MakeAPlay
DA
Mine isn't a purple unicorn either. She is simply a talented kid that works hard and loves soccer. Good luck to your amazing young lady!
Silverlakes Summer Showcase?
- Thread starter Hawkeye
- Start date
Mine isn't a purple unicorn either. She is simply a talented kid that works hard and loves soccer. Good luck to your amazing young lady!
They never had 'consolation games' at Surf Cup before this year, so not sure what 'consolation games' you are referring to. It is a new format.
NoGoal
DA
Take a chill pill, I'm posting about when my DD's club team played consolation games during the ECNL North American playoffs. #sheesh #wounduptight
GoWest
GOLD
ScoutingZone is a really good "one-stop-shopping" site / app. In her case she used it after a coach showed interest just to get a full set of baseline info / details to all members of the coaching staff as a follow-up.
GoWest
GOLD
Not at all. Just reflecting on what i feel is good insight from NG. There are a few of us who have BTDT and I really think most are trying to offer good advice. There is no "best way" however there are nuggets of solid experience that can help balance expectations so a parent / player avoids undue frustration. At the end of the day if your player has the chops AND disposition for the game at the next level she will get noticed.
Appreciate all the insights. Been very confusing lately with 8th grade commits etc. I have been getting tons of mixed messages myself. I have friends who state that although coaches can't contact bring DD to unofficial visits and ID camps; then have others who say no it doesn't matter. I appreciate all of you taking the time to post and provide some clarity/reality.
GoWest
GOLD
No worries at all. Glad we can shed some light on what can feel, at times, like a lonely journey.
For the record I do appreciate the wake up calls too! A lot of us are good people who have fed some lines and this is a place where you can tell us like it is. I know coaches are under pressure and can't always tell it like it is so any "real talk" is appreciated.
GoWest
GOLD
I say do it. The more time spent "up front" on visiting schools of interest the better IMHO. In my players case it allowed us to ease into the process and then when the time came to make the big decision it was pretty much stress free. Again there is no "best way" but just offering another perspective.
MakeAPlay
DA
They had a complete 2nd "Gold" bracket before. Please read between the lines. Some things don't need to be completely spelled out.
GoWest
GOLD
Nothing wrong with contacting coaches as a parent. Relationships are important and you never know when that coach might move on.
Look I think Surf is a great club, and, in the past, Surf Cup has been the event of the season. But this year the format is not good, and I'm not talking about multiple flights which is problematic also. Some age groups have five flights! But there's a difference between having multiple flights, and a format, within each flight, which only allows one team to advance from each bracket to continue competing to win, and then everyone else-- even those who came in 2nd in bracket-- go straight to consolation games with NO QUARTER FINALS, and then scheduling these consolation games on day 3 of the tournament. It's just not the optimal format for showcasing, spending my kid's time and my money, or for plain fun.
It also leaves the organizing club (Surf) open to a lot of criticism, since 1.It has the appearance of a "money grab" forcing all teams to stay and play a 3rd day. And 2. There are brackets that seem stacked, since only one team advances, and they may happen to be brackets that don't include teams from the hosting club....
Just look at some of the age group threads. Just trying to express what some others are feeling about a tournament, Surf Cup, that we have all truly enjoyed over the years, and telling you that these kinds of issues are what probably send top teams over to Silverlakes, which is a showcase to start with. Fewer issues = better way to spend time and money.
chargerfan
GOLD
An 05? A 6th grader? Really?
Can you really compare the 2 events? Surf cup is a Tournament which eventually crowns a Champion. SilverLakes is only a Showcase w/ 3 games and you go home. At the youngest ages for DA, it definitely looks like Surf Cup has the advantage on the weekend. A better analysis would take a few years to see how it develops since this is Silverlakes inaugural event.
GoWest
GOLD
These "helpful hints" are from ScoutingZone:
The DO's and DON'Ts of Contacting College Coaches
Let's strike while the iron is hot! You are in the midst of your summer tournament schedule, and college coaches are flying all over the country to watch YOU PLAY...
NOW is the perfect time to contact college coaches of schools that you are interested in - either for the first time as an introduction or as a follow-up to previous contact. Let's talk about the messaging, frequency, and how to be most effective! Path to college soccer start here...
DO: Introduce yourself / DON'T: Send a fill-in-the-blank mass e-mail
•An introduction letter is very important and not a reproduced one. Make this letter something personal, not a fill-in-the-blank, mass e-mail. Make sure YOU are writing it, not mom and dad. The fastest way to find yourself in the virtual trashcan is to send a canned email {insert no real interest in your program} or by just sending an email to every program across the US! {Yikes!}
•Set yourself apart somehow…You have to remember the coaches get a lot of emails. Give them something that triggers them to remember who you are, express yourself in a way that you want them to know you are interested! Follow up on the season; ask about experiences with the team; reference a recent game; let them know if you will be in attendance at one of their upcoming games. Doing this shows real, genuine interest.
DO: Be mindful of the “right amount of contact” / DON'T: Be obnoxious or over-attentive
•Coaching is a full-time job. There is a difference between contacting, showing interest, and the other side, which is being a little obnoxious and overbearing. Trust me, you want to be memorable, BUT a coach shouldn’t have your phone number memorized because you are listed on their missed call log 10 times a day!
•NCAA has a rule that coaches can only contact you once a week.
•Every 10 days, maybe twice a month for contacting. If you contact a coach more than once a week, you’re starting to overbear.
•The easiest way to contact a coach is through e-mail (you don’t want coaches to start avoiding your calls). A phone call is okay too, but make sure YOU are doing it and not your mom or dad. YOU represent YOU, the best!
DO: Be persistant / DON'T: Get frustrated
•Let them know why you want to attend the school (e.g. coaching style, academics… this is why I think I would be a good fit for the team...).
•Talk about why you personally would be a great addition and what you would bring to the team. Confidence is a great thing and knowing when to appropriately inject it proves respectfulness and great awareness - not arrogance.
•Maintain a dialog at your prospective schools. Most of the time, schools will not respond to your communications. This can be frustrating but they are listening. Be persistent. Remember, recruitment is selling yourself and persistence is the key.
DO: Include the link to your SCOUTINGZONE player profile, ALWAYS!
•Make sure it has been recently updated with a current photo, your accolades, upcoming tournaments, include a video, your Top 10 Colleges... etc!
•In your email header always include: Name, Grad Year, Club Team
Toepuncher
BRONZE
At what age should you start this process?
NoGoal
DA
I would add try to have your DD's make the calls to the coaches themselves. My wife and I prepped her. She made all of the calls, if she got their voicemail she would leave a message and inform them specifically the day and time when she would call back. The college coaches like that a lot, because it shows maturity and the players interest in the school vs the parents doing the leg work for them.
outside!
DA
Freshman.
Toepuncher
BRONZE
Thanks
NoGoal
DA
Obviously you haven't been to or seen the amount of teams accepted to the Las Vegas College Showcase in March. They have at least 80 teams per bracket and the games are on multiple fields. Yet, 100's of college coaches still attend every year!
GoWest
GOLD
.....and maybe also start visiting schools early on as side trips when at tournaments for example. Just start kicking the tires so to speak.
I agree with outside! that it really starts that freshman season.