How's that Elite 64 League going?

[Grace T.]

All these leagues, particularly ECNL, GA, E64, ECRL would have their "Difference" score increase dramatically if they simply regulated the bottom four or six each year. I don't know any child benefitting from being on a 5-19 ECNL club... Better off going 15-9 as an ECRL or E64 team...

Oh come on. You know as well as I do that the reason the ECNL clubs get that demand is the college looks. There is a long ass line of boys wanting to play for the worst MLS Next team (with some teams carrying even reserve players who NEVER get to play except for the occasional guest, and others commuting 2 hours) than with a mid tier EA team. The ECRL and E64 teams simply don't have that exposure while the weakest of MLS Next teams does.

Different story perhaps on the youngers, but if you are a younger defender or goalkeeper, and your team is crazy dominant on the offense, being on that strong team isn't doing wonders for your development either. Some of the weakest goalkeepers I've seen even on the olders (crazy stuff at the high level like letting balls slip through your hands) have been on the strongest teams....they hide out there though because their weaknesses aren't exposed. As Neil Thompson has said with respect to goalkeepers, development requires that you sometimes struggle....if you are on a winning team all the time you aren't going to develop as fast.

 

[JeterwastheBEST]

Oh come on. You know as well as I do that the reason the ECNL clubs get that demand is the college looks. There is a long ass line of boys wanting to play for the worst MLS Next team (with some teams carrying even reserve players who NEVER get to play except for the occasional guest, and others commuting 2 hours) than with a mid tier EA team. The ECRL and E64 teams simply don't have that exposure while the weakest of MLS Next teams does.

Different story perhaps on the youngers, but if you are a younger defender or goalkeeper, and your team is crazy dominant on the offense, being on that strong team isn't doing wonders for your development either. Some of the weakest goalkeepers I've seen even on the olders (crazy stuff at the high level like letting balls slip through your hands) have been on the strongest teams....they hide out there though because their weaknesses aren't exposed. As Neil Thompson has said with respect to goalkeepers, development requires that you sometimes struggle....if you are on a winning team all the time you aren't going to develop as fast.

FACT CHECK - WRONG!!!

No college coaches sit and watch the 5-19 or 6-18-1 ECNL teams... The coaches do not get spread "evenly" like peanut butter across the ECNL tournament... Much less make them a league game destination!!!

 

[Grace T.]

FACT CHECK - WRONG!!!

No college coaches sit and watch the 5-19 or 6-18-1 ECNL teams... The coaches do not get spread "evenly" like peanut butter across the ECNL tournament... Much less make them a league game destination!!!

I never said they get spread evenly. The mls champion teams and academies pull more. The point you are arguing is that: a) for the olders they never go to the bottom half (at least relative to ecrl, ea or e64), and b) for the youngers you should always play on the winning team for the highest level (there is no development from playing on the weaker team).

 

[#girldad]

All these leagues, particularly ECNL, GA, E64, ECRL would have their "Difference" score increase dramatically if they simply regulated the bottom four or six each year. I don't know any child benefitting from being on a 5-19 ECNL club... Better off going 15-9 as an ECRL or E64 team...

Being on a ECNL club provides exposure at the showcases...Keep in mind, coaches/colleges recruit players and not teams..I remember a couple years ago when ECRL had a showcase in Phoenix on the same weekend as the ECNL showcase about 45 mins away from each other. I heard first hand that only a couple recruiters were at the ECRL games. One is still better off being on an ECNL team.

 

[#girldad]

FACT CHECK - WRONG!!!

No college coaches sit and watch the 5-19 or 6-18-1 ECNL teams... The coaches do not get spread "evenly" like peanut butter across the ECNL tournament... Much less make them a league game destination!!!

There's a few girls who played on some low level SoCal ECNL teams that are on college teams right now. I've just recently seen a couple SoCal Eagles players on college teams. Keep in mind, individual players are recruited and not teams. There are always good players on bad teams.

 

[Zeke]

Something like 90% of ECNL girls end up playing in college somewhere. Also about 40% of GA.

That doesn’t mean they all play P4, but there are a lot of college teams. If your kid can make the roster at any Socal ECNL team, she’ll have a chance to play somewhere if that’s what she wants to do.

Of couse, she might still hang up the cleats and go to art school, but that’s another question.

 

[Carlsbad7]

Something like 90% of ECNL girls end up playing in college somewhere. Also about 40% of GA.

That doesn’t mean they all play P4, but there are a lot of college teams. If your kid can make the roster at any Socal ECNL team, she’ll have a chance to play somewhere if that’s what she wants to do.

Of couse, she might still hang up the cleats and go to art school, but that’s another question.

Let's run the numbers...

There's 124 girls ecnl clubs. 124 X 20 per roster = 2480 potential players per year.

90% of 2480 = 2232

337 d1 267 d2 431 d3 202 naia 321 juco = 1558 total female college teams to play on.

I couldn't find a number on the total amount of college soccer commitments per year out of high school. But judging by the announcements I see from different schools it's between 1 and 3 new hs players per year. This means there's between 1558 and 3474 avaliable college roster spots per year.

On the low side (every college team gets one HS player) it's obvious that 2332 (90% of ECNL players) is more than the total number of available college roster positions 1558.

On the high side (every college team gets three HS players) 2332 (90% of ECNL players) is less the total number of available college roster positions 3474.

So is the statement of 90% of ECNL girls players correct? I think it may have been correct in the past but it's not correct today. With 28 player roster limits, transfer portal, international player, and other leagues like GA, etc also competing for roster spots it's just not possible.

 

[Zeke]

Let's run the numbers...

There's 124 girls ecnl clubs. 124 X 20 per roster = 2480 potential players per year.

90% of 2480 = 2232

337 d1 267 d2 431 d3 202 naia 321 juco = 1558 total female college teams to play on.

I couldn't find a number on the total amount of college soccer commitments per year out of high school. But judging by the announcements I see from different schools it's between 1 and 3 new hs players per year. This means there's between 1558 and 3474 avaliable college roster spots per year.

On the low side (every college team gets one HS player) it's obvious that 2332 (90% of ECNL players) is more than the total number of available college roster positions 1558.

On the high side (every college team gets three HS players) 2332 (90% of ECNL players) is less the total number of available college roster positions 3474.

So is the statement of 90% of ECNL girls players correct? I think it may have been correct in the past but it's not correct today. With 28 player roster limits, transfer portal, international player, and other leagues like GA, etc also competing for roster spots it's just not possible.

Sounds about right, except for your “1-3” number.

28 player rosters would be 7 per year, assuming everyone plays for all 4 years. Add a bit for those who quit the sport after 2 years, subtract a bit for international recruits. You’re still looking at roughly 6 new hs players per college team- on average.

That would be more like 7000 slots, counting everything. Enough to account for 2200 ECNL kids and another 700 from GA.

Numbers are tighter if you look only at D1, but still not horrible. 3000 kids chasing 2000 slots. Probably a little less because D1 schools as a class will recruit more transfers than they lose. (total guess there.)

Exception if you really want UCLA. In that case, hit the books and keep practicing.

 

[JeterwastheBEST]

I never said they get spread evenly. The mls champion teams and academies pull more. The point you are arguing is that: a) for the olders they never go to the bottom half (at least relative to ecrl, ea or e64), and b) for the youngers you should always play on the winning team for the highest level (there is no development from playing on the weaker team).

FACT CHECK - WRONG!: Not the point I was arguing (which was simple). I was arguing there are way too many weaker teams with these acronym designations getting hammered week in and week out. I really hate when blog posters assume a big corporate media narrative to everything....

FACT CHECK - WRONG:

b) for the youngers you should always play on the winning team for the highest level (there is no development from playing on the weaker team).

You're making a qualitative statement that playing on a crappy acronym soccer team always leads to better training ("development") and better experience for the young whipper snappers.... (talk about oxymorons...)

Are you shillin' for the non-Slammer, Surf, Legends clubs of the world? (i.e., we may suck but you'll get great development and training from Juan Pablo or Joe over here... and what a discount at only $3500!!+)

 

[JeterwastheBEST]

Being on a ECNL club provides exposure at the showcases...Keep in mind, coaches/colleges recruit players and not teams..I remember a couple years ago when ECRL had a showcase in Phoenix on the same weekend as the ECNL showcase about 45 mins away from each other. I heard first hand that only a couple recruiters were at the ECRL games. One is still better off being on an ECNL team.

One is better off getting good grades (i.e. "leverage"), going to ID camps, introducing yourself to coaches, and training up then trying to get on acronym teams where the coach has already selected half his relatives, neighbors and school chums to the team...

Instead of pissing away 1000sk driving to and from some pretty bad tournament and league games every year spend 10 days going to ID Camps if college is truly your whipper snappers end game...

 

[JeterwastheBEST]

There's a few girls who played on some low level SoCal ECNL teams that are on college teams right now. I've just recently seen a couple SoCal Eagles players on college teams. Keep in mind, individual players are recruited and not teams. There are always good players on bad teams.

Your broad, anecdotal evidence of "low level" acronym team players making it to college is fascinating but uninformative...

So, if I am reading you correctly, you're saying that of the 300+ or so Eagle acronym players every year a few made it to college to play soccer?

 

[JeterwastheBEST]

Something like 90% of ECNL girls end up playing in college somewhere. Also about 40% of GA.

That doesn’t mean they all play P4, but there are a lot of college teams. If your kid can make the roster at any Socal ECNL team, she’ll have a chance to play somewhere if that’s what she wants to do.

Of couse, she might still hang up the cleats and go to art school, but that’s another question.

You have data to show this percentile is accurate?

Secondly, how many of these "ECNL" girls across the country are firmly entrenched on a college roster of oh, say 40 women?

Remember, only 14 scholarships at D-1 at any one time.... That means nationwide probably 26 of these women pay as they go... Hmmmmmmm

 

[JeterwastheBEST]

Oh come on. You know as well as I do that the reason the ECNL clubs get that demand is the college looks. There is a long ass line of boys wanting to play for the worst MLS Next team (with some teams carrying even reserve players who NEVER get to play except for the occasional guest, and others commuting 2 hours) than with a mid tier EA team. The ECRL and E64 teams simply don't have that exposure while the weakest of MLS Next teams does.

Different story perhaps on the youngers, but if you are a younger defender or goalkeeper, and your team is crazy dominant on the offense, being on that strong team isn't doing wonders for your development either. Some of the weakest goalkeepers I've seen even on the olders (crazy stuff at the high level like letting balls slip through your hands) have been on the strongest teams....they hide out there though because their weaknesses aren't exposed. As Neil Thompson has said with respect to goalkeepers, development requires that you sometimes struggle....if you are on a winning team all the time you aren't going to develop as fast.

 

[JeterwastheBEST]

"There is a long ass line of boys wanting to play for the worst MLS Next team"

That's too bad... What a waste of a childhood....

 

[JeterwastheBEST]

"Different story perhaps on the youngers, but if you are a younger defender or goalkeeper, and your team is crazy dominant on the offense, being on that strong team isn't doing wonders for your development either."

So you're stating that getting an ass whipping on bad teams is "player development"? Commuting as "penance" I guess for not being related to, a neighbor of, classmate of, mom's not screwing coach, payola not affordable, acronym league...

You know college soccer ID Camps do not discriminate- have little Joey or Juan Pablo show up at the bad ass camps... You never know...

 

[Carlsbad7]

Sounds about right, except for your “1-3” number.

28 player rosters would be 7 per year, assuming everyone plays for all 4 years. Add a bit for those who quit the sport after 2 years, subtract a bit for international recruits. You’re still looking at roughly 6 new hs players per college team- on average.

That would be more like 7000 slots, counting everything. Enough to account for 2200 ECNL kids and another 700 from GA.

Numbers are tighter if you look only at D1, but still not horrible. 3000 kids chasing 2000 slots. Probably a little less because D1 schools as a class will recruit more transfers than they lose. (total guess there.)

Exception if you really want UCLA. In that case, hit the books and keep practicing.

Yea, the unknown is the total number of freshman female soccer players coaches add per year.

I'm seeing a variance between 1 and 6 new HS players per team per year.

Figuring out the average number of HS to college players per year is what needs to happen. Unfortunately I couldn't find it anywhere.

 

[JeterwastheBEST]

Yea, the unknown is the total number of freshman female soccer players coaches add per year.

I'm seeing a variance between 1 and 6 new HS players per team per year.

Figuring out the average number of HS to college players per year is what needs to happen. Unfortunately I couldn't find it anywhere.

That's because it is a well kept secret.....

 

[Zeke]

Yea, the unknown is the total number of freshman female soccer players coaches add per year.

I'm seeing a variance between 1 and 6 new HS players per team per year.

Figuring out the average number of HS to college players per year is what needs to happen. Unfortunately I couldn't find it anywhere.

My guess is that you are looking at high profile schools which recruit heavily in the transfer portal. An individual school might be able to make do with 3 hs recruits per year, provided they can net another 4 from the portal.

But college soccer as a whole can’t do that. When school A gains a transfer player, somewhere there is a school B that just lost one. The net effect is zero.

With rosters of 28, the average (HS plus international) has to be about 7. How else do you get to 28 with 4 years of eligibility?

 

[rainbow_unicorn]

b) for the youngers you should always play on the winning team for the highest level (there is no development from playing on the weaker team).

That is THE worst piece of advice you can give to a younger parent

 

[Carlsbad7]

My guess is that you are looking at high profile schools which recruit heavily in the transfer portal. An individual school might be able to make do with 3 hs recruits per year, provided they can net another 4 from the portal.

But college soccer as a whole can’t do that. When school A gains a transfer player, somewhere there is a school B that just lost one. The net effect is zero.

With rosters of 28, the average (HS plus international) has to be about 7. How else do you get to 28 with 4 years of eligibility?

What I see is one roster of 28 players and three potential places coaches can get new players.

1. HS grads
2. Transfer portal
3. International players

The question is over 4 years how many players leave the team and need to be replaced.

Also with many teams needing to get down to 28 player rosters. Some from much larger rosters, this means for the first couple of years there's going to be A LOT of talent in the transfer portal.