2014 Boys Soccer Verbal Commitments

[Unregistered]

If I'm following your logic I think you are missing something. If the Mass schools are better you shouldn't expect them to be stocked by Mass kids. The better schools don't want kids primarily from their own states. It's actually often a disadvantage. The fact that BC is recruiting well outside of the state actually argues FOR the prestige of the school.

Where are all of the Mass recruits ending up then? How many are on top teams in other parts of the country? Up and down the levels out of state prospects have come in and taken all the roster spots. If our kids were really that good they would have the spots not the out of state prospect. Recruiting aint about quotas.

This idea that a program gets prestige by recruiting out of their region is complete crap. Coaches go where they have to go to find the talent they need. If you look at the rosters of top programs most of their prospects come from the same region with healthy doses of instate recruits. They only go across regions when they have to in order to find better talent.

[perspective]

Where are all of the Mass recruits ending up then? How many are on top teams in other parts of the country? Up and down the levels out of state prospects have come in and taken all the roster spots. If our kids were really that good they would have the spots not the out of state prospect. Recruiting aint about quotas.

This idea that a program gets prestige by recruiting out of their region is complete crap. Coaches go where they have to go to find the talent they need. If you look at the rosters of top programs most of their prospects come from the same region with healthy doses of instate recruits. They only go across regions when they have to in order to find better talent.

Sorry, but you are just wrong. The higher up the academic chain you go the more the schools care about geographic diversity. Surely you've heard of the classic example of Harvard taking a kid from North Dakota over yet another kid from BB&N or Andover. The New England elites don't want student bodies or athletic rosters heavily weighted towards their own state and region. The proof is by looking at the elite D3s. You may be correct that Mass doesn't produce a huge amount of D1 talent (although looks pretty good past couple of years for boys), but surely you believe a large number can play D3. Check the Amherst and Middlebury and Bowdoin rosters. Very, very few Mass kids. Top performing Mass kids are a dime a dozen. They don't want all of them.

[Unregistered]

Where are all of the Mass recruits ending up then? How many are on top teams in other parts of the country? Up and down the levels out of state prospects have come in and taken all the roster spots. If our kids were really that good they would have the spots not the out of state prospect. Recruiting aint about quotas.

This idea that a program gets prestige by recruiting out of their region is complete crap. Coaches go where they have to go to find the talent they need. If you look at the rosters of top programs most of their prospects come from the same region with healthy doses of instate recruits. They only go across regions when they have to in order to find better talent.

I agree. If you scan this year's top 10 D1 soccer colleges in the final rankings, let's look at the state schools. We'll start with those who are in talent rich states:

Cal Berkeley // 26 of 30 from CA

UCLA // 24 of 30 from CA

Michigan St // 19 of 30 from MI

Washington // 15 of 30 from WA (and new coach Jamie Clark affirmed his commitment to recruit local talent do that will go higher)



Then we go to states with less talent:

UConn // 14 of 30 from CT

UVA // 12 of 30 from VA

New Mexico // 6 from NM

Maryland // 5 from MD


So if your state has the talent, you can build a top 10 team from inside the state. Pers is confusing top academic schools that recruit students Nationally with top soccer schools. Sure Harvard gets kids from all over for school and soccer, and they are a top school academically, but the soccer is poor.

[Unregistered]

SNHU has not posted commits anyone know why? Is coach leaving after winning div 2

[Unregistered]

SNHU has not posted commits anyone know why? Is coach leaving after winning div 2

OP here. For some reason the Div 2 and particularly SNHU recruiting info seems to comes out very late. Not sure why.

[Unregistered]

Sorry, but you are just wrong. The higher up the academic chain you go the more the schools care about geographic diversity. Surely you've heard of the classic example of Harvard taking a kid from North Dakota over yet another kid from BB&N or Andover. The New England elites don't want student bodies or athletic rosters heavily weighted towards their own state and region. The proof is by looking at the elite D3s. You may be correct that Mass doesn't produce a huge amount of D1 talent (although looks pretty good past couple of years for boys), but surely you believe a large number can play D3. Check the Amherst and Middlebury and Bowdoin rosters. Very, very few Mass kids. Top performing Mass kids are a dime a dozen. They don't want all of them.

Who actually gives a crap about where the NESCACs pull their walk-ons from? We are talking about top level recruits and why Mass isn't producing a commensurate share relative to the amount of participation we have in this state. Your bitch about Harvard shows how little you actually know about recruiting in the Ivies. In that league the AI makes recruiting pretty like putting a jig saw puzzle together. One thing is certain though even they identify their top prospects and fill in the AI's they need around them. If that BB&N or Andover player was really their top level recruit you can rest assured that they would not be bringing in that player from North Dakota instead. Suggesting otherwise is silly. Top performing Mass kids are not a dime a dozen, the numbers show that they are actually pretty rare. The reason local schools don't want many players from Mass is they tend to be rather mediocre and when push comes to shove other quotas do take precedence. That is what happens when you are just as good as the next guy. That is what we are talking about, why are most of our players only mediocre?

[perspective]

Who actually gives a crap about where the NESCACs pull their walk-ons from? We are talking about top level recruits and why Mass isn't producing a commensurate share relative to the amount of participation we have in this state. Your bitch about Harvard shows how little you actually know about recruiting in the Ivies. In that league the AI makes recruiting pretty like putting a jig saw puzzle together. One thing is certain though even they identify their top prospects and fill in the AI's they need around them. If that BB&N or Andover player was really their top level recruit you can rest assured that they would not be bringing in that player from North Dakota instead. Suggesting otherwise is silly. Top performing Mass kids are not a dime a dozen, the numbers show that they are actually pretty rare. The reason local schools don't want many players from Mass is they tend to be rather mediocre and when push comes to shove other quotas do take precedence. That is what happens when you are just as good as the next guy. That is what we are talking about, why are most of our players only mediocre?

Another great example of the problem with the hundreds of you. You barely read the post, guess at what you think the agenda might be even if there is no agenda, and then distort like crap. I wasn't talking primarily about PLAYERS. I was talking about students, and all other things being equal, and how elite college admissions offices crave and strive for geographic diversity. And when I said "top performing kids are a dime a dozen" in Mass I was referring to STUDENTS. There are a ton of high-end students in Mass. Don't you all know that from all of the prestigious prep schools in our region and high-end public high schools in the wealthiest suburbs. Harvard, Williams, Amherst, etc could fill their overall classes (of STUDENTS) each year at least 3-4 times over just with Mass kids. They don't.

As for why you all feel "most of our players are mediocre" that's a no-brainer. You all move the goalposts everytime anyone suggests anyone is any good. You don't want good players thinking they are great. You all for some reason are affronted by very good players thinking they are good. So you move the standard to just national team or just international or whatever. You all are the ones desperate to feel special about yourselves. And then right on another thread, you all will go on for pages belittling standout students for going to the best schools they can qualify for, arguing for a less special and more mediocre choice. You all are all over the map and that's because all you do is track who to disagree with and it gets all the more confusing because you all aren't smart enough to figure out what was being said in the first place. Becomes quite convoluted.

[Unregistered]

Another great example of the problem with the hundreds of you. You barely read the post, guess at what you think the agenda might be even if there is no agenda, and then distort like crap. I wasn't talking primarily about PLAYERS. I was talking about students, and all other things being equal, and how elite college admissions offices crave and strive for geographic diversity. And when I said "top performing kids are a dime a dozen" in Mass I was referring to STUDENTS. There are a ton of high-end students in Mass. Don't you all know that from all of the prestigious prep schools in our region and high-end public high schools in the wealthiest suburbs. Harvard, Williams, Amherst, etc could fill their overall classes (of STUDENTS) each year at least 3-4 times over just with Mass kids. They don't.

As for why you all feel "most of our players are mediocre" that's a no-brainer. You all move the goalposts everytime anyone suggests anyone is any good. You don't want good players thinking they are great. You all for some reason are affronted by very good players thinking they are good. So you move the standard to just national team or just international or whatever. You all are the ones desperate to feel special about yourselves. And then right on another thread, you all will go on for pages belittling standout students for going to the best schools they can qualify for, arguing for a less special and more mediocre choice. You all are all over the map and that's because all you do is track who to disagree with and it gets all the more confusing because you all aren't smart enough to figure out what was being said in the first place. Becomes quite convoluted.

1. They are talking about soccer, not just STUDENTS. This is a SOCCER forum, if you want to talk about STUDENTS go to college confidential.
2. The basic problem with your logic is you are lumping talented groups together labeling them great while failing to recognize that even when amongst greatness there are varying degrees of talent. You are constantly lumping D1 and D3 soccer players together as though they were interchangeable except for their academic ambitions when in reality they are not even close to being the same.
3. Admission quotas are not really the issue you are making them out to be. Even NESCAC schools that place next to zero importance on soccer would pursue a qualified applicant if they were also a phenom soccer player. That is what building "diversity" into an admissions pool is all about. It comes down to finding uniqueness. That desire for diversity is why if a kid were thought of as the next Bill Gates or Yo-Yo Ma places like Harvard and Yale actually go out and pursue them. The same would hold true for the next Messi.
4. The point being discussed is Mass doesn't seem to be producing very many Messi's and considering the participation numbers that seems to indicate a problem. Your constant defense of the status quo perpetuates the causes of that problem.

[Unregistered]

Perspective....you just love to listen to yourself. This is a forum about soccer players and a post about where they are committed to going. Either post where your kid is going or get the crap off. Your perspective is not needed or wanted

[Unregistered]

1. They are talking about soccer, not just STUDENTS. This is a SOCCER forum, if you want to talk about STUDENTS go to college confidential.
2. The basic problem with your logic is you are lumping talented groups together labeling them great while failing to recognize that even when amongst greatness there are varying degrees of talent. You are constantly lumping D1 and D3 soccer players together as though they were interchangeable except for their academic ambitions when in reality they are not even close to being the same.
3. Admission quotas are not really the issue you are making them out to be. Even NESCAC schools that place next to zero importance on soccer would pursue a qualified applicant if they were also a phenom soccer player. That is what building "diversity" into an admissions pool is all about. It comes down to finding uniqueness. That desire for diversity is why if a kid were thought of as the next Bill Gates or Yo-Yo Ma places like Harvard and Yale actually go out and pursue them. The same would hold true for the next Messi.
4. The point being discussed is Mass doesn't seem to be producing very many Messi's and considering the participation numbers that seems to indicate a problem. Your constant defense of the status quo perpetuates the causes of that problem.

Different poster here. It may be a soccer forum, but history teaches us that US Soccer players and especially Mass soccer players are heading to college not the professional ranks, and they are using soccer to get into the colleges of their choice. Yes I know we can point to Diego F and Will P, but lets get real the best Mass athletes (and US athletes) don't gravitate towards soccer, but rather football and basketball (and in Mass hockey as well) and until they do you wont be producing Messi's or Ronaldo's. Frankly I don't see any other states producing Messi's or Ronaldo's and you wont any time soon. Only when the "culture" and home environment allows for soccer to be 24/7/365 do you have the possibility and then you still have to have the innate superior athletic ability and superior mind. Why people who read Talking Soccer bemoan the lack of Mass D1 players and especially impact top D1 players is amusing. You can have the greatest coaching and training in the world, but if the player is not totally invested 24/7/365 with superior genetics you are not going to produce those players. One of the earlier posters pointed to the highly educated populace of Mass vs other regions of the US, and I believe this also plays a huge reason (not that its a bad thing) but we are not totally bought in 24/7/365 to the soccer life/culture. Also, there was an earlier repost from HS Class 2011 to the same question which I thought combined some other logical reasons for these results. Bottom line you can have the highest % participation rate in the country for youth soccer, yet you won't get these top D1 impact players/future professionals unless you have the talent/drive 24/7/365 buy in which is necessary. I''m not talking about playing 3 or 4 times a week to get there, but rather 7 days a week year round because it's part of your life/culture. D1 basketball players and professionals play every day year round for years since they were kids just like soccer players around the world....just not soccer players in the US, and especially not in Mass where soccer is seen as a means to an end...the end being a college education not to play professionally.

[perspective]

1. They are talking about soccer, not just STUDENTS. This is a SOCCER forum, if you want to talk about STUDENTS go to college confidential.
2. The basic problem with your logic is you are lumping talented groups together labeling them great while failing to recognize that even when amongst greatness there are varying degrees of talent. You are constantly lumping D1 and D3 soccer players together as though they were interchangeable except for their academic ambitions when in reality they are not even close to being the same.
3. Admission quotas are not really the issue you are making them out to be. Even NESCAC schools that place next to zero importance on soccer would pursue a qualified applicant if they were also a phenom soccer player. That is what building "diversity" into an admissions pool is all about. It comes down to finding uniqueness. That desire for diversity is why if a kid were thought of as the next Bill Gates or Yo-Yo Ma places like Harvard and Yale actually go out and pursue them. The same would hold true for the next Messi.
4. The point being discussed is Mass doesn't seem to be producing very many Messi's and considering the participation numbers that seems to indicate a problem. Your constant defense of the status quo perpetuates the causes of that problem.

Completely wrong (again). "Constant defense perpetuates the causes of that problem"? What problem? And what causes? My posts are preventing Mass from having a larger number of off-the-charts soccer players? I think psychosis is setting in.

I am tiring of the continual misrepresentation of my views. Don't even know what Perspective means anymore. I almost to a fault, for a very long time, have differentiated between levels of players and I have repeatedly stated that D3 players are D3 players and that very, very few truly legit D1-level players (certainly top 50 D1 level) choose D3 instead. I have come right out and said MANY times that my kid is a D3 level player and never suggested he had D1 talent. And I'm not angry or bitter about that. Frankly I'm thrilled he was able to play D3. I have repeatedly said that good D3 is harder than people think and that D1 obviously is even harder. This attack that I am trying to level everyone in the same boat is really from left field. NONE of my posts suggest that.

[perspective]

Perspective....you just love to listen to yourself. This is a forum about soccer players and a post about where they are committed to going. Either post where your kid is going or get the crap off. Your perspective is not needed or wanted

If that's your wish then reading my posts with some reading comprehension and attempting to reply in kind would help. Otherwise, STFU. PLENTY of readers DO appreciate most of my posts. They've even ASKED ME to start entire new threads because they appreciated other ones I started and/or contributed to.

[Unregistered]

OP here. For some reason the Div 2 and particularly SNHU recruiting info seems to comes out very late. Not sure why.

SNHU gets some good transfers from Div 1 schools (my guess academics helps there), in past they have crowed about one or two signings but none this year. Coach always had his eyes on a div 1 program, think he was in running for UNH at one point. Their roster is showing a good amount of foreign players and western ma players. At one point they had a lot of bolts and revs players. They coach has proven to find a way to win at, IMO, just an awful campus. Kids I know that go there love school and do well in job searches....

[Unregistered]

http://www.studentsports.com/soccer/...top-prospects/

[Unregistered]

Different poster here. It may be a soccer forum, but history teaches us that US Soccer players and especially Mass soccer players are heading to college not the professional ranks, and they are using soccer to get into the colleges of their choice. Yes I know we can point to Diego F and Will P, but lets get real the best Mass athletes (and US athletes) don't gravitate towards soccer, but rather football and basketball (and in Mass hockey as well) and until they do you wont be producing Messi's or Ronaldo's. Frankly I don't see any other states producing Messi's or Ronaldo's and you wont any time soon. Only when the "culture" and home environment allows for soccer to be 24/7/365 do you have the possibility and then you still have to have the innate superior athletic ability and superior mind. Why people who read Talking Soccer bemoan the lack of Mass D1 players and especially impact top D1 players is amusing. You can have the greatest coaching and training in the world, but if the player is not totally invested 24/7/365 with superior genetics you are not going to produce those players. One of the earlier posters pointed to the highly educated populace of Mass vs other regions of the US, and I believe this also plays a huge reason (not that its a bad thing) but we are not totally bought in 24/7/365 to the soccer life/culture. Also, there was an earlier repost from HS Class 2011 to the same question which I thought combined some other logical reasons for these results. Bottom line you can have the highest % participation rate in the country for youth soccer, yet you won't get these top D1 impact players/future professionals unless you have the talent/drive 24/7/365 buy in which is necessary. I''m not talking about playing 3 or 4 times a week to get there, but rather 7 days a week year round because it's part of your life/culture. D1 basketball players and professionals play every day year round for years since they were kids just like soccer players around the world....just not soccer players in the US, and especially not in Mass where soccer is seen as a means to an end...the end being a college education not to play professionally.

//Yes I know we can point to Diego F and Will P, but lets get real the best Mass athletes (and US athletes) don't gravitate towards soccer, but rather football and basketball (and in Mass hockey as well) and until they do you wont be producing Messi's or Ronaldo's. //

I agree with most of what you said, but MA does a poor job of producing top football/basketball players as well. In fact there was a recent article to that effect outlining how pitifully few top NBA players MA has ever produced.