This article last updated on January 23rd, 2008

So you want to continue playing soccer in college?
 Here’s  how:
 

This article was originally posted to the SOCCER-COACH-L mailing list in response to a question about how to be recruited to play soccer in college. It has been updated a number of times so you may see various versions of it on-line.  This is the latest version.  Updated January 23, 2008.

 
        You don’t have to make the Olympic Development Program or be an all-star selection to play on a college team ... if you are realistic about yourself and the colleges you want to attend. There are hundreds of college soccer teams and lots of kids playing college soccer who were simply solid high school players - not stars. 

         Your first priority must be finding colleges which will provide you with the education you want and need. But unless your educational requirements limit your choices to just a few schools, if you were good enough to play soccer on a premier level club team and start on your high school varsity as a sophomore or junior, you can probably find a college soccer program where you can play.

        One word of caution here - stay away from the "pay-me-first" recruiters that are out there making promises to kids that they have no intention or possibility of fulfilling.  Their sales pitches may sound good on the surface but doubtless will only leave you hurting and poor.

         There are a few things you should consider before deciding to play college soccer:

       The life of a college athlete is very regimented.  That is you get up early, go to work out, go to class, go to practice, go to study hall, go to bed, and then start over.  There is time for "college life" but not nearly so much as a normal student.  

        You must be prepared to sit the bench. This is probably the most difficult transition that a star high school player can make.  Unless you are lucky enough to go to a team that has no one else to play your position, you are going to have to bump someone out of their position in order to play your freshman year and that is very hard to do.  The older players are going to get first shot at their positions and if they are good you may not get a shot until they graduate.  That is why it is really important to look for a team that NEEDS someone at your position.
      
         College ball will be a big transition.  Many kids are not able to handle it.  And it is not for everybody.  

         Now, if you're still interested here's a roadmap to help you find your way to that college team of your dreams:

 
The most important question you can ask yourself is,
"Will I be happy at this college if I am no longer playing soccer?"

 
 

Freshman/Sophomore Years

  1. Get your grades up.  They must be 2.0 or better, on the 4.0 scale, in a solid college prep curriculum (3.0 or better if your school uses the 5.0 scale). Do some academic planning, making sure you take all of the right college prep courses and get prepared for the SAT or ACT test.  Take any Advanced Placement (AP) courses you can handle. 

  2. Find a good club team & play year-round.

  3. Aim at making your high school varsity team as a sophomore. The strength of high school teams vary widely so many players make their high school teams as seventh or eighth graders while it is more difficult at the best high school soccer programs.

  4. Try out for ODP - the Olympic Development Program ... but, don’t worry if you don’t make it.

  5. In the tenth and eleventh grade get somebody to shoot video footage of you in games.  This will go in your packages you send out to coaches. See the notes at the bottom of this page concerning videos:  Do I need to make a video for College Soccer Coaches?
 

Junior Year (The Most Important Year)

Note: At the time this article was originally written, the junior year was considered the most important year and was usually the year that college coaches got commitments from players.  However in the past ten years the process has accelerated - especially on the girl's side where many of the top Division I colleges have their scholarships wrapped up years in advance.  Most national team and many regional ODP team players are committed to a college by the sophomore years.

  1. Make sure your grades are good .. grades above a 2.5 will get you in most schools.

  2. Take the PSAT as soon as possible.  Take the SAT and ACT also.

  3. Start for your high school varsity team.   

  4. Make the best club/travel team you can - one where other NCAA D1 - (Division 1) prospects are playing is preferred. Inquire about the number of "college showcase" tournaments the team will play AND the cost.  You can only prepare for college ball by playing against the best competition you can find.  A very fast speed of play and a very physical style of play are the hallmarks of college soccer.  You won't generally find that in local competition.  Seek out the best competition you can find. 

  5. Play year-round on as many teams as you have time for.

  6. Begin studying colleges for educational interests and soccer program. 

  7. Develop a list of 50-75 schools which serve your educational needs - where you could play.

  8. Have somebody shoot video footage of you in games.  See the notes at the bottom of this page concerning videos:  Do I need to make a video for College Soccer Coaches?

  9. Prepare a package documenting your educational and soccer qualifications.  Include the video footage. See the notes at the bottom of this page concerning videos:  Do I need to make a video for College Soccer Coaches? 

  10. Send your package to each head soccer coach on your list.
 
Spring Of Junior Year and the Summer Before Senior Year

  1. Take the SAT and ACT if you have not already done so. When you sign up for the ACT or SAT use code 9999 to have your scores sent directly to the NCAA Clearinghouse. If your score was not what you wanted, take the test again.  Taking an ACT or SAT prep course has shown to increase scores.

  2. Register with the NCAA Clearinghouse.  You must pass certain high school core courses and score a minimum score on either the SAT or ACT test in order to be certified to participate in NCAA Division I or II athletics as a college freshman. This must be done in the month of May in their Junior year.  The fee to register is $27 and the booklets with the form inside are available in most high school guidance offices.  Your counselors can obtain registration materials, at no cost, by calling the clearinghouse at 319/337-1492. A list of instructions, questions and answers and approved core courses is on-line at NCAA Clearinghouse.  If you have particular questions about the NCAA Clearinghouse, please write to: NCAA Clearinghouse, P. O. Box 4044, Iowa City, IA 52243-4044. 

  3. Keep a list of all the college soccer coaches who respond to your package.

  4. Keep notes on your conversations with coaches, if any.

  5. No response from a top choice? Resend your material.

  6. Make unofficial, unannounced visits to 10-12 schools you are most interested in.

  7. Keep playing on as many good teams as you can.

  8. Division 1 prospects - make the ODP regional pool team if you can.

  9. Find out your high school schedule; send it and test results to college coaches.

  10. Narrow list of top choices down to maximum of 10-15 schools.

  11. Follow all of the NCAA's recruitment rules.  Read over the NCAA Guide for the College-Bound Student Athlete.  http://www.ncaa.org/library/general/cbsa/2006-07/2006-07_cbsa.pdf

 

During Your Senior Year Season
 

  1. Set a goal to improve your GPA.

  2. Pick 5-7 schools, send applications.

  3. Be a varsity impact player - starter for sure, captain, all-league or all-star, etc.

  4. See as many of the college teams you like play as you can - meet coaches. Decide if there are coaches you like ... and coaches you don’t like. It is important that you get a feel for the coaching techniques of the coaching staff.  The coach is going to be a different person from the one you see when she/he is recruiting you and you need to know that you can handle her/his coaching methods.  Talk to players, watch games, and try to read between the lines.  Remember, college ball is going to be different from high school - they have to win to keep their jobs so there is going to be a lot of pressure on them (and correspondingly you) to perform.

  5. Analyze the style of play of the college teams - where would you fit in?

  6. Decide if there are coaches you like ... and coaches you don’t like.

  7. Which type of schools do you like? big, little, rural, city, etc. which programs?

 

After Senior Season

Note this is for schools that play in the fall. If your high school plays in the winter or spring you will have to move these items up on your list.

  1. Send senior season package to college coaches where you have applied.

  2. Keep in touch with admissions departments and college soccer coaches.

  3. After January 1st, fill out all financial aid documents.

  4. Continue to follow up with admissions offices, financial office & coaches until decisions are made.

  5. Review any new possibilities that present themselves (sudden interest from a different coach, etc.)

  6. Review all offers of admission and financial aid.

  7. Revisit or make formal visits to 3 schools you are most interested in.

  8. Pick the school with the best combination: education, financial aid, right soccer program for you.

  9. For a club, I suggest that you collect all the packages prepared by the players (their resumes and educational summaries) and put them into book which you can have available at tournaments and showcase events in case a college coach scouts your team. 

  10. The most important question you can ask yourself is, "Will I be happy at this college if I am no longer playing soccer?"

    I am going to add this note of advice from another coach, Jim MacQueen. 

         "Another dark secret of college soccer:  From the moment they get a kid to sign on the dotted line, they are looking for someone to replace him.  Why? Well, since college programs only have limited financial aid and scholarships to work with, recruiting usually does not come down to money. It usually focuses on playing time as a freshman, and in some cases, on playing a certain position.  
           Now think about that...if you have to promise playing time to freshmen to get them to come to your school, what is going to happen to the upper class player who started in that position the year before?  
          Some of the greatest players to come out of our area have only played for one or two years in college before some other freshman came into the program and took their spot.  In my humble opinion, a player has to really be a team anchor, and avoid injury, to play college ball for four years."   


          My own thoughts about Jim's advice about this are that most colleges are not known for progressing the skills of players they recruit.  Because the NCAA limits the amount of time a player can train and that coaches can coach - college soccer players at many schools are at their best physically when they report to school their freshman year after playing year -round soccer (club, ODP, high school).  In one or two years of part time training they are likely to lose their own starting jobs to new in-coming freshman.  
          Also I have an article on this website called "How College Scholarships Really Work" which should be mandatory reading and will come as an eye-opener for a lot of parents and players.  

Let me know what you think.

Ken Gamble  dsports@hiwaay.net
 

Do I need to Make a Video for college soccer coaches? 

Concerning videos:

The videos must be quality videos (not necessarily professional), shot properly (distance and focus), show individual skills and team play and should be filmed in the context of your playing position.  Don’t send a VHS, Beta max video or 8mm film.  Put it on a DVD or better yet, upload the video to Youtube or Google so it can be updated easily and accessed by any coach that you contact.  

Coaches would much prefer to see you in person.  The best solution would be to see you at their school playing at a camp or working with their players.  A college showcase would be the second best choice.  The coach could see you playing in a team context against good competition.  A video would be the third choice, but only if #1 or #2 wasn’t possible.

I’ve heard a lot of opinions from college coaches concerning the importance of videos and they fall into two main categories.

Most Division I coaches want to see you in person.  Coaches at the Division II, III, NAIA or junior college also want to see you in person, but their entire recruiting budget might be $500 for the year so they’re not likely to go see you play – you’ll have to come to them.  For most of those coaches, a video is a good choice – if you can’t actually go to their school or camp. 

Ken

Here are a few video guidelines from the USSoccerPlayers website linked above:

1. The entire tape should be no longer than 15 minutes. College coaches can tell if they like what they see after 10 or 12 minutes, so don't discourage them by providing too much footage. In addition, coaches receive loads of videotapes, and they will be thankful if you keep your video short.

2. College coaches want to see everything you are capable of doing on the field. Although you may be an excellent goal-scorer, do not only show footage of you scoring goals. Coaches want to see footage of different skills to get a sense of your versatility on the field, dribbling, defensive positioning, free kicks, throw-ins, sprinting -- show it all. Coaches even like to see how you react to mistakes on the field. The best way to give coaches a comprehensive look at you on the field is to choose footage of an actual game. This way coaches can see your skills, athleticism and speed during a real game. Videotape several games so that you will have a variety of segments from which to choose.

3. If you choose to make your own videotape, it may be helpful to use a tripod when filming to prevent jostling and shaking of the camera that will give anyone watching a headache. A tripod will keep the camera stationary and will allow the videotape recorder to focus on the game.

4. If you are a goalkeeper, include footage of yourself participating in various goalkeeper drills. Since goalkeepers do not normally see a great amount of action during games, these drills will allow you to continuously demonstrate your skills in goal. Make sure you diversify the drills you include in your video to demonstrate your skills on the ground, in the air, and your punting and throwing techniques. In addition, you should include some game footage, which allows college coaches to note your temperament and leadership during actual games

 
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