WAY TO GO! Three Wishes for the College Bound Soccer Player Are you contemplating a college soccer career? Are you overwhelmed by all the choices? Do you need direction? Hold on, help is on the way! Hey WSW Readers! STOP!!! Before you do anything else, call 1-800-638-3731 and order your free copy of the 1997-98 NCAA Guide to the College Bound Student Athlete or access the guide at http://www.ncaa.org/cbsa/ over the internet. This is the rule book for athletes wanting to participate in college sports. Get this guide before you enter the ninth grade and get a new copy each year (rules change, you know). Ignorance is not an excuse. If you break the rules, you could lose your college sports eligibility. OKAY, NOW WE'RE READY TO START. There's a lot to know. But what's IMPORTANT to know, but not commonly known? Who would know better than someone who has been there? While attending soccer camp this summer at Stanford University, I interviewed five Stanford players. Christy Arnold, Lisa Brooks, Erin Bryla, Becka Livermore, and Wendi Whitman shared their recruiting stories, advice on choosing the "right" college program, and their three wishes - what three things didn't they know as prospective student-athletes, that they wish they had known? CHOOSING THE "RIGHT" COLLEGE PROGRAM: All five players agree that the best advice they have ever gotten is this. "If you got hurt in the first 15 minutes of the first game, would you still want to be at that school?" THE THREE WISHES: Once I had their wishes I turned for advice to three experts: Steve Swanson, Head Coach at Stanford University, Gerald Guerrieri, Head Coach of Texas A&M (both NCAA Division I teams) and Andy Nelson, Head Coach at Wellesley College, a Division III team. THE FIRST WISH: What type of contact from prospective student-athletes do coaches prefer? SWANSON: Personally, I prefer direct contact from the student-athletes themselves regarding an interest in our program. To me student-athletes who take the initiative for their interest in a school say a lot about themselves and are the type of people I would want in our program. GUERRIERI: Mail or telephone contact from players is always preferred. NELSON: I prefer contact from the prospective student-athlete, rather than from parents, as this shows clear interest on the part of the player. Any written materials are good, in addition to occasional phone calls. Receiving a video from a player, especially at the Division III level is good, as recruiting budgets are small at the Division III level in particular. SHASTA'S WARNING: Read the NCAA Guide carefully before intiating any contact with a college program! SECOND WISH: In order to get "looked at" in what type of environment should a prospective student-athlete play ? Are there certain tournaments? What about ODP? SWANSON: There are so many tournaments nowadays that coaches go to. ODP is a great environment to grow and develop. The primary emphasis in being involved in ODP should be just that though. If a student-athlete is only playing ODP to get "seen," more often than not she will be disappointed. It would be like saying the only reason one coaches is to win. Obviously, we all want to win, but the emphasis has to be on what we can control - how hard we train, are we working together, etc. GUERRIERI: We (Texas A&M) do the lion's share of our evaluations of high school aged players in the ODP or club environment, due to the higher level of play and economy of time spent on the road. Logic says that each club team is made up of the best high school aged players from 3 or more high schools. Meanwhile, an ODP state team is going to have the best players from at least 5 different club teams, and a regional ODP team will have the best players from 12 different states. Thus, to see the best players in your quarter of the country play, you can go see 100 high school games or track the players in ODP and see them play 3 or 4 times at sub-regional, regional, and national ODP events. NELSON: The best Division III programs are looking for players that are used to playing year 'round and have played on good club teams that have had exposure to high level tournaments. ODP is not the be all and end all, but for a Division III coach who may not be able to see you play if you are out of region, it can give them some idea of your pedigree as a player. Coaches also understand that some states have stronger ODP programs than others and that not everyone plays ODP. SHASTA: I think you should go to the soccer camps of schools you are interested in attending. It gives you a chance to get the feel of the campus and check out the dorms. But, the most important thing you learn is whether you, the coach, and the kind of players in their program FIT together, both on and off the field. It's more important that YOU are enthusiastic about their program. Besides, there are a lot of games going on simultaneously at tournaments and ODP. You are a lot more likely to be "seen" at these events by programs you are interested in if a coach knows of your work ethic, coachability, great attitude, skill level, and interest in their school. Send them which of these events you are attending, your team and jersey number, and they will find you!! THE THIRD WISH: What are the differences in play - not only between Divisions I, II and III, but also within Divisions I, II, and III? SWANSON: The differences in play between Divisions I, II and III are large and small. I think far too many people think there is a huge gap. In fact, there are many Div. II teams that could compete quite well with Div. I teams and there are may Div. III teams that could compete at the Div. I level. When I was at Dartmouth, we played Keene State College, which was a Div. II team, and lost to them for two years before we beat them. I would say the fundamental difference is in the speed of play. There is much less time and space at the higher levels of Div. I soccer. GUERRIERI: In very general terms, the difference between the divisions is all about speed. Speed is divided into three categories: Physical Speed---how long it takes someone to get from point A to B, Technical Speed---how long it takes a player to control the ball, and Tactical Speed---how fast you can think under pressure. The fastest, or highest level players, are typically at the top Div. I programs. Basically, #1 and #2 in Div. I are as fast as anyone in the world, #3 through #15 are the next fastest in the world, #16 through #30 are next (top state team players), #31through #60 are state teamers, and #61 through #150 are quality club team players. The top 5 Div. II team players are just as talented as the players on the #16 through #30 Div. I teams. Division III players generally are not as serious about the game, choosing their college with soccer coming 2nd or 3rd in their priorities. NELSON: The main differences between Divisions I, II, and III from a committment standpoint, are the amount of time that players are required to put into fitness and travel. At Div. I, classes are generally blocked off so that student athletes will not miss practice or games. At Div. III, players who have to take particular classes during the fall that conflict with practice, must turn up late for practice. However, they almost always can talk to their professor if they have a game, and can make an arrangement to make up the work at some other point. From an ability standpoint, Div. I players tend to be quicker, stronger, and more technical. SHASTA: This information is a very valuable tool to use when narrowing down which programs you can be successful in as a player AND a student. There are handbooks available at bookstores and soccer retailers that list college soccer programs, which division they play in, and a breakdown of how many state, regional, and national players are in their school's program as well as academic information such as ACT and SAT requirements. In the next issue, I will include a training tip from the Stanford Residential Soccer Camp, where a good deal of emphasis was placed on ball control and striking the ball properly. In the meantime, e-mail me here at WSW. If you're in Dallas over Thanksgiving, look me up at the Sony Cup. Keep the ball rolling! Shasta © Women's Soccer World November/December 1997	Shasta's Articles Trends The Real World The "Parent Trap" Going The Distance Three Wishes Summer! 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