what type of school she really wanted.

High school soccer does not matter. My daughter is not playing high school because her club season and school season are at the same time. Over use is a real thing. Its not worth it. No one gets recruited from playing high school soccer. Its extremely rare.

Really solid highlight videos and good communication with coaches before and after showcase events is key. Letting coaches know where and when you are playing is important. Using a platform like Sports Recruit makes it very easy to email coaches and create a profile. Developing a plan and getting your name out there with Instagram and X (Twitter) is a vital piece to the puzzle. Posting highlights and just being active on social media goes a long way. Highlights videos should be short (like 2 minutes max) and should have your absolute best stuff in the beginning of the video.

If your daughter does put herself in a position to be recruited, remember that most girls DO NOT go to their #1 choice. That's pretty much left for USWNT players and the absolute highest level girls. My daughter lucked up and is going to a school she really likes and is a perfect fit for her style of play (but it wasn't her #1 choice). Fit and a great college coaching staff is of upmost importance.

I am willing to answer any questions.

You are exhausting.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:She recently committed to an awesome school. The road to get there was was filled with many ups and downs (and a lot of travel).
She is a defender and is blessed with size (5'9) and speed. She was never known as a technical player but is extremely physical. Every few years since early middle school she bounced up to a better team finally playing for the one of the top teams in the area.
Here is my advice;
Get your daughter playing against boys at an early age. It makes a huge difference in speed of play and the level of physicality.
Get a dedicated trainer for speed and agility as early as possible. I think this is more important than a soccer trainer. If coaches see that she can really move and has adequate athleticism they will take a long look. Get fast, get strong, get quick!!!

Don't be a helicopter parent!!!! If she does not want to workout regularly then that is her loss. If she is not all in then it wont happen for her. You can't force the issue and you damn sure can't live vicariously through your kid. And by the way, STOP yelling and screaming on the sidelines. They already have too much pressure from coaches, teammates and themselves. Don't make soccer everything in your life. Go get some ice cream!!

Don't ever go to a general open tryout. Call the coach for the team you are interested in and see if they will let you come for a practice.

Try to separate yourself by being really good at one thing. Great left foot, super athlete, dynamic in the box, exceptional 1v1 defender, very physical, technically excellent. Be good at a lot but be great at one thing. And remember that 'going hard all the time' is a skill. I have seen a ton of girls with great skills who just don't go hard enough.

Do whatever you have to do to get on a ECNL team. Not ECNL RL, and not GA. Your odds of playing in college drastically go up. Even if you are riding the bench for an ECNL team its probably better than being on an ECNL RL or GA team. There are only a few decent GA teams in the area. Look at Arlington, NVA, Maryland United, Union, Bethesda (although I don't recommend Bethesda to anyone..very toxic). I'm sure there are a few others.
The absolute most important aspect of getting recruited is to play well at ECNL showcase events. Either showcase events or ECNL playoffs. Typically there will be coaches from tons of D1 and D3 schools wrapped around the field at all games. Most coaches DO NOT attend regular season ECNL games (they are busy in their own season). Its all about the showcase events.

If you are playing ECNL, try your best to skip the ID Camps. It is a money grab plain and simple. Colleges use these ID camps to pay their assistance coaches. We got bamboozled in to going to way too many. Most were a complete waste of time and money. The only good part was that she was able to see the schools and from there narrow her focus on what type of school she really wanted.

High school soccer does not matter. My daughter is not playing high school because her club season and school season are at the same time. Over use is a real thing. Its not worth it. No one gets recruited from playing high school soccer. Its extremely rare.

Really solid highlight videos and good communication with coaches before and after showcase events is key. Letting coaches know where and when you are playing is important. Using a platform like Sports Recruit makes it very easy to email coaches and create a profile. Developing a plan and getting your name out there with Instagram and X (Twitter) is a vital piece to the puzzle. Posting highlights and just being active on social media goes a long way. Highlights videos should be short (like 2 minutes max) and should have your absolute best stuff in the beginning of the video.

If your daughter does put herself in a position to be recruited, remember that most girls DO NOT go to their #1 choice. That's pretty much left for USWNT players and the absolute highest level girls. My daughter lucked up and is going to a school she really likes and is a perfect fit for her style of play (but it wasn't her #1 choice). Fit and a great college coaching staff is of upmost importance.

I am willing to answer any questions.

Lots of interesting advice, thoughts, and opinions.

OP: Are you willing to list the schools which recruited your daughter ? Thank you in advance for any response.

Also, I must misunderstand the meaning of the term "helicopter parent".

Again, thank you for sharing.

I would rather not list the specific schools. But they were from the Big10, ACC, SEC, Big East, and numerous Iveys.

Helicopter Parent is a term I associate with parents who hover over their kid and live vicariously through them. They try to manage every aspect of their kids life and dont let them make mistakes or just be a kid. Guiding your kid and helicoptering your kid are two different things all together.

And you don't think posting here as if you were the one who got into the D1 school instead of your DD isnt an example of living through her? 🤣

Does she even know you've posted all this?

So cringe.

[Anonymous]

<< Don't ever go to a general open tryout. Call the coach for the team you are interested in and see if they will let you come for a practice.>>

Watch a college practice to show interest? Sure.

Joining in the practice? That’s an NCAA violation unless something has changed!

[Anonymous]

"Don't be a helicopter parent!!!!" yet posted this

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:<< Don't ever go to a general open tryout. Call the coach for the team you are interested in and see if they will let you come for a practice.>>

Watch a college practice to show interest? Sure.

Joining in the practice? That’s an NCAA violation unless something has changed!

OP was talking about club teams

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:My kid plays a different sport, but one thing I wonder, if a college coach reaches out to your coach before June 15 before your junior year, do you know? Can your coach tell you? If they come to your game, I know they can't talk to you but can they tell your coach who you're watching?

I'm trying to figure out if you go into June 15 with a sense of "X school seems to be interested" or if you really have no idea.

Yes, this is exactly what happens. The college coaches talk with the club coaches and that message can be (generically) passed along.

[Anonymous]

That's some good info for those of us who's kids are looking in the near future to play in college.