Academy effects on high school made DMN

by Soccerinsanity 1/19/2012, 8:38 pm

"Academies attract Texas' top athletes" is an article in today's newspaper. According to it, players lost to academy:
Keller 12
FM Marcus 5
Jesuit 5
SL Carroll 4
Coppell 3
frisco Wakeland 2
McKinney 2
FW Nolan 1
Highland Park 1

Article quotes Kevin Smith....

As usual, high school sports generate publicity?!?!

by earbucket 1/20/2012, 11:58 am

From the main article...

The all-or-nothing choice, though, is a difficult one to make.

“The unfortunate thing is that players who are 14, 15, 16, are having to make career choices,” Flower Mound Marcus coach John Gall said.

A leverage point for the academy system is visibility.

Players dream of getting a major college scholarship, playing professionally or being named to the national team. Those opportunities are rare for players whose exposure is limited to the high school level.

While high school “meant so much” — playing for his friends and his community — Shams said his choice to play for Solar was made for the future.

Collegiate visibility was extremely important, he said.

“I decided that it was the best thing for me. …” Shams said. “At the Disney Showcase, you can have 50 coaches at a game. It’s definitely a whole different level.”

There are 203 Division I soccer programs in the nation, but only two — SMU and Houston Baptist — in Texas. Money for men’s soccer is extremely tight; per NCAA rules, only 9.9 scholarships are available for a 20-plus-player roster.

by soccergrinder 1/20/2012, 5:20 pm

earbucket wrote:From the main article...
Players dream of getting a major college scholarship, playing professionally or being named to the national team. Those opportunities are rare for players whose exposure is limited to the high school level. Yes, but that is deceiving. It seems like there are only two choices, Academy or High School. There are many players being recruited to play in college, at all levels, from non Academy teams. Playing professionally and being on the National team is about a .005% chance from players ON academy teams. If your goal is to play professionally then the Academy is definitely the way to go. You just need to understand you are more likely to be hit by lightning that playing professional soccer. But it could happen.

While high school “meant so much” — playing for his friends and his community — Shams said his choice to play for Solar was made for the future.

Collegiate visibility was extremely important, he said.

“I decided that it was the best thing for me. …” Shams said. “At the Disney Showcase, you can have 50 coaches at a game. It’s definitely a whole different level.” These are all true. Especially since he doesn't already have a college deal in place. 90% of the players on his team already have college deals in place. So they could walk away from Academy their senior year and would not be effected by playing high school. They could play High School their senior year without any negative consequences.

There are 203 Division I soccer programs in the nation, but only two — SMU and Houston Baptist — in Texas. Money for men’s soccer is extremely tight; per NCAA rules, only 9.9 scholarships are available for a 20-plus-player roster. This is true. However there are many ways to put packages together for players to play college soccer without an "Athletic" scholarship. Academic money, needs based money, grant money and private grant money, are all used together to broaden the base of recruiting money. Or play in the Ivy League. There are many ways to skin a cat.

by NTskeptic 1/20/2012, 10:46 pm

Most parents want their sons to play Academy so they can play in those games where there are 50 or more college coaches watching. The only problem is most of those coaches from D1 schools are all watching the same 1 to 3 players.

Coaches at elite schools only recruit elite players, not good or very good players. The good players with good grades get their scholarships by reaching out to schools and convince them they want to be a part of their program. The work is back on the parents.

Boys love high school soccer for all the same reasons. They get to play with their friends, in front of their friends for their school. College sports are so good because of the rivalries and the competitive passion of the athletes. Academy is not so much about the team as about the individual.

by my2cents 1/20/2012, 11:38 pm

NTskeptic wrote:Most parents want their sons to play Academy so they can play in those games where there are 50 or more college coaches watching. The only problem is most of those coaches from D1 schools are all watching the same 1 to 3 players.

Coaches at elite schools only recruit elite players, not good or very good players. The good players with good grades get their scholarships by reaching out to schools and convince them they want to be a part of their program. The work is back on the parents.Boys love high school soccer for all the same reasons. They get to play with their friends, in front of their friends for their school. College sports are so good because of the rivalries and the competitive passion of the athletes. Academy is not so much about the team as about the individual.

That is spot on. Approxamately 95% of college players were recruited only after making initial contact themselves. Students must sell themselves as not only a good fit for the program but also be the type of student that will enrich the school.

by soccergrinder 1/21/2012, 10:01 am

NTskeptic wrote:Most parents want their sons to play Academy so they can play in those games where there are 50 or more college coaches watching. The only problem is most of those coaches from D1 schools are all watching the same 1 to 3 players.

Coaches at elite schools only recruit elite players, not good or very good players. The good players with good grades get their scholarships by reaching out to schools and convince them they want to be a part of their program. The work is back on the parents.

Boys love high school soccer for all the same reasons. They get to play with their friends, in front of their friends for their school. College sports are so good because of the rivalries and the competitive passion of the athletes. Academy is not so much about the team as about the individual.

Not to be argumentative because I agree with most of what you are saying. However, having been an Academy team manager for the last three years, this ("The only problem is most of those coaches from D1 schools are all watching the same 1 to 3 players.") is not what I have experienced. And I could probably write a book on the college recruiting process. It's not as direct as you might think. It's like having all of the planets aligning.

by onetenguy 1/21/2012, 11:36 am

soccergrinder wrote:
NTskeptic wrote:Most parents want their sons to play Academy so they can play in those games where there are 50 or more college coaches watching. The only problem is most of those coaches from D1 schools are all watching the same 1 to 3 players.

Coaches at elite schools only recruit elite players, not good or very good players. The good players with good grades get their scholarships by reaching out to schools and convince them they want to be a part of their program. The work is back on the parents.

Boys love high school soccer for all the same reasons. They get to play with their friends, in front of their friends for their school. College sports are so good because of the rivalries and the competitive passion of the athletes. Academy is not so much about the team as about the individual.

Not to be argumentative because I agree with most of what you are saying. However, having been an Academy team manager for the last three years, this ("The only problem is most of those coaches from D1 schools are all watching the same 1 to 3 players.") is not what I have experienced. And I could probably write a book on the college recruiting process. It's not as direct as you might think. It's like having all of the planets aligning.

I would disagree that the coaches are only watching the same two or three players. My son received direct interest from at least two dozen, mostly D 1 colleges while playing in the Academy league. We did not contact the schools first. We did do our homework and do extensive follow up with each school that expressed interest. Please don't under estimate the interest that the Academy teams generate among college coaches. For example, the first Academy Showcase game he played in had 33 college coaches watching and most were from D1 schools.

by NTskeptic 1/21/2012, 11:57 am

I agree with some of the comments. Probably what I should have said is that the ACC colleges are watching the same players. There are quite a few D1 schools watching, however many of them have inferior soccer programs compared to some D2 schools. I agree the stars have to line up; I just think that most of the work is still done by the player and parents. Parents and players need to remove a little ego and realize that there are many schools out there that may not be "Top Tier" D1 programs that will provide great educations and a greater chance to play for 3 or even 4 years instead of sitting on the bench.

by Soccernovice 1/21/2012, 2:29 pm

You can get alot of interest from club soccer and still play High School soccer. Key is you have to attend the right showcases, really study the schools and target the right schools based on academic and athletic fit, play on a team that will impress the coaches, have great SAT and GPA scores they love that, and be flexible where the needs are since that is like finding a needle in a haystack. I believe the Academy players get seen by a larger variety of DI coaches and at least FC Dallas, Solar, and Dallas Texans have great brand recognition. The club teams have to work a little harder to market the team and of course perform well to gain a strong reputation in the market with college coaches. It is amazing how coaches move around they may recruit and older player for one school then come back and watch a younger team representing a new school but be very interested since they have prior experience with the club and their players. Think of college soccer recruiting as a marketplace and academy and club as brands out there and make sure you are with a strong brand with a good reputation for placing players. Coaches shop with established brands first and if team/club is unknown they will get very little interest. Keep open minded DI, DII, and DIII schools provide great options and educations and we have seen a DIII player get conference player of the year, major in engineering at great school, get work study, have a full academic scholarship, play in PDL, and then get to practice with the Red Bulls from our club. That sounds like a great opportunity for a young man. There are good opportunities in all levels. It would be good to pick a strong conference though if you are serious about soccer DI, DII, or DIII and a team that you would enjoy playing their style of soccer. I agree why stretch to play on best team possible if your player doesn't get to play then either drops out of soccer or transfers to new program later. Seems like it would be fun to be an impact player as a freshmen which can happen even with North Carolina. Believe there was a freshmen from Texas on that team. In summary, academy has advantages of better network and exposure but some club teams can provide good alternative and still play High School soccer. Having a good college recruiting coordinator for you team also helps if you are an academy or club team.

by Soccerinsanity 1/21/2012, 8:27 pm

Are you referring to a freshman last year at UNC that is a coach's son? Midyear he was looking to transfer because he wasn't getting playing time. Apparently paying one's dues as a freshman wasn't acceptable to him