College Soccer Sucks so Why the Push by the Clubs

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Florida is not representative of the entire country.

The trend seems clear for D1, D2 and NAIA. You just dont want to admit it. Top level college soccer teams are HUGELY foreign.

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TALKING SOCCER TRANSLATION:
My kid sux at soccer and will not be playing in college. Therefore your kid should either quit soccer or give up on the idea of college soccer so that we can all share the misery together as equals. Its all about equality (for me).

I was actually thinking of your kid when I wrote that.

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The trend seems clear for D1, D2 and NAIA. You just dont want to admit it. Top level college soccer teams are HUGELY foreign.

I counter that it's found more in D2 and NAIA and lower level programs in general. Here's the top 25 NCAA mens' teams in order and # of international players

Stanford - none
Wake Forest 5
Denver 3
Clemson 11
Louisville 8
Maryland 2
VA Tech 8
Indiana 2
Providence 5
Syracuse 13
Washington 2
Notre Dame 3
Creighton 4
Charlotte 5
Albany 10
Butler 6
U Mass Lowell 6
FGCU 10
Loyola Chicago 5
Southern IL Edwardsville 7
Akron 11
Michigan State 1

Average number = 4.8

[Unregistered]

TALKING SOCCER TRANSLATION:
My kid sux at soccer and will not be playing in college. Therefore your kid should either quit soccer or give up on the idea of college soccer so that we can all share the misery together as equals. Its all about equality (for me).

LOL Exactly!!!!

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I counter that it's found more in D2 and NAIA and lower level programs in general. Here's the top 25 NCAA mens' teams in order and # of international players

Stanford - none
Wake Forest 5
Denver 3
Clemson 11
Louisville 8
Maryland 2
VA Tech 8
Indiana 2
Providence 5
Syracuse 13
Washington 2
Notre Dame 3
Creighton 4
Charlotte 5
Albany 10
Butler 6
U Mass Lowell 6
FGCU 10
Loyola Chicago 5
Southern IL Edwardsville 7
Akron 11
Michigan State 1

Average number = 4.8

continuing on - since not all have national rankings I had to take the top 2 from each division

D2
Western Charleston 26
Mercyhurst 18
Linwood 16
Fort Hays 7
Midwestern State 7
St Edwards 10
Wingate 21
Pfieffer 17
Long Island Post 12
Adelphi 10
Rockhurst 4
Southern Indiana 5
Lynn 20
Palm Beach Intern 18
UC San Diego 1
Cal Poly 3

Average 12.9 (across 16 top programs)


D3

U Chicago 0
Carthage 0
SUNY Cortland 0
SUNY Oneotta 0
Kenyon 3
DePauw 0
Messiah 0
Franklin and Marshall 1
Amherst 5
U MA Boston 18
Saint Thomas 0
U Wisconsin Whitewater 6
Rowan 1
Rutgers newark 0
Trinity 8
Redlands 1

Average 2.6 of 16 top programs

NAIA
W VA Tech 20
William Carey 22
Union (KY) 23
Rio Grande OH 23
Oklahoma Wesleyan 25
Northwestern OH 31
Midland (NE) 16
Midwestern Nazarene 13
Menlo CA 7
Marymount CA 17
Hastings 18
Davenport 18
Corben 7

Average 18 across 13 programs

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So to summarize/find trends across all top programs (overall, there are exceptions)

D1 Average 4.9 internationals. Some scholarship money available; coach influence on admissions; good academics

D2 Average 12.9 internationals. Less scholarship money; coach influence; weak academics

D3 Average 2.6 internationals. No athletic money; no coach influence; good academics

NAIA Average 18 internationals. Less scholarship money; coach influence uncertain but given the number of internationals I have to believe it's very present; weak academics

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Here is the truth about college soccer:

1. Very little money available
2. Short season in the Fall
3. Have to train entire Spring but only play a handful of scrimmages
4. On the boys side, most of the rosters are mainly foreigners
5. Foreigners are the ones getting what little money is available

So my question is why is college soccer the entire focus of most clubs especially given the reality listed above? This doesn't mean we shouldn't play soccer - it is still fun and provides many benefits. I don't even think the main American sports that actually have real advancement opportunities promote college and professional to the degree that soccer does.

Uh, so you can get an f'ing education?

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So to summarize/find trends across all top programs (overall, there are exceptions)

D1 Average 4.9 internationals. Some scholarship money available; coach influence on admissions; good academics

D2 Average 12.9 internationals. Less scholarship money; coach influence; weak academics

D3 Average 2.6 internationals. No athletic money; no coach influence; good academics

NAIA Average 18 internationals. Less scholarship money; coach influence uncertain but given the number of internationals I have to believe it's very present; weak academics

No worries - no way my kid would go to a lot of those D2 or NAIA schools. So I'd say he has a good shot to play at the good schools he's looking at. In the end that's all I care about and am paying for. Getting to play soccer is a bonus if it happens. Few players last all four years regardless

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Uh, so you can get an f'ing education?

yes, for most parents it's about giving their kid a leg up for better opportunities, bet it scholarship money, getting into a better school etc. Virtually no one is in it because they think their kid will go pro. And if your kid could play pro he's going to have to skip college and move overseas.

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So to summarize/find trends across all top programs (overall, there are exceptions)

D1 Average 4.9 internationals. Some scholarship money available; coach influence on admissions; good academics

D2 Average 12.9 internationals. Less scholarship money; coach influence; weak academics

D3 Average 2.6 internationals. No athletic money; no coach influence; good academics

NAIA Average 18 internationals. Less scholarship money; coach influence uncertain but given the number of internationals I have to believe it's very present; weak academics

Very interesting - thanks for doing that.. My son is going through recruiting now. The number of internationals does vary a lot but it's generally not that big at the programs he's looking at. Most top schools want a certain number of international students so a team having some international players wouldn't be completely out of line with the general student body(D1 D3). I don't even have an issue with international players getting more money if they are better - a coach's job is to get the best players he can to win games. As long as players/applicants are treated equally in the process it's fine. We knew going into it there isn't much money in men's soccer and we're hoping his grades land him more merit money.

What I don't get is the very high numbers with D2 and NAIA schools? Do 20 international players really want to go to a weak academic program in the middle of nowhere? Are they offering virtually free rides some other way than just athletic money? The soccer often times isn't even that good. What's the draw?

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What I don't get is the very high numbers with D2 and NAIA schools? Do 20 international players really want to go to a weak academic program in the middle of nowhere? Are they offering virtually free rides some other way than just athletic money? The soccer often times isn't even that good. What's the draw?

The top American kids goto the top D1 programs so that leaves a shortage at the D2 Level and lower level D1. They supplement with Internationals because they can't get the top Americans. D3 can not give scholarships so very few Internationals are interested so mostly American kids. In regards to D2 level of play, a lot of the FL D2 teams would be competitive with the second half of D1. NAIA is actually allowed to give the most scholarships and don't have the same NCAA restrictions as D1, D2, and D3. You will find 26 year old foreign kids on these teams. Some of which played pro.

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Because the majority of soccer families don't see a professional soccer career as the goal - it's getting a good education. So they see soccer as a means to achieve that - either to get whatever help paying for college* or to help get into a better school then thy might otherwise without soccer. Clubs know that's what middle-to-upper income soccer families want at the end of the day, so they play into it. They publish placement lists and some make empty promises of scholarships. The savvier clubs don't promise $ but rely on the strength of good academic placements to draw families in. Even if you know your kid isn't Ivy material it's enticing when you see a club has two Ivy placements in each class along with some other very good schools. It works and the checks pour in.

As for college soccer sucking - it's like HS on steroids. The coach needs a good track record to keep his job. It's not about development but winning. The "mostly" foreigners is a stretch - yes there are a lot on some rosters but never a majority; other rosters will have a token number

* yes athletic money is a joke on the men's side and parents are in for a rude awakening there. But it can be very substantial on the women's side - more scholarships in total numbers and a bigger number of programs that can offer scholarships. That's partly why girls parents are mental

Soccer and Education are not easily confused, but by the confused parent.

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The top American kids goto the top D1 programs so that leaves a shortage at the D2 Level and lower level D1. They supplement with Internationals because they can't get the top Americans. D3 can not give scholarships so very few Internationals are interested so mostly American kids. In regards to D2 level of play, a lot of the FL D2 teams would be competitive with the second half of D1. NAIA is actually allowed to give the most scholarships and don't have the same NCAA restrictions as D1, D2, and D3. You will find 26 year old foreign kids on these teams. Some of which played pro.

In addition some NAIA coaches and the scouts they use hint at a possibility of playing pro here/have a chance to be scouted by MLS clubs. While many have played pro they clearly didn't make it. But because they're very well trained colleges and even MLS are happy to take some of their rejects. Some struggle a lot with academics if they're ESL, so academically the schools are a better fit. In the US if its a choice between academic and sports, academics will win 9 out of 10. These guys may be more willing to make tradeoffs.

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Here is my understanding from some research and talking to people that I think know what they are talking about. Anybody that knows better please correct me, but parents need to be aware:

1) Under the law, girls have to get as much scholarship money as boys. i'm guessing each school has to balance that out which explains why girls soccer scholarships so much better than boys - most of the money for boys sports going to more popular boys sports.

2) But, Florida schools will want to save most of their scholarship money for out of state players because they know in state players can afford the in state tuition so they can get some of them without offering money. They want to use their budget as wisely as they can.

3) So, the most likely scenario for most is little to no money for an in state opportunity to play, unless you are an absolute rock star.

4) Make sure you purchase prepaid and get good grades for bright futures if you cannot afford in state tuition. If you have prepaid, your player is more appealing to an in state soccer coach because you are paid for. (I think) Having Florida PrePaid will help your child get a spot to play soccer at a Florida school, all else being equal.

5) So if you have to decide between spending on soccer and Florida prepaid, go for Florida prepaid.

6) Since most of the scholarship money for the Florida players will come from out of state, it is a losing proposition (financially) because the amount you will get will likely still make the cost greater than attending in state. But a great experience for your player if you can afford it.

7) But, if your player is pretty darn good, and can get really high grades taking hard courses, and also find time to do all the little extras (volunteering, showing you care about the world), you might be able to get some decent money and have a really cool out of state experience because of soccer money combined with academic. But this child will be very very very very busy and hardworking through high school and college, and may just about be ready to retire from productive life when it comes time to support themselves after college. As parents, make sure your child believes you are all out of money before this time (you probably will be) or they will be living with you and asking for money forever and taking part time jobs while they contemplate some great job they will never qualify for because they don't want to work full time.

This is how I am looking at it so if I am wrong about any of this please someone educate me better. Also,

God bless those that love soccer enough to take the financial risks of putting everything into it, because without those people we wouldn't have the really awesome players that make soccer so fun to watch.

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Hey Moron, the guy above did the math and it is more than 50% foreign. And yes the foreigners get money

Hey moron, foreigners get a piece of what little soccer money is available. The remainder, outside of any non-sports scholarships, is cash since they don't qualify for grants and aid.