Two quick points, from the perspective of a parent of a former D1 final four player.

1. There are over 330 women's D1 teams. Recruiting classes vary between 6 to 12 players. Thus, there are between 2,500 and 3,000 spots each year. If you want to play D1 and do not care about the school, its not that high of a bar.

2. Film is not necessary nor do the better coaches rely on it, unless the film is a complete game film (or half) where they can see the player off the ball. If you are a 6 foot striker and have clips of great goals that can sell you, but if you are an outside back, the coach will need and want to see you in person and watch you off the ball as much as on the ball.

Anonymous wrote:So I know a few folks who started their kids video highlights at u9. I think the coaches would not care about u9 highlights?

What age should you start compiling video highlights?

You're kidding right? Use them to share with grandparents, college coaches aren't watching youtubes of a U9 game.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:What are the top 10 universities for women’s soccer?

1 Florida State
2 North Carolina
3 Stanford
4 Georgetown
5 UCLA
6 Southern California
7 Tennessee
8 Penn State
9 Baylor
10 Duke

I'm not questioning this list, but I find it interesting that none of the members of the USNWT went to most of these universities. A lot of North Carolina, Penn, and California schools.

So I know a few folks who started their kids video highlights at u9. I think the coaches would not care about u9 highlights?

What age should you start compiling video highlights?

Anonymous wrote:What are the top 10 universities for women’s soccer?

1 Florida State
2 North Carolina
3 Stanford
4 Georgetown
5 UCLA
6 Southern California
7 Tennessee
8 Penn State
9 Baylor
10 Duke

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Not saying that my rising U12 DD can eventually make ECNL/DA, but I’m very intimidated by the long distance travels. Makes matters worse, we could drive 4-6 hours for a game and she is only able to play 5-10 minutes or even sit on the bench for the entire game.

Hence, is EDP the next best option for a path to College soccer?

If she isn't a starter at a DA or ECNL level that kinda says all you need to know. If only DA or ECNL existed then yes, EDP is quite viable but after two top leagues like ECNL and DA have so many kids EDP gets pretty watered down very quickly. The team you choose at EDP requires some stars aligning that your DD landed on a truly top team that will go far in their own National Championship series as well as playing in the top brackets at showcases like Jeff Cup etc. We tend to pick on Pipeline dad a lot here because those teams are rare and can be random by club and far away to be prohibitive. Does a club like Pipeline have one or two top EDP teams? Yes. Is Baltimore close? Probably not so they are irrelevant.

This is where ODP can be of use. The kids are still good and if your DD can make Regionals there is some good exposure there and making the Regional Pool will stand out on her resume.

But parents are the worst at judging their kids talent AND potential sometimes. You might be more critical than she deserves. Find a nearby ECNL/DA club and reach out to their coaches for an evaluation and just see.

Pease excuse my ignorance but can you tell me more about ODP? I looked at their website and their season schedule is different than the typical league. We are already committed to our leaginfor the upcoming season year, but ODP tryouts are scheduled for this August. Thank you for your insight you wrote above as well.

ODP is not a league it is a long selection process. State ODP teams play friendlies against each other, then Regional Teams are formed form State pools. Those regional teams will then play against each other. I believe there are 4 regions and if I remember two teams per region??

State and regional level teams may also play internationally as well.

So ODP starts with trying out for and making District ODP. Virginia has 3 or 4 districts. They train once a week through the fall.

Then kids are selected form the district pools to make the State Pool. If you don't make State you are done.

During the spring season the State pool trains together once a week. They state teams will have a friendly. Kids will then be invited to a Regional Pool camp over the summer. Kids will be selected to train with the Multi State regional team from that camp. If you do not make the regional pool then you may go back to the state pool the following year if you wish. Making the state team automatically qualifies you for the District pool again without needing to tryout.

Anonymous wrote:What are the top 10 universities for women’s soccer?

use your google machine for that.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Not saying that my rising U12 DD can eventually make ECNL/DA, but I’m very intimidated by the long distance travels. Makes matters worse, we could drive 4-6 hours for a game and she is only able to play 5-10 minutes or even sit on the bench for the entire game.

Hence, is EDP the next best option for a path to College soccer?

If she isn't a starter at a DA or ECNL level that kinda says all you need to know. If only DA or ECNL existed then yes, EDP is quite viable but after two top leagues like ECNL and DA have so many kids EDP gets pretty watered down very quickly. The team you choose at EDP requires some stars aligning that your DD landed on a truly top team that will go far in their own National Championship series as well as playing in the top brackets at showcases like Jeff Cup etc. We tend to pick on Pipeline dad a lot here because those teams are rare and can be random by club and far away to be prohibitive. Does a club like Pipeline have one or two top EDP teams? Yes. Is Baltimore close? Probably not so they are irrelevant.

This is where ODP can be of use. The kids are still good and if your DD can make Regionals there is some good exposure there and making the Regional Pool will stand out on her resume.

But parents are the worst at judging their kids talent AND potential sometimes. You might be more critical than she deserves. Find a nearby ECNL/DA club and reach out to their coaches for an evaluation and just see.

Pease excuse my ignorance but can you tell me more about ODP? I looked at their website and their season schedule is different than the typical league. We are already committed to our leaginfor the upcoming season year, but ODP tryouts are scheduled for this August. Thank you for your insight you wrote above as well.

What are the top 10 universities for women’s soccer?

Anonymous wrote:Not saying that my rising U12 DD can eventually make ECNL/DA, but I’m very intimidated by the long distance travels. Makes matters worse, we could drive 4-6 hours for a game and she is only able to play 5-10 minutes or even sit on the bench for the entire game.

Hence, is EDP the next best option for a path to College soccer?

If she isn't a starter at a DA or ECNL level that kinda says all you need to know. If only DA or ECNL existed then yes, EDP is quite viable but after two top leagues like ECNL and DA have so many kids EDP gets pretty watered down very quickly. The team you choose at EDP requires some stars aligning that your DD landed on a truly top team that will go far in their own National Championship series as well as playing in the top brackets at showcases like Jeff Cup etc. We tend to pick on Pipeline dad a lot here because those teams are rare and can be random by club and far away to be prohibitive. Does a club like Pipeline have one or two top EDP teams? Yes. Is Baltimore close? Probably not so they are irrelevant.

This is where ODP can be of use. The kids are still good and if your DD can make Regionals there is some good exposure there and making the Regional Pool will stand out on her resume.

But parents are the worst at judging their kids talent AND potential sometimes. You might be more critical than she deserves. Find a nearby ECNL/DA club and reach out to their coaches for an evaluation and just see.

Not saying that my rising U12 DD can eventually make ECNL/DA, but I’m very intimidated by the long distance travels. Makes matters worse, we could drive 4-6 hours for a game and she is only able to play 5-10 minutes or even sit on the bench for the entire game.

Hence, is EDP the next best option for a path to College soccer?

Be a starter for an ECNL or DA team. Be athletic, skillful, and attack-minded if in the midfield. Being fast, tall, and strong helps.
Get good grades and have strong test scores so you have no admissions barriers to deal with. A strong academic profile makes you easier to recruit and may lead to merit money on top of soccer money.
By sophomore year, have a good idea of what type of school you want to go to. (Academic level/reputation, size, location, availability of major, affordability). Match that list against D1 soccer programs that you're interested in (which level/competitiveness) and see where they match. Meet with club coach or recruiting coordinator for your club to discuss your aspirations and confirm that the schools you're targeting are realistic given your level of talent.
Prepare highlights video for each season.
Complete online recruiting forms for programs that you're interested in. Email coaches to express interest, share soccer and academic resume and link to highlights video, plus your and your club coach's contact info; ask club coach to reach out to coaches at schools to introduce you and gauge interest.
Prior to showcases, email coaches with your schedule and contact info (for your club coach, if before July 1 of jr year) and invite them to come watch you play. If they like what they see, they'll reach out to your coach to express interest and share feedback.
Attend ID camp(s) for schools that you're interested in once mutual interest has been established.
Start talking to coaches once July 1 deadline has passed.
Let the offers start rolling in. Visit campus during season for your top options.
Choose the school you would be happy at even if soccer went away. Unless you're USWNT or pro team material, remember that playing soccer as anything but a hobby will likely be over after college so make sure you choose a college that supports your life plan, and not just your soccer plan.

Agree with the above. Be among the top players (or at least the starting 11 players) on a DA/ECNL team. Sure, there are a handful of kids who make it from other programs but if you want a "path", that is it.

Anonymous wrote:Please describe the ideal path to D1 college soccer for a female player?

Simple, be a starter on a ECNL or DA club.

If none are around then play on the highest ranked team possible attending showcases and supplement with ODP. If not playing in ECNL or DA your DD should be no less than state level ODP but Regional will likely be necessary.

All of hte above will also be attending college ID camps as well. The difference is the college coaches can do either preliminary or followup at ECNL or DA showcase games. This is important because seeing the player against a higher level of competition is important. A kid can look great at an NPL game but does it mean the kid is great or are the opponents just not very good?

In all cases you will still need film.

Please describe the ideal path to D1 college soccer for a female player?