GA versus ECRL

[Guest]

What do college coaches make of all this? I get the sense that ECRL is “no go” for some D1 programs. I’m not talking top 25 D1 programs. I mean local D1 programs that complete in New England. GA seems to be viewed as on par with ECNL at least from a recruitment perspective and college attendance at showcases.

This is 100% true.

Colleges are looking for top talent but they're also looking for good grades, social activities, etc, etc, etc.

Believe it or not, some players that get recruited don't even play in GA, ECNL, MLSN, etc.

Dumb parents get tunnel vision. Most colleges don't even play possession which means all that matters is speed and power.

[Guest]

Agree with quite a bit of what's been suggested here and my question is what is the ultimate goal for level of play? We have had experiences with both leagues (my child is more of a D2/D3 recruit, so take my perspective for what it is...not a D1 prospect perspective) and in the end I would say these are what I've observed to be the most critical dial-movers in the "pathway": I'm also a former female college soccer player (GenX; before the club madness kicked in) if that provides any perspective.

1) Coach who advocates with solid relationships/open lines of communication with college coaches (and clubs that have dedicated recruitment advisors who are actually accessible/helpful).
2) Knowing how to leverage which ever league you are in (GA, ECNL, ECRL, DPL, NAL) to the best of your ability. If your child truly wants to play at SOME level in college pushing them to own the process, send the emails, stay in touch with the coaches, send the reels, take advantage of the ID clinics (the right ones, not all are created equal as everyone here knows). If you aren't getting the level of exposure from tournaments because of the league you found yourself in, find other avenues to grab their attention.
3)Obviously having a self-aware kid (and parent!) who understands what level they are capable of playing, having an open line of communication with your coach on whether or not that insight is accurate, and gauging the responses from college coaches and their level of interest is all part of the drill. An email blast invite from a college for an ID camp is much different than actual interest and knowing the difference. If you/your child doesn't have the insight and end up "paying to play" that's up to you to figure out ideally by mid-high school to avoid dropping more money (unless they are truly playing for enjoyment/to stay competitive for HS).
4) Tournament exposure (it helps, but I've seen it be most effective for top "stand out" recruits in terms of follow-up from coaches). Otherwise, most follow-up has been more along the email blast ID camp invite route post-tournament with the exception of D3 schools who followed up with personal emails.

Where my child has had the most success in true engagement with coaches (not email blasts) who want to see them play, have followed up after tournaments (GA and ECRL ones in the last two seasons) is from the result of points 1-3 above, not solely 4. Obviously top recruits/prospects have a much different process/journey, but this has been our experience so far (regardless of GA/ECRL). And, the only reason we switched clubs is because we moved and the original location was too far to commute to practice. Though, our new club is much more well versed in support of points 1-3 above!

[Guest]

Dumb parents get tunnel vision. Most colleges don't even play possession which means all that matters is speed and power.

Until the NCAA extends the men's substitution rules to the women's side next year.

[Guest]

What do college coaches make of all this? I get the sense that ECRL is “no go” for some D1 programs. I’m not talking top 25 D1 programs. I mean local D1 programs that complete in New England. GA seems to be viewed as on par with ECNL at least from a recruitment perspective and college attendance at showcases.

Recently saw an ECRL player committed at Quinnipiac, so not a no-go there.

[Guest]

Until the NCAA extends the men's substitution rules to the women's side next year.

That would be amazing.

Youth clubs are teaching and playing soccer to international standards. Then college comes in and screws everything up with stupid unlimited subs.

[Guest]

This discussion seems to assume that the leagues are like supermarkets and the coaches go down the aisles and shop and pick up what they need. That's not how it works.

[Guest]

Recently saw an ECRL player committed at Quinnipiac, so not a no-go there.

Let's see how much they play

[Guest]

Let's see how much they play

Yep, that'll be interesting to see. But at the same time, I've seen ECNL players on NESCAC teams that don't get much playing time, so not sure what it all actually means.

[AskTheCoach]

What do college coaches make of all this? I get the sense that ECRL is “no go” for some D1 programs. I’m not talking top 25 D1 programs. I mean local D1 programs that complete in New England. GA seems to be viewed as on par with ECNL at least from a recruitment perspective and college attendance at showcases.

Division 1 upper level mid major coach here.....I can only speak on our behalf, however, based on lots of conversations about this with coaches over the last couple years, I can say this is probably the majority opinion of P4 schools and upper level mid majors: the youth club scene has become a circus. What used to be a predictable "showcase" schedule where we could see most recruits has now become a multitude of events from the ECNL, GA, ECNL-R, USYS....not to mention the Club College ID days, Regionals, Nationals, etc. We could literally recruit every weekend. Most of our budgets are tight as is the need for a tiny bit of work/life balance, so we must make choices in recruiting. Currently, without a doubt, all of us would tell you the ECNL is by far the best bang for the buck. The level has continued to get better and better, dramatically so in the last 5 years. The GA has continued to deteriorate to the point where we did not attend any events so far this year, and many of our colleagues have said the same. Does that mean the GA lacks quality players? NO. There are plenty of good players, but on a whole, at a far lesser degree than the ECNL. And, many of the teams are extremely weak. Putting our efforts into the ECNL is just a better economy of scale. I saw recent data that said approximately 75% of 2025 D1 commits are from the ECNL, which seems about right. As far as the ECNL-R, we attended this is Sanford 2 years ago, and it was a waste of time for our level. There were only a handful of girls we saw during the entire day who would possibly be impact players at our level. With that being said, we recently came upon a Regional League player who looks like an absolute stud, but it is truly the exception not the norm.

[Guest]

It's a mess for sure. Surprised to hear you say you haven't been to a single GA event though. Champions Cup Finals had 250 scouts registered, 175 from D1 schools. Certainly saw plenty of them on the sidelines, and the registrations are from all over, including a dozen from MA.

[Guest]

https://www.instagram.com/girlsacade...p/C6b1-xkrCy7/

[AskTheCoach]

It's a mess for sure. Surprised to hear you say you haven't been to a single GA event though. Champions Cup Finals had 250 scouts registered, 175 from D1 schools. Certainly saw plenty of them on the sidelines, and the registrations are from all over, including a dozen from MA.

I didn't say no scouts were going, there will always be scouts at everything....just said we made the decision it wasn't economical for us, and is unlikely to hurt our recruiting in the big picture. There are 350 division 1 programs and having 175 definitely shows a downward trend.

[Guest]

Division 1 upper level mid major coach here.....I can only speak on our behalf, however, based on lots of conversations about this with coaches over the last couple years, I can say this is probably the majority opinion of P4 schools and upper level mid majors: the youth club scene has become a circus. What used to be a predictable "showcase" schedule where we could see most recruits has now become a multitude of events from the ECNL, GA, ECNL-R, USYS....not to mention the Club College ID days, Regionals, Nationals, etc. We could literally recruit every weekend. Most of our budgets are tight as is the need for a tiny bit of work/life balance, so we must make choices in recruiting. Currently, without a doubt, all of us would tell you the ECNL is by far the best bang for the buck. The level has continued to get better and better, dramatically so in the last 5 years. The GA has continued to deteriorate to the point where we did not attend any events so far this year, and many of our colleagues have said the same. Does that mean the GA lacks quality players? NO. There are plenty of good players, but on a whole, at a far lesser degree than the ECNL. And, many of the teams are extremely weak. Putting our efforts into the ECNL is just a better economy of scale. I saw recent data that said approximately 75% of 2025 D1 commits are from the ECNL, which seems about right. As far as the ECNL-R, we attended this is Sanford 2 years ago, and it was a waste of time for our level. There were only a handful of girls we saw during the entire day who would possibly be impact players at our level. With that being said, we recently came upon a Regional League player who looks like an absolute stud, but it is truly the exception not the norm.

Thank you for your truthful honesty on a sensitive subject. Most of us agree with you before your post but to hear it from a professional firms up what most believe to be true. I have always felt that the league is the platform but it’s the individual players that are getting recruited. Yes, ECNL is the top platform but coaches are always looking to expand their search when a good player has been proactive getting recruited.

[Guest]

Looks like we've got an ECNL parent larping as a college coach.

BTW we know that you're a parent because recruiters don't recruit teams they recruit players.

College coaches engage with players before events even occur (email, club docs, etc). When they have time to go to different events they look though the list of players in XYZ league and they check up on the players they feel are best candidates for their team.

Most coaches literally can't shop for talent at events because top talent is usually already engaged with other college coaches. If you're representing a better college you might be able to get interest but you're going to be competing against 3-4 other coaches doing the same thing.

[Guest]

Looks like we've got an ECNL parent larping as a college coach.

BTW we know that you're a parent because recruiters don't recruit teams they recruit players.

College coaches engage with players before events even occur (email, club docs, etc). When they have time to go to different events they look though the list of players in XYZ league and they check up on the players they feel are best candidates for their team.

Most coaches literally can't shop for talent at events because top talent is usually already engaged with other college coaches. If you're representing a better college you might be able to get interest but you're going to be competing against 3-4 other coaches doing the same thing.

All very true having experience with daughters who went thru the recruiting process. But, i agree with what AskThe Coach had to say about the showcase three ring circus. It is out of control when it comes to tournaments, playoffs and showcases. Most of these colleges do not have the budget to travel to all these events from all these leagues. That’s why my daughters vetted colleges where best she would fit in for soccer and academics. Visiting those colleges and attending clinics was the way to go for us to find out if the coaches were interested. They had there DOC and coaches reach out beforehand to let them know they were coming, sent some 3 minute videos prior to the visit and then toured the campuses ahead of time then played in he clinic. This put my daughters on their tablets when they came to their showcases. That’s what worked for my daughters.