College Recruiting ECNL/NPL or....

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He'll keep picking just the data points that fit his narrative, not in its entirety

Am I just picking data points like Sweden, Norway, England and Zimbabwe or is the other poster ignoring them? I can't seem to figure out which it is. Someone earlier said coaches aren't filling their rosters with kids from far away. That doesn't seem to hold water. It's she by the way and not he.

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6 out of 8 US kids from nearby states. Don't be such a jackass

10 out of 18 kids are international players. Don't be so obtuse.

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Like someone said the international player phenomenon is entirely different than US college students. Internationals get great deals to play here, and they're desired because they're most times better trained. Most weren't quite good enough to cut it professionally abroad but hold out hopes they could make a career of it here, be seen by MLS coaches. Frequent travel to other countries is a normal part of growing up in Europe. Here most kids don't go abroad until the do a study abroad trip in college or back pack through Europe during college summer break. There's a different mentality altogether.

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Just for fun I took a sampling of top programs, location, big name vs lesser known. It's based off 2017 rosters so chances are not all 2016 seniors are listed (which is my guess since some rosters were small). It's divided into Drivable; Other US; International.

In general the bulk of rosters come from half day-ish drivable distances. It might not be as high as a school's overall student population but even most top programs aren't getting 50%+ kids from outside their regions.

Men's

#1 Stanford Drivable 10; Other US 7; International 0
#3 Univ. Denver Drivable 17; Other US 8; International 2
#10 Providence Drivable 24; Other US 1; International 6
#100 Sacramento State Drivable 26
#106 Fordham Drivable 16; Other US 2; International 6
#111 Marquette Drivable 16; Other US 3; International 3

Women's

#1 UVA Drivable 5; Other US 7; International 5 (All Canada)
#2 Stanford Drivable 18; Other US 6; International 1
#9 Auburn Drivable 12; Other US 9; International 1
#100 Ole Miss Drivable 12; Other US 6
#104 Syracuse Drivable 16; Other US 2; International 6 (All Canadian)
#105 San Jose State Drivable 20; Other US 1; International 2

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He'll keep picking just the data points that fit his narrative, not in its entirety

That person's agenda has always been to promote long distance travel because if you realize that most coaches recruit in their backyard then it is pretty safe to say that kids from the New England states don't really need to travel across the country for recruiting exposure. If the whole travelling for exposure mindset falls apart then the whole marketing message this area has been fed about the ECNL also starts to come into question. That person definitely doesn't want so they'll just continue to cloud the issue by defending half baked conclusions on incomplete data sets. It's par for their course.

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That person's agenda has always been to promote long distance travel because if you realize that most coaches recruit in their backyard then it is pretty safe to say that kids from the New England states don't really need to travel across the country for recruiting exposure. If the whole travelling for exposure mindset falls apart then the whole marketing message this area has been fed about the ECNL also starts to come into question. That person definitely doesn't want so they'll just continue to cloud the issue by defending half baked conclusions on incomplete data sets. It's par for their course.

Actually you're trying to cloud the issue, BTNT. I personally have agreed with you about travel and I am not who was posting about distances (although it is interesting that BOTH of your kids went more than 250 miles away). Ultimately it's about training and competing at a high level. Are you going to trash GDAP because of travel demands, too, or is your onslaught more personal and selective?

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Bottom line, whether we're talking athletic recruits or college demographics in general....better schools have a more national draw and weaker ones have a very localized draw. No need to cloud in either direction.

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The fundamental issue with travel as it relates to recruiting is it really obfuscates the mechanics of recruiting. I think that a lot of parents seem to think that recruiting only starts once the kids get to high school and don't realize how young a local coach becomes aware of players and how long that they that they now track them before they start recruiting them. If you understand that the college coaches are primarily looking in their backyard for prospects, recruiting really then becomes about building your kid's visibility in the local soccer circles and networking within it, not about getting exposure to national level coaches. It's one of the reasons I advise parents that if they are going to spend money sending their kids to soccer camps and clinics that they consider spending the majority of that money sending them to ones affiliated with a college program to start building familiarity with it's coaches on the off chance that someday things might advance to a recruiting situation. To me that is making your spending do double duty and a far more cost effective way to prepare for recruiting than putting your kid on some elite team that is travelling all over the country when they are in middle school. My experience is most parents don't even think about things like that until the opportunities pass them by and then they are forced into playing catch up.

[Unregistered]

The fundamental issue with travel as it relates to recruiting is it really obfuscates the mechanics of recruiting. I think that a lot of parents seem to think that recruiting only starts once the kids get to high school and don't realize how young a local coach becomes aware of players and how long that they that they now track them before they start recruiting them. If you understand that the college coaches are primarily looking in their backyard for prospects, recruiting really then becomes about building your kid's visibility in the local soccer circles and networking within it, not about getting exposure to national level coaches. It's one of the reasons I advise parents that if they are going to spend money sending their kids to soccer camps and clinics that they consider spending the majority of that money sending them to ones affiliated with a college program to start building familiarity with it's coaches on the off chance that someday things might advance to a recruiting situation. To me that is making your spending do double duty and a far more cost effective way to prepare for recruiting than putting your kid on some elite team that is travelling all over the country when they are in middle school. My experience is most parents don't even think about things like that until the opportunities pass them by and then they are forced into playing catch up.

You're so lost...And so dense. It's not just about the recruiting and when or where that happens. It's also about being good enough and challenged. Get rid of the travel. Fine. But don't tell people not to strive for the highest levels they can attain in attempting to maximize their talents.

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You're so lost...And so dense. It's not just about the recruiting and when or where that happens. It's also about being good enough and challenged. Get rid of the travel. Fine. But don't tell people not to strive for the highest levels they can attain in attempting to maximize their talents.

The travel isn't really necessary even for that goal because you can always play against teams up in age groups to increase the level of competitiveness. The basic issue when trying to maximize talent really comes down to the amount and intensity of training, not the amount and intensity of games. A lot of what it takes to be really really good at something like soccer is hours of individual work and intolerance for one's own shortcomings. The recruiting part is just one part of the reward.

[Unregistered]

The travel isn't really necessary even for that goal because you can always play against teams up in age groups to increase the level of competitiveness. The basic issue when trying to maximize talent really comes down to the amount and intensity of training, not the amount and intensity of games. A lot of what it takes to be really really good at something like soccer is hours of individual work and intolerance for one's own shortcomings. The recruiting part is just one part of the reward.

OMG, your answer for everything is "playing up."

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OMG, your answer for everything is "playing up."

Do you disagree with his advice?
Sounds like there are complementary points here.
1. Nothing wrong with striving to play at best level
2. Increased challenge and sufficient exposure can be achieved without all the travel

There are always multiple routes, and families with different means and different preferences can choose their best fit. Why are you always contentious? His advice is one mans opinion. Offer another out there. Go beyond just making fun of his