How in the world does Top Drawer Soccer work?

[Unregistered]

If there are two listings he or more likely his parents entered him twice, probably at a young age and forgot the passport. Thereafter he got ID'd and was on lists or seen at tournaments or whatever.

Everyone does realize that TDS and Soccerwire for that matter are pretty low budget affairs, right? This isn't ESPN. They can only do so much.

"passport" must have been a Freudian slip... I meant forgot the password.

[Unregistered]

4 stars

A substantial part of their content you're asking about comes from parents contributing to their own children's profiles. It's a commercial enterprise whose success is driven in large part by parent emotion more than somehow measuring the accuracy of the content. It's not a public service.

Fake news.

>= 4 stars mean YNT callup(s)

[Unregistered]

Most of the stories are added by parents. TD does not add every story where a kid is mentioned. Parents do that.

True if they are not TDS articles written by them or their writers that write for them or reprints of other articles/feeds by them. they usually republish US Youth Soccer, ODP stuff, USSF, Soccerwire Parents add the newsy articles or school articles (lil mia won the science fair). If TDS runs the story, you will see that they have the names bolded or hyperlinked and it gets automatically added to that player's list of articles. The parent adds come in after the TDS/automatic adds. That's why you will see items out of chronological order. The TDS stuff and their auto adds are top ones.

My kid has a profile that I added years ago and added things years ago as we used TDS as her recruiting resume. Since, TDS has added multiple other articles either written by their various reporters or republished by them from other sources like USSF, US Youth Soccer, etc. Our parent adds appear after the TDS stuff and a few are dated earlier than TDS stuff.

For what it's worth, it was a great place to send coaches to read stuff. And we were able to get updates re upcoming clinics, etc. which was great to get before verbally committed.

[Unregistered]

True if they are not TDS articles written by them or their writers that write for them or reprints of other articles/feeds by them. they usually republish US Youth Soccer, ODP stuff, USSF, Soccerwire Parents add the newsy articles or school articles (lil mia won the science fair). If TDS runs the story, you will see that they have the names bolded or hyperlinked and it gets automatically added to that player's list of articles. The parent adds come in after the TDS/automatic adds. That's why you will see items out of chronological order. The TDS stuff and their auto adds are top ones.

My kid has a profile that I added years ago and added things years ago as we used TDS as her recruiting resume. Since, TDS has added multiple other articles either written by their various reporters or republished by them from other sources like USSF, US Youth Soccer, etc. Our parent adds appear after the TDS stuff and a few are dated earlier than TDS stuff.

For what it's worth, it was a great place to send coaches to read stuff. And we were able to get updates re upcoming clinics, etc. which was great to get before verbally committed.

No, they don’t usually republish. Anyone who believes this drivel, I have a bridge to sell you. Just look at the players with the most stars in each age group. Some parents add, and some don’t. It’s obvious who does. They also populate this site.

[Unregistered]

No, they don’t usually republish. Anyone who believes this drivel, I have a bridge to sell you. Just look at the players with the most stars in each age group. Some parents add, and some don’t. It’s obvious who does. They also populate this site.

You have to be a premiere member(paid membership) to post articles to a player profile. Anyone can fill out a profile free of charge. Tds will post articles that originate from their staff. If that article is premiere content it can't be read without a membership even if it's about your player and attached to a profile you created. This site is beholden to Ecnl which results in phoney ratings for those clubs.

[Unregistered]

You have to be a premiere member(paid membership) to post articles to a player profile. Anyone can fill out a profile free of charge. Tds will post articles that originate from their staff. If that article is premiere content it can't be read without a membership even if it's about your player and attached to a profile you created. This site is beholden to Ecnl which results in phoney ratings for those clubs.

The site is beholden to premiere members who use this as a place to post silly articles.

[Unregistered]

The site is beholden to premiere members who use this as a place to post silly articles.

A player wanting to get recruited, especially if they're not a NT level player, needs to do far more then have his or her parents post a few articles on TDS. Create your list of target schools that are good academic and soccer fits. Send your own resume to coaches with links to articles and short video, have your club make phone calls. Human to human contact gets you recruited, not hoping to be found on some website. Can it be a tool? Sure. Is it a cost effective one? I'm not convinced.

[Unregistered]

You have to be a premiere member(paid membership) to post articles to a player profile. Anyone can fill out a profile free of charge. Tds will post articles that originate from their staff. If that article is premiere content it can't be read without a membership even if it's about your player and attached to a profile you created. This site is beholden to Ecnl which results in phoney ratings for those clubs.

you really are off base. the sie is not beholden to anyone. They need content and they nned to sell subscriptions to stay in business. That means they get information form those willing to give it. ECNL used it as a marketing outlet for a long time. a few years ago, YNT and ID information used to post there first. Now, the USSF info posts there the same time as everywhere else. TDS used to get access to YNT camps etc. Now its less frequent.

Think about it. TDS is catering to the same affluent demographic that the ECNL is so its no surprise that such people paty for content. If they pay, they want to read about what concerns them. ECNL.

Naturally, TDS are somewhat reliant on parents paying for premium content and kids adding profiles. Of course the rankings are not accurate, but then again, what ranking is anything but subjective? if you email them wit obvious omissions or errors, they will research them and fix them if possible.

As the parent of a YNT player, TDS has never been a marketing tool she needed, but they are not the ignorant shills people think they are. Thgey are just a business trying to stay afloat in a really tough environment. reasonable people as well.

I know the 2000s pretty wel and yes, there are omissions and mistakes, but as that group leaves Club soccer, after all teh ups and downs, they seem to have most of the kids in the right area. Its not perfect, and I dont really like it. But its what sells subscriptions. l

[Unregistered]

you really are off base. the sie is not beholden to anyone. They need content and they nned to sell subscriptions to stay in business. That means they get information form those willing to give it. ECNL used it as a marketing outlet for a long time. a few years ago, YNT and ID information used to post there first. Now, the USSF info posts there the same time as everywhere else. TDS used to get access to YNT camps etc. Now its less frequent.

Think about it. TDS is catering to the same affluent demographic that the ECNL is so its no surprise that such people paty for content. If they pay, they want to read about what concerns them. ECNL.

Naturally, TDS are somewhat reliant on parents paying for premium content and kids adding profiles. Of course the rankings are not accurate, but then again, what ranking is anything but subjective? if you email them wit obvious omissions or errors, they will research them and fix them if possible.

As the parent of a YNT player, TDS has never been a marketing tool she needed, but they are not the ignorant shills people think they are. Thgey are just a business trying to stay afloat in a really tough environment. reasonable people as well.

I know the 2000s pretty wel and yes, there are omissions and mistakes, but as that group leaves Club soccer, after all teh ups and downs, they seem to have most of the kids in the right area. Its not perfect, and I dont really like it. But its what sells subscriptions. l

If you look at the profiles, it doesn't seem to be the ECNL kids with the parents posting. It seems to be certain clubs, at least in this area.

[Unregistered]

My kids are playing in college so this was a few years ago. I offer this information to dispel the belief that parents are buying TDS off and to put the focus more clearly on where these rankings are really coming from. A good friend of mine tried to do just what everyone is claiming is routinely done and failed. He payed for the subscription and even tried to get into a dialogue with people at TDS about how he could elevate her ranking but never got anywhere with them. This is the sort of guy who quite literally did buy his daughter’s way on to the ODP regional pool and other such venues. The guy was slick and accustomed to getting what he wanted. The fact that he got nowhere with TDS itself told me that they probably have a couple of favorite sources who feed them the rankings. I always suspected that the local sources were Fred Marks and Jason Dewhurst because of the obvious slant. The tell tale for me was guy’s daughter’s ranking literally did improve when she moved to one of their clubs, but only slightly. She moved from a 2 to a 3 star. Now that she’s in college the accuracy of her previously low ranking has been borne out by her lackluster college career to date. The moral of the story is I don’t think the publishers of TDS actually know enough about the local kids to be bought off by their parents but that doesn’t mean that the local sources of that information can’t and won’t. At least one of them was willing to add a star in exchange for a fully paid roster spot. In the end though that star didn’t really matter much because the kid couldn’t actually back up the hype. She just wasn’t that good and most important the college coaches saw that because because the girl got next to no D1 interest. The bottom line is the play on the field still has to support the resume.

[Unregistered]

My kids are playing in college so this was a few years ago. I offer this information to dispel the belief that parents are buying TDS off and to put the focus more clearly on where these rankings are really coming from. A good friend of mine tried to do just what everyone is claiming is routinely done and failed. He payed for the subscription and even tried to get into a dialogue with people at TDS about how he could elevate her ranking but never got anywhere with them. This is the sort of guy who quite literally did buy his daughter’s way on to the ODP regional pool and other such venues. The guy was slick and accustomed to getting what he wanted. The fact that he got nowhere with TDS itself told me that they probably have a couple of favorite sources who feed them the rankings. I always suspected that the local sources were Fred Marks and Jason Dewhurst because of the obvious slant. The tell tale for me was guy’s daughter’s ranking literally did improve when she moved to one of their clubs, but only slightly. She moved from a 2 to a 3 star. Now that she’s in college the accuracy of her previously low ranking has been borne out by her lackluster college career to date. The moral of the story is I don’t think the publishers of TDS actually know enough about the local kids to be bought off by their parents but that doesn’t mean that the local sources of that information can’t and won’t. At least one of them was willing to add a star in exchange for a fully paid roster spot. In the end though that star didn’t really matter much because the kid couldn’t actually back up the hype. She just wasn’t that good and most important the college coaches saw that because because the girl got next to no D1 interest. The bottom line is the play on the field still has to support the resume.

They really dont have favored sources. They do have contacts and connections in specific places. The difference between a 3* or 2* is irrelevant really. I think you guys are reading way too much into it. Its not possible for TDS to see every player. They have to rely on sources bbut the sources have to at least be somewhat credible. Elevating a ranking does no one any favors becasue it wont get you recruited and at some point you have to live up to it. JD does talk up players and has managed to get several of his 2000s into camps, but at the end of the day they have to perform. I think his credibility has taken a hit based on how few of the kids he touted actually stuck.

parents have no influence. you have to take the TDS numbers in the spirit in which they are offered. They cater to the US love of rankings and numbers. Its mel kiper without the resources to come close to anything accurate outside say the top 25 players. For example, is scoring a hattrick for a loaded team vs a bad one make a player better than a kid who toils away on a bad team facing ,man marking every game? TDS do not anaylze at that level and wont. the better College programs do and will.

Most of the top 25 TDS rated kids are pretty good

[Unregistered]

If you look at the profiles, it doesn't seem to be the ECNL kids with the parents posting. It seems to be certain clubs, at least in this area.

Unless a club has the access to each kids profile, there is no way they can .

[Unregistered]

Why is it that almost every Ecnl player has at least 2 stars? These guys primarily attend Ecnl events and enjoy special access in exchange for favorable PR. Look back when the DA was in its infancy and see how many pro Ecnl articles were written. I have seen many recruiting announcements from the schools that specifically note the tds rankings of their players so it's not as meaningless as some may claim.

[Unregistered]

They really dont have favored sources. They do have contacts and connections in specific places. The difference between a 3* or 2* is irrelevant really. I think you guys are reading way too much into it. Its not possible for TDS to see every player. They have to rely on sources bbut the sources have to at least be somewhat credible. Elevating a ranking does no one any favors becasue it wont get you recruited and at some point you have to live up to it. JD does talk up players and has managed to get several of his 2000s into camps, but at the end of the day they have to perform. I think his credibility has taken a hit based on how few of the kids he touted actually stuck.

parents have no influence. you have to take the TDS numbers in the spirit in which they are offered. They cater to the US love of rankings and numbers. Its mel kiper without the resources to come close to anything accurate outside say the top 25 players. For example, is scoring a hattrick for a loaded team vs a bad one make a player better than a kid who toils away on a bad team facing ,man marking every game? TDS do not anaylze at that level and wont. the better College programs do and will.

Most of the top 25 TDS rated kids are pretty good

As someone said they can't possibly know, see or find information about the thousands of kids playing club soccer, not even so called "high level" club soccer in the US. Top 25 would be easy to spot with accolades and YNT call ups. After that? Total craP shoot. We've had good players at our club highly rated AND low rated with no rhyme or reason to it

[Unregistered]

As someone said they can't possibly know, see or find information about the thousands of kids playing club soccer, not even so called "high level" club soccer in the US. Top 25 would be easy to spot with accolades and YNT call ups. After that? Total craP shoot. We've had good players at our club highly rated AND low rated with no rhyme or reason to it

What it really shows is how the "trusted sources" use it. They are not interested in objective analysis, they use it as a tool to promote their own business/agendas.

Here is the scenario. You call a well established ECNL and ask him for feedback on the players he coaches AND any others at other Clubs he would recommend. You go to a guy at a big ECNL founder club like PDA of FC Stars assuming they have good players and are far enough above the fray to be objective about opponents.

Right out of the gate, instead off being objective, they push their own agendas. You also then get other coaches doing the same thing with YNT recommendations and ID2/ PDP invites. It becomes self fulfilling. This kid must be good becasue she is getting all the invites.

Over time, things play out on the field. for most of the kids. If you look at the 2018 girls list and see the progression of some of these kids you can see how much things have changed. Some have fallen away completely ( justified) some have dropped a lot ( not really justified -but based on not getting multiple NT call ups) some have moved up a huge amount.

Bottom line is the slate is now clean again.

The ECNL was the biggest game in town so of course they attended ECNL events. many of teh YNT coaches are ECNL people. Now there is competition and many many players to see across leagues, it will only get worse.

i actually asked TDS to drop the Top 150 and simply stick to stars , but they told me its how theyt sell subscriptions so ....