Development Academy

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Scholarships aside, since they are binding contracts.....Here is the really big question....assuming that none of these received scholarships, is it better to sit on the bench (or get very little play time) at a Divsion 1 school or is it better to get a lot of playtime at a Division II or III school? Afterall, in four years time, they are all going to need to find a job somewhere. It really comes down to whether or not it is better to play or not.

And presumably this is what folks mean when they say 'playing D3 but could have played D1'. The truth might be closer to 'could have made a D1 roster but would have been sitting for 4 years'. When you peruse the ESPN list posted today on another thread you see the level of difficulty. Akron already had a stacked team with national top 100 recruits grabbing pine, and they brought in another 17 kids, all with powerhouse backgrounds.

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I know! I know!

It's just like school and the question of honors versus AP classes. Is it better to get a "B" in an AP or an "A" in a regular course?

It's best to get an "A" in a tough course.

Soccer is like school. It's best to PLAY at the highest level possible. Sitting the bench to brag about being D1 makes no sense.

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Sitting the bench to brag about being D1 makes no sense.

I would amend as follows: Playing D1 at a lesser academically rigorous school just to brag about being D1 makes no sense.

Or even this (less importantly): Playing at D1 at a lesser soccer rigorous school just to brag about being D1 makes no sense.

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I know! I know!

It's just like school and the question of honors versus AP classes. Is it better to get a "B" in an AP or an "A" in a regular course?

It's best to get an "A" in a tough course.

Soccer is like school. It's best to PLAY at the highest level possible. Sitting the bench to brag about being D1 makes no sense.

Soccer is NOT like school. In school you are IN the game playing, so challenging yourself to play at your highest level is good....since you are in the game.

In soccer, at the older levels (presume that all get good playtime at younger ages) you might not be in the game....just sitting on the bench. I would rather be in the game and play than ride the bench watching others play.

One thing for sure...if you are a Junior or Senior in college and not getting much playtime, the chance that you will go pro thereafter is almost non-existent. This might also be the case as a freshman or sophmore if you are not on the field playing. As this is likely the case, you are going to need to find work later on....since your professional soccer career does not exist. All considered, unless you are really a star, I would prefer my kids to get into a school that helps their future, and lets them play their favorite sport.....then they will be in the game in both school and soccer.

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I would prefer my kids to get into a school that helps their future, and lets them play their favorite sport.....then they will be in the game in both school and soccer.

Brilliant. Amen.

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D1 so what? The VAST majority of the kids playing D1 soccer, even if they're on the field, are not playing soccer after college. Game over. And the ones who do will likely be worse off economically than the ones who focused on the real purpose of college - learning. Let's face it - soccer is for fun unless the kid is in the handful of U.S. kids who can have a professional career in Europe. The rest better figure this out and accept it BEFORE they get to college.

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Scholarships aside, since they are binding contracts.....Here is the really big question....assuming that none of these received scholarships, is it better to sit on the bench (or get very little play time) at a Divsion 1 school or is it better to get a lot of playtime at a Division II or III school? Afterall, in four years time, they are all going to need to find a job somewhere. It really comes down to whether or not it is better to play or not.

First, remember there is very little "athletic aid" for men's college soccer, it's not like the women's side, thus your assumption of little or no scholarships is a very good assumption. Those who get the athletic aid are given the most opportunities to get on the field (think of it like a draft pick vs a free agent in professional sports). This is where many of the Mass boys come out, yes you can make the D1 roster, and we'll give you an opoortunity, but it won't be easy, in fact it will be very hard to get on the field. Don't forget that next year brings another frosh class of new hotshot superstars looking to crack the lineup and they likely will have 3 or 4 on "half-scholarship" (which is alot in the men's side). Another dozen or so of the Mass boys decided thanks but no thanks to this alternative and decided to go to the college of their choice (for numerous reasons, most of which was not soccer related) which at the D2 (which does give "athletic aid") or D3 soccer level would allow them to get on the field immediately as a frosh and hopefully play extensively all four years if that was their choice. IMHO college soccer takes up so much time and committment that if you are not getting on the field (assuming no sizeable scholarship) then the student should really consider is it worth the time and effort which it takes away from their studies.
I'd rather be playing 4 years at a lower level, after all the chance of a professional soccer career is slim and none.

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So let's get this straight from all of the above posts....Take the easier,most predictable route because if someone just might come in that is better than you, there are no life lessons to be taken from sitting on the bench? How about working harder to beat that person out? Wow, I guess the workforce these days is just chomping at the bit for college grads that cannot learn to deal with some sort of adversity that they could transfer to the workplace. If a kid is fortunate enough to go to any college and play soccer it is not a death sentence as far as a career is concerned. If anything, it will strenghten their resume.

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So let's get this straight from all of the above posts....Take the easier,most predictable route because if someone just might come in that is better than you, there are no life lessons to be taken from sitting on the bench? How about working harder to beat that person out? Wow, I guess the workforce these days is just chomping at the bit for college grads that cannot learn to deal with some sort of adversity that they could transfer to the workplace. If a kid is fortunate enough to go to any college and play soccer it is not a death sentence as far as a career is concerned. If anything, it will strenghten their resume.

Take whatever path you want, and hopefully they all play college soccer and are all employed upon graduation. The question was asked would you rather sit on a D1 bench (assuming no scholarship) and not play or garner significant playing time for all 4 years in D2 or D3? No right or wrong answers. Free will and individual choice. For me, I would rather play all 4 years in D2 or D3 if soccer were important to me. For you sitting in D1 is fine with the hope of playing in the future. The fact that we are both on college rosters is a positive in my book. Good luck.

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Take whatever path you want, and hopefully they all play college soccer and are all employed upon graduation. The question was asked would you rather sit on a D1 bench (assuming no scholarship) and not play or garner significant playing time for all 4 years in D2 or D3? No right or wrong answers. Free will and individual choice. For me, I would rather play all 4 years in D2 or D3 if soccer were important to me. For you sitting in D1 is fine with the hope of playing in the future. The fact that we are both on college rosters is a positive in my book. Good luck.

Caveat:

If I'm sitting on a D1 bench at a school I REALLY want to be at because it offers me a combination of things that are of interest to me academically and socially, then I am happy.

Similarly, if I can find all those things AND play at a D2 or D3 school, then even better.

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None of you insane people will ever kick a ball in
College. You are not attending college. Get a hobby!

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I work in sales mgmt for a large tech company. The experience playing college soccer (D1,2 or 3) or any sport for that matter is seen as a very valuable piece of a resume and is one of the things our recruiters look for in bringing in kids out of college. Obviously, the academic piece needs to be there but playing sports at a high level reflects a person's competitiveness and also demonstrates experience with working in a team environment. In my experience, an inordinate amount of effective sales professionals do play college sports - and really not a surprise if you think about it. Not the be all, end all by any means - but definitely an advantage.

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So let's get this straight from all of the above posts....Take the easier,most predictable route because if someone just might come in that is better than you, there are no life lessons to be taken from sitting on the bench? How about working harder to beat that person out? Wow, I guess the workforce these days is just chomping at the bit for college grads that cannot learn to deal with some sort of adversity that they could transfer to the workplace. If a kid is fortunate enough to go to any college and play soccer it is not a death sentence as far as a career is concerned. If anything, it will strenghten their resume.

As the original poster of this statement, I can assure you that you are both right and wrong. By the time you are ready to go to college you will know what your limitations and abilities in soccer (or other sports) are among your current and future peers. It is the exception and not the rule that an athlete will become something significantly greater in a particular during college than they were immediately before. This is not to say it is impossible or that they could not find another sport to excel at.

Those athletes that have a real shot at playing pro-ball are usually known and, assuming that they want to play pro, should strive to play at the highest level they can find. For them, perhaps it is OK to sit on the bench at a D1 school while trying to make the starting lineup. For the rest who are not likely to go pro I think (my opinion) it is better to play the game than watch others play. This is not to say that you shouldn't try to play at the highest level that you can, but only to add that I would rather play the game that I love than to just watch my peers play.

By contrast, most incoming college Freshman are about to be exposed to a variety of education opportunities and experiences in which they will hopefully find one that they will blossom in and become a success story in that part of life. This component of college is probably, for the vast majority of high school graduates, the more significant contributor toward their future successes than just playing a sport.

The drive to seek the highest level of training and 'competition' therefore, for the vast majoirty, shifts from the realm of sports to the realm of education and academic excellence. For the vast majority, I submit that it is better to pick the educational environment that will challenge them most as compared to the sports program that will challenge them most. IF THEY CAN GET BOTH AT THE SAME PLACE THEN GREAT.

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I can't believe that some kind of agreement could not be struck between the clubs and the schools. I think the kids are naive of the excitement that high school sports brings, and the parents are blinded by some notion that their little boy is going to get a scholarship and/or play pro.

Maybe an agreement could be struck theoretically speaking, but from a practical standpoint its not worth the enormous effort.

Any negotiation would have to take place with every high school individually and every conference individually, since the conferences also have rules about not playing the same sport for two different teams during the high school season.

So nationally, we're talking about thousands of negotiated agreements. Just not practical

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Maybe an agreement could be struck theoretically speaking, but from a practical standpoint its not worth the enormous effort.

Any negotiation would have to take place with every high school individually and every conference individually, since the conferences also have rules about not playing the same sport for two different teams during the high school season.

So nationally, we're talking about thousands of negotiated agreements. Just not practical

Except of course for the ISL schools who are more worthy than the rank and file.