Goodbye 2006...hello 2007...

Happy Holidays from FCTP. I've been away on vacation and I'm sorry for the lack of recent updates. 2006 has been a big year for FCTP, we did start in 2006 after all, thank you to all the loyal readers and I'm looking forward to gaining some new readers in 2007.

The January 2007 will bring lots of excitement for FCTP enthusiasts. The MLS combine is set for Jan 5-8 at Lockhart Stadium in Ft. Lauderdale, Florida. We're still waiting to hear the names of the remaining players invited as Generation Adidas and players from NCAA Divisions II and II, as well as NAIA players and Division I alternates. The MLS draft will follow the combine by a week, taking place Jan. 12th at the National Soccer Coaches Association of America (NSCAA) Convention in Indianapolis, Indiana. As FCTP writer Allen pointed out earlier, you don't have to play at the combine to get drafted by MLS. In 2006, 23 of the 48 players selected in the SuperDraft participated in the MLS Combine.

For those not as interested in MLS, the US U-20 team will be working on their CONCACAF qualifying for the 2007 U-20 World Cup. Head on over to ussoccer.com for some info on the roster selection process. The team recently beat Canada's U-20 team 2-0 in preparation for the qualifying that starts at the end of January. On Wednesday, Jan. 17 the US faces off against Haiti. Then on friday, Jan. 19 the US plays Guatemala. Then the US plays Panama on Sunday the 21st. Based on these three group games, the top two teams in the group will qualify for the U-20 World Cup. We'll no doubt see a lot of young professionals taking on the world in these qualifiers and the Cup over the summer.

The senior US Men's National Team is starting their first camp of 2007 on January 4th. The team is preparing for a friendly against Denmark on January 20th. The camp roster is dominated by MLS stars due to the European based players being in the middle of their season (aside from Heath Pearce). Coach Bradley is taking this opportunity to look at a lot of younger players. In fact, two MLS rookies are invited from Bradley's former club, Chivas USA.

Clubs like the Colorado Rapids will begin holding open tryouts in late January, early February. Then MLS training camps will open up for the 2007 season. Before you know it I'll be enjoying the new Rapids stadium in person!

Happy New Year FCTP readers! I have a feeling 2007 is going to be a great one and I can't wait to see the results of the upcoming MLS combine.

2006 Addidas Major League Soccer Player Combine – Forwards

The last group from the 2006 that we haven't looked at are the forwards. The easiest way of summing them up is that, well, there's nothing too special from this group. 18 forwards were invited to the 2006 combine. Jason Garey and Calen Carr showed a lot of promise last year. But most of those invited a good number were not drafted or didn't make the roster of their respective teams. A couple have made at the pro level as midfielders. Of those that did make it in 2006, it's likely a few of them won't be around come opening day this spring.

Mike Ambersley (Indiana University)
SuperDraft 4^th round (43^rd overall) by FC Dallas
While listed by the MLS as a forward, Ambersley spent most of his career as a midfielder. He didn't make it FCD but did join Rochester (USL-1) in June 2006. He got in 924 minutes with the USL-1 2006 finalists.

Jason Garey (University of Maryland)
Superdraft 1^st round (3^rd overall) by Columbus Crew
Garey had a solid rookie season with the injury plagued Crew logging 1,712 minutes and notching 5 goals and 2 assists to the lead the team in goal scoring. He showed enough for it to be fair to expect more out of him in 2007 as head coach Sigi Schmid tries to turn around a franchise that went from bad to worse in 2006.

Kyle Brown (University of Tulsa)
SuperDraft 3^rd round (35^th pick overall) by New England Revolution
While in college Brown played for 3 teams in the PDL, the Texas Spurs, Boulder Rapids Reservs and the Chicage Fire Premier. He scored 16 goals in 25 games for the latter 2 teams. He didn't get to show his skills often with a New England team that had plenty of attacking options. But his 291 minutes for the Revolution, he did at least manage an assist. With Cancela gone, Dempsey likely to be on the move and possibly even Taylor Twellman Kyle Brown could see a lot more time for Steve Nicol in 2007.

Calen Carr (University of California)
SuperDraft 1^st round (10^th overall) by Chicago Fire
Like New England Chicago had plenty of attacking options with Chris Rolfe, Andy Herron, Chad Barrett, Nate Jaqua and mid-season aquisition Ryan Johnson all able to play up top. Carr's pace made him a good substitute as he logged 500 minutes and notched a goal and an assist for the Fire in 06. He showed promise and a lot of pundits were surprised to see Toronto FC pass him over for Nate Jaqua (yet to be re-signed by the MLS and since traded to Los Angeles for a partial allocation). With Rolfe, Herron, Barrett and Johnson returning, Carr is likely again to find himself coming off the bench in 2007.

Matt Groenwald (St. John's University)
SuperDraft 3^rd round (28^th overall) by Kansas City Wizards
Listed as a forward for the combine, KC successfully deployed Groenwald as a midfielder. Matt racked up 1,221 minutes in 19 appearances, 16 of those starts, for the Wizards. It's hard to know at this point how new coach Curt Onalfo view Groenwald but if he impresses his new coach he's a dark horse candidate for the 2007 sophmore player of the year.

Duke Hashimoto (Southern Methodist University)
SuperDraft 4^th round pick (38^th overall) by Columbus Crew
Note : Pick aquired by Crew from FC Dallas who had aquired it from RSL.
Duke Hasimoto joins Brian Ching as the other Hawain in the MLS. Other than the irony of ending up being traded during the season to the team that originally held the pick used by the Crew to select him, there isn't anything note-worthy about Hashimoto's first season in the league. While he wasn't waived by RSL, it's not clear that the SMU standout will still be in the league for the 2007 season.

Brian Cvilikas (Old Dominion University)
Supplemental Draft 3^rd round (29^th overall) by then NY / NJ Metrostars
Cvilikas, from Highlands Ranch, is one of the 4 Colorado natives drafted in 2006. He did log some playing time with the NY reserves. After being cut he did play with the Columbus Crew reserves as a guest player. It's unknown if he'll continue to play professional soccer in 2007.

Tony Donatelli (Temple University)
Supplemental Draft 3^rd round (32^nd overall)
Another PDL grad (Ocean City Barons) Donatelli did not make the squad for the Houston Dynamo. He then had a tryout with the Rochester Rhinos before joining the Vancouver Whitecaps. He got in a fair amount of playing time for the Whitecaps including getting a start along with a goal against Rochester in the final. After winning the championship with Vancouver the Philadelphia native Donatelli joined his hometown team the Philadelphia KiXX (MISL). It's common for USL players to play in both the outdoor and indoor seasons. There is no word yet on if he'll be rejoining the Whitecaps for the 2007 season.

Ross McKenzie (University of Akron)
Not Drafted
Scottish born McKenzie grew up in New Zealand before coming to the US to play at the University of Akron. He had a try out with the Detroit Ignition (MISL) but returned to his native New Zealand to play in the amatuer New Zealand Football Championship league. He scored 2 goals for Aukland City as they won their 2^nd Grand Final in the 05/06 season.

Omar Jarun (University of Dayton)
Not Drafted
Both the Philadelphia Kixx (MISL) and Atlanta Silverbacks (USL-1) drafted Omar Jarun. He joined the Silverbacks where he had a good rookie season loggin 1,528 minutes after being converted to a defender. While not likely it's possible that he could resurface in the MLS as a fullback given the lack of good fullbacks in the league.

Jimmy Klatter (Eastern Illinois University)
Not Drafted
Klatter is the first player from Eastern Illinois University to be invited to a combine. While no MLS teams drafted him, the St. Louis Steamers (MISL) did draft him. They didn't offer him a contract and he later tried out with the Chicago Storm (MISL). Like the Steamers, the Storm didn't offer Klatter a contract. He didn't play with any other pro teams in 2006.

Aaron King (North Carolina State University)
SuperDraft 4^th round (48^th overall) by Los Angeles Galaxy
King didn't stick around Los Angeles very long before the Denver native got himself traded to his hometown Colorado Rapids. He didn't see any time with the first team and was waived by the Rapids after the 2006 season ended.

Karim Dietz (Birmingham-Southern College)
Not Drafted
No notes on Karim Dietz as he didn't seem to try out or play with any other pro teams after the MLS combine.

Jeff Rowland (University of New Mexico)
Supplemental Draft 1^st round (2^nd overall) by Real Salt Lake
The 6' 1" Rowland showed some promise while making the roster for RSL. Unfortunately for him he blew out a knee and was later waived by the team. After surgery he was workign on rehabilitating his knee. It wouldn't be surprising to see him in RSL's camp this spring although with Cunningham, Tejada, Soto, Harris, Watson and Kreis it seems unlikely he would make the team.

David Leung (Oral Roberts University)
Not Drafted
Like his college teammate Jorge Flor, David Leung was not drafted after the combine. He did play with the Chicago Fire Premeir team in the PDL in 2005. It's unknown if he played at all in 2006 after the combine.

Ryan Johnson (Oregon State University)
SuperDraft 3^rd round (26^th overall) by Real Salt Lake
Before joining the MLS, Ryan Johnson played for the Cape Cod and Boulder in the PDL. Johnson showed some promise on the left side of the midfield before John Ellinger traded him to the Chicago Fire for some badly needed defensive cover in the form of Jack Stewart. He even was called into the Jamaica national teams camp and earned a cap. However Johnson found his time limited at Toyota Park only logging 54 of his 208 minutes with the Fire in 2006. While still on the roster for Chicago it's not clear how Johnson fits into Sarachan's plans for 2007. It's possible that looking for some attacking pace in their lineup like the Rapids or DC United will make a move for him before spring training starts.

Kelechi Igwe (Santa Clara University)
Not Drafted
Kelechi Igwe was not drafted by any teams in Major League Soccer. It's not known if he played at all in 2006 after the combine.

Dominic Oduro (Virginia Commonwealth University)
Supplemental Draft 2^nd round (22^nd overall) by FC Dallas
Despite the depth of attacking talent available at Pizza Hut Park, Oduro was able to make the team. During 2006 he was frequently used as a sub, logging 413 minutes and a goal in his rookie year under now ex-Dallas coach Colin Clarke. The native Ghanian offers the kind of pace even experience MLS defenders have a hard time coping with. He'll still only be 21 going into 2007 and is likely to be at FCD for a 2^nd year, this time under new coach Steve Morrow.

2006 Addidas Major League Soccer Player Combine – Midfielders

To continue with our look back at the 2006 combine, we'll examine the midfielders that attended. 17 midfielders were invited to the 2006 player combine. 5 midfielders at the combine were not drafted. Of those drafted, only 6 are still on their respective teams rosters.

Midfielders

Josh Alcala (University of South Carolina)
Not Drafted
Alcala was one of many midfielders invited to the combine that wasn't drafted. To the best of our knowledge Alcala didn't go on to play profesional soccer after the combine.

Brian Plotkin (Indiana University)
SuperDraft 2^nd round (20^th overall) by Chicago Fire
Note : Draft pick aquired from Houston Dynamo
Plotkin is one of 2 Indiana University players to be select in the draft. In 2006 Plotkin played 529 minutes in 14 games for the Eastern Conference finalists Chicago Fire. From the Chicago exurb Lisle, Plotkin showed enough to be around in the MLS in 2007.

Blake Camp (Duke University)
SuperDraft 4^th round (41^st overall) by then New York / New Jersey Metrostars
Note : Draft pick was originally traded to Houson by NY got it back in exchange for Zach Wells
With 36 minutes in 2006, Blake Camp barely saw the pitch for the New York Red Bulls. He is still on the squad and one would assume he'll be around for 2007 under new coach Bruce Arena.

Danny Kramer (Duke University)
Not Drafted
While a bit small for the MLS at 5' 7", Kramer went into the combine with the 3^rd most amount of PDL experience for players at the combine. But all that playing time in the PDL, Brooklyn Knights, didn't help him get into the MLS. He was drafted by the Rochester Raging Rhinos (For fun try saying that one outloud as Elmer Fudd) as the 5^th overall selection in the USL collegiate draft. Kramer only got 5 starts and 400 minutes with the Rhinos last year.

Jeff Carroll (St. John's University)
SuperDraft 4^th round (39^th overall) by DC United
Note : Pick acquired from Columbus Crew
2006 may have been the first time that brothers of 2 different MLS players were selected in the draft (and at that by the same teams their brothers played for) with Brian Carroll's younger brother Jeff being selected by DCU. Jeff did not see much time in the first team with DCU coach Peter Nowak only using him in 2 games for a total of 101 minutes. Jeff Carroll is still on DCU's roster and should see more playing time with DC playing in 4 competitions in 2007.

Mike Chabala (University of Washington)
SuperDraft 4^th round (44^th overall) by Houston Dynamo
Chabala did not see any playing time for the 06 MLS Cup champions. One would assume he is in coach Kinnear's plans for 2007 at this point but he was one of the players Houston left unprotected in the recent expansion draft for Toronto FC.

David Chun (Southern Methodist University)
Supplemental Draft 2^nd round (15^th overall) by Columbus Crew
Chun was part of the U-17 residency program in 2001 along with 2006 MLS combine players Jordan Harvey, Tyson Wahl and Chris Lancos. It appears that he did make the Crew's opening day roster but left during the season to complete college. No word on if he plans to return in 2007.

Brian Devlin (Penn State University)
Supplemental Draft 3^rd round (31^st overall) by NY Red Bulls
Note : Pick aquired from DC United.
Devlin did not make the Red Bull's opening day roster. No word on what he is up to but doesn't appear to have played in 2006 after being cut by New York.

David Walters (Penn St. University)
Not Drafted
PSU product David Walters was not drafted. He does appear to have played professionally in 2006.

Yohann Mauger (University of Akron)
Not Drafted
Some saw Mauger as having the creative potential to make it as an attacking midfielder in the MLS. Nevertheless none of the MLS teams drafted him in 2006. He was drafted by the Detroit Ignition of the Major Indoor Soccer League (MISL). Ex-MLS Jamar Beaseley, older brother of Manchester City and US Mens National Team star DaMarcus Beasely, and Chris Farias (ex-San Diego Flash, ex-El Paso Patriot) played for the Ignition. However Mauger didn't sign a contract with Detroit. He may have returned to France to play.

Dan Paladini (California State University, Northridge)
Supplemental Draft 2^nd round (24^th overall) by Los Angeles Galaxy
Paladini made the opening day roster for the Galaxy but was later waived. At one point during 2006 he played with the reserves for Los Angeles' other MLS team, Chivas USA. No word on if he's planning on trying to try out for any MLS teams for 2007.

Matt Wieland (Creighton University)
Supplemental Draft 4^th round (47^th overall) by New England
Wieland was another combine player that was a member of the 2005 Des Moines Menace that won the PDL title. He didn't make New England's camp choosing instead to stay in school. It's unclear if he plans on trying out for 2007.

Lance Watson (University of New Mexico)
SuperDraft round 2 (16^th overall) by Kansas City Wizards
Watson was one of 2 players from an emerging UNM Lobos program to be drafted in 2006 (Rowland was the other. Watson showed promise making 11 appearances and logging 450 minutes for KC last year. Still on the roster, Watson will be looking to show Onaflo that he deserves more playing time next year.

Jorge Flor (Oral Roberts University)
Not Drafted
Flor was one of 2 Oral Roberts University players. And like David Leung, Jorge Flor was not drafted by the MLS. We were unable to determine if he played any professional soccer in 2006.

Darren Spicer (Princeton University)
Supplemental Draft 2^nd round (13^th overall) by Chivas USA
Princeton alum and ex-coach Bob Bradley, then coach of Chivas USA, wasn't big on drafting players from the combine. But he did take Spricer in the 2^nd round of the Supplemental draft. Darren did not make Chivas USA's roster. After being let go he did try out with Los Angeles Galaxy, making at least one appearance with their reserve team. Like other players cut in 2006, he's unlikely to be with an MLS team in 2007.

Mpho Moloi (University of Connecticut)
Supplemental Draft 1^st round (7^th overall) by Houston Dynamo
Willis Forko's UConn teammate Mpho Moloi, a South Africa native, did not get any playing time with Houston's first team in 2006. There were rumors of him heading over seas in the off-season. So far he's still with Houston.

Justin Moose (Wake Forest University)
SuperDraft 1^st round (7^th overall) by DC United
Midfield Moose saw the least amount of playing time in 2006 for 1^st round picks, at least ones that made the cut. He saw just one minute in one game with the Screaming Eagle's first team. Ianni saw 2 minutes so Moose was saw the least time of all the 1^st rounders. Like his rookie teammate Jeff Carrol, Justin Moose should see more playing time in 2007 with DCU's busy schedule.

College Kids Going Pro....06/07

As the New Year approaches more and more college underclassmen are making the decision to go pro. Not all will end up in MLS as Charlie Davies has shown, but I'm sure a few gems will. Most recently we've heard from Maurice Edu and Chris Seitz about their plans to go pro.

At the same time, the list of players staying in school is getting longer. So far Yannick Reyering, Jonathan Villanueva and Joe Lapira have said they are staying in school.

I guess the above news is good for UVA and not so good for Maryland.

As always, you can keep up with the latest at 3rd Degree in their Generation Adidas tracking section.

2006 Addidas Major League Soccer Player Combine Review

The approaching new year means the 2007 Addidas MLS Combine is nearly here. The 2007 version is from Jan. 5^Th – 8^th in Ft. Lauderdale Florida. Earlier here at From College To Pros Bonji took a look at the 58 players invited this year. But instead of looking at this years combine, I want to take a look back at past combines to see what happened with those players. Over the next few weeks I'll be posting on past combines and what happened with those players since the combine. I welcome everyone to look things over and share their own conclusions. As for myself after looking back at 2006, I could see that many of the players drafted were not at the combine. I'm already wondering how important the combine is for the players and coaches.

For it's 3^rd player combine, Major League soccer invited 4 goalkeepers and 15 defenders. Interestingly enough all of them were drafted in either the the 2006 SuperDraft or 2006 Supplemental Draft. And the majority of them were still with MLS teams by the end of the 2006 season. A break down of the players follows.

Goalkeepers

Ray Burse (The Ohio State University)
SuperDraft 3^rd Round pick (30^th overall) by FC Dallas (FCD)
One thing that that doesn't get mentioned often about player development in the US is the PDL. It's an amatuer league that is part of the USL. Like many of his fellow collegiate players, Ray Burse played in the PDL during the college off-season with the Columbus Stars in 2004 and Chicago Fire Premier in 2005. One other bit of trivia on Burse is that during the national team player stike, he trained with the USMNT before their qualifier against Grenada in 2004. Burse didn't see any playing time with FC Dallas during 2006 but is still listed on their roster.

Eric Kronberg (University of California)
SuperDraft 4^th round pick (40^th overall) by KC Wizards
Played with Sonoma County Sol of the National Premier Soccer League (NPSL; US 4^th division) 2004-2005. Kronberg didn't see any playing time for KC in 2006. He was loaned out to USL-1's Miami FC (home of the famous Brazilian Romario during 2006). He got in 932 minutes in 11 games with Miami. A good prospect for KC who could give Kevin Harman a challenge in 2007.

Chris Dunsheath (Bradley University)
Superdraft 3^rd round (36^th overall) by Los Angeles Galaxy
While he made the Galaxy's roster, he didn't get any playing time in 2006 with Steve Cronin and Hartman battling it out for the starting spot. Instead of playing he went back to school to finish him. Word on the street is that he'll "return" for 2007 with LA still holding his rights.

Andy Gruenbaum (University of Kentucky)
Supplmental Draft 1^st round (3^rd overall) by Columbus Crew
Gruenebaum was the only goalkeeper from the combine to get playing time with his respective first team in 2006. Part of that was due to Columbus' string of goalkeeping injuries. He got 185 minutes in 3 games. Don't be surprised to see him out on the pitch for the Crew's opening 2007 game. Sigi seems to hold Gruenbaum in high regard.

Defenders

Kenny Bertz (University of Maryland)
SuperDraft 4^th round (47^th overall) by DC United (DCU)
Note: DCU aquired the draft pick from the New England Revolution
Played with the PDL's Columbus Stars in 2003. With the depth of defenders at DC United, it was going to be difficult for Bertz to make the opening day roster. He was cut in March and went to the Portland Timbers who had drafted him (1^st round; 20^th overall) in the USL-1 draft. He ended up signing the Rochester Rhinos and started and played in 26 games including their loss in the final to Vancouver.

Chris Lancos (University of Maryland)
Supplemental Draft 4^th rounn (41^st overall) by Real Salt Lake (RSL)
While he participated in the combine, it was unlikely that Lancos was going to play in the MLS. RSL was willing to use a supplemental pick on him to secure his rights in case he signed with the MLS in the next few years. Lancos went to Europe and signed a contract with Kaiserlaurtern. He played with Kaiserslautern II which is their reserve / youth team that plays in Germanys Regionallia Süd. Chris Lancos is the first player from West Virginia to play in Germany.

Daniel Wasson (University of Tulsa)
Supplemental Draft 4^th round (38^th overall) by Colorado Rapids
A Colorado Springs native, Wasson started his college career at the Air Force Academy. He finished at the University of Tulsa. The MLS listed him as defender but Rapids coach Fernando Clavijo successfully deployed him as a defensive midfielder. He got 7 starts and 17 games for the Rapids in 2006. Watch for him to get a lot more playing time if the rumors come true and Pablo Mastroeni is sold during the off-season.

Kyle Veris (The Ohio State University)
SuperDraft 3^rd round (25^th overall) by Los Angeles Galaxy
The big DC native played for PDL clubs Toledo Slayers, Mid-Michigan Bucks, and Columbus Shooting Stars (teammate of Kenny Bertz there). In 2006 he played in 10 games with the Los Angeles Galaxy. Frank Yallop may have seen enough between Veris and fellow 2006 combine player Nathan Sturgis to be willing to part with Ugo Ihemelu.

Tyson Wahl (University of California)
SuperDraft 2^nd round (19^th overall) by Kansas City Wizards
Note : KC aquired draft pick from Chicago Fire who had received it from DC United.
Saw over 600 minutes of play with a Kansas City team that was thin due to injuries and World Cup call-ups. He's still on the roster but his future will depend on new KC coach Curt Onalfo's vision for the team.

Trevor McEachron (Old Dominion University)
Supplemental Draft 1^st round (12^th overall) by Los Angeles Galaxy
He didn't make the roster cut with Los Angeles. He saw over 1,000 minutes of action with the Richmond Kickers (USL-2). He also saw some action with DC United's reserves in 2006.

Jeff Curtin (Georgetown University)
SuperDaft 2^nd round (14^th overall) by Chicago Fire
Note : Chicago Fire aquired pick from RSL
Younger brother of veteran Fire defender Jim Curtin. Jeff didn't see any playing time with the Fire this last year but he's still on Chicago's roster.

Corey Farabi (Drake University)
Supplemantal Draft 3^rd round (28^th overall) by Kansas City Wizards
He previously played for the Des Moines Menace in the PDL including a US Open Cup (USOC) against KC in 2005. The Menace won the PDL title in 2005. Made KC's roster for 2006 but at some point was dropped.

Justin Moore (Clemson University)
SuperDraft 2^nd round (15^th overall) by FC Dallas
Note : Pick was acquired from Columbus Crew
Moore saw very little playing time in 2006 with 159 minutes in 2 games. Justin is still listed on FCD's roster and will be looking to impress new coach Steve Morrow.

Anthony Noriega (George Mason University)
Supplemental Draft 1^st round (4^th overall) by Kansas City Wizards
Noriega was the Colonial Athletic Associattion Defender of the Year for 2005. Doesn't appear to have made the final roster cut with KC for 2006.

John Queeley (North Carolina State University)
Supplemental Draft 2^nd round (23^rd overall) by New England Revolution
The Denver, Colorado native more frequently goes by Thomas Queeley. While he didn't make it with the Revolution, he did end up playing wit the Puerto Rico Islanders (USL-1). He logged over 2,000 minutes for the Islanders in 2006. This fall Queeley played with PRI in the Caribean's club competition, the CFU Club Championship.

Danny Wynn (St. Louis University)
Supplemental Draft 1^st round (11^th overall) by New England Revolution
Wynn made the cut and was with the Revolution for 2006. He only saw 62 minutes of playing time and was waived by the Revolution after the 2006 season.

Jordan Harvey (University of California - Los Angeles)
SuperDraft 1^st round (9^th overall) by Colorado Rapids
Jordan Harvey didn't see any playing time with the Rapids first team. He did frequently play for the reserves both as a defender and left midfielder. He's still on the Rapids roster and given the number of players recently waived by Clavijo is likely in his plans for 2007.

Willis Forko (University of Connecticut)
Supplemental Draft 2^nd round (12^th overall) by Real Salt Lake
One of the surprise players of 2006 to come out of the Supplemental draft along with Lawson Vaughn and Dasan Robinson (neither of the latter two participated at the 06 combine). Forko got his chance to show his skills at left back for Real Salt Lake when injuries forced head coach Ellinger to move Costa Rican Daniel Torres into the center of the defense. He was a finalist for MLS rookie of the year.

Stephen Shirley (Virginia Commonwealth University)
SuperDraft 3^rd round (29^th overall) by Kansas City Wizards
Stephen Shirley didn't get any playing time for KC in 2006. He is still listed on the roster as both a defender and midfielder. It will be interesting to see how 2007 goes for him as he's shown a lot of talent at the youth levels having represented Scotland as a U-14 and U-15 plus the USA as a U-18 and U-20.

US Soccer Names Roster for First Camp of 2007...

US Soccer's new head man has released his first roster ahead of the camp starting January 4th in preparation for the first match of 2007 against Denmark. Bob Bradley's roster contained some familiar names to MLS fans as 28 of 29 players play domestically. It should be no surprise that 3 of the 29 players on the camp roster are Chivas USA players, Bradley's former team.

This brings up a couple interesting points. First, Chivas USA has sent 3 players to the US National Team camp. A few years ago when Chivas USA was first rumored and then created fans across the country cried foul as "Mexican soccer was taking over." I hope all of those posters on Big Soccer now realize it Chivas USA isn't a Mexican farm team and they are making a contribution to US Soccer.

The second interesting point is that three of the top young players on this camp roster are from Chivas USA. Bradley did a terrific job in the 2007 draft selecting Johnathan Bornstein and Sacha Kljestan and he knows first hand they have earned a call up to the senior nats. While Bradley wasn't responsible for drafting Brad Guzan, he does know how skilled the young keeper is. I'm glad to see Bradley bring along some of his old team. These kinds of camp experiences are important in the development of the young American footballers.

Let's look at some of the statistics on this camp roster:
- 76% of the players have five or fewer caps
- 34% of the players have not played in a match for the senior national team
- 10% were drafted into MLS in 2006
- 41% have played in a FIFA World Championship roster with the United States at either the World Cup, Olympics, U-20 or U-17 level

The team is obviously missing all of the European stars who are in mid-season, so this camp is an opportunity for the new coach to cast a wide net. Bob Bradley is certainly looking at the up and coming youth...notice the absence of long time national teamers like Eddie Pope, World Cup vets like Brian Ching and fantastic flame outs like Eddie Johnson.

Landon Donovan is the most experienced player on the roster with 84 caps, at 24 years old that is a little frightening. I haven't yet seen the leadership qualities required from Donovan. We'll see if Bradley can coax them out.

I'm looking forward to January to see how this young MLS crew tackles the challenge of a full national team match. Here's to a new year!

Cam Weaver to FK Haugesund....

There goes the rumor that Cam Weaver, the outstanding rookie striker in USL-1 in 2006, is coming to a MLS city near you. Add him to the Charlie Davies, Nat Borchers and Almir Barbosa train of players going to the great white north. No, not Canada, but the Nordic countries of Sweden, Norway and Denmark (Ok, if I mislabeled either of these as Nordic countries, please be kind.)

It seems that Nordic soccer teams have determined that the USA has a solid supply of affordable, young soccer players. Today, most any American player with skills can sign a deal over there for more money then MLS. If not more money, they can at least say to their friends, "Hey, I'm playing football in Europe!"

Take Almir Barbosa listed above. While he was raised in a soccer loving country, its not like he was brought up at a top level, D-1 soccer school. He played college soccer and earned his way across the pond. Either MLS missed out on him or he is just good enough to be playing in the third division of Swedish soccer.

In some ways I'm happy for these kids. They're making a living playing the game they love while living an exciting adventure abroad. I'm also happy to know that they're learning in a professional environment that someday could help grow the US National Team or leagues here at home. On the other hand I'm getting more and more pissed when these guys are forced to leave the US to earn a living and find "higher level competition."

If I ever meet Almir Barbosa, I'll ask him, "Almir, is the third division of Swedish soccer really higher quality then MLS or USL?" I find it hard to believe. So is it really the money? For Charlie Davies it may be. Somewhere in the Internet blob of information I've read that he could become one of the top paid players in Sweden. I find that hard to believe too as he's never played professional soccer. Unless Sweden was looking for their own Freddy Adu.

I'm sure all of the kids who leave the US have different reasons for going. As I said before, I'm torn on what to think and I can't say I blame them for trying something new. At the same time, MLS needs to start stepping it up and keeping the majority of these young Americans here. The league needs to continue building traditions of good competition so the choice of where to get the best games is not immediately Norway...or Sweden. If the Premier League was stealing all our top talent, that'd be one thing. But this is Sweden people! Let's get serious MLS!

Current crop of U.S. U-17s show promise....

Check out the most recent Jen Chang article on espn.com. A nice piece looking at the current U-17 crop. Enjoy!

Charlie Davies to sign with Hammarby...

One of the highest rated players coming out of American College Soccer this year is not going to be playing in MLS anytime soon. Charlie Davies of Boston College has decided to test his ability in Europe. The talented Junior from Manchester, New Hampshire will be be flying to Sweden today to sign his contract with Hammarby of the Swedish Allsvenskan according to Marc Connolly.

This is the type of player MLS needs to be able to hold on to. He has been dazzling college soccer fans for the past three years and almost everyone who sees him play says his skills are top level. If MLS could sign a few players of Davies' caliber each season the quality of play would no doubt continue to rise. It comforts me to know MLS didn't sit by idly watching Davies cross the pond. Connolly reports that MLS put a lucrative offer on the table. In this case I suspect Davies' ambition is taking him to Europe. Good luck to him. I was hoping to get to watch him first hand in 2007, but I guess I'll just have to wait.

More and more it seems to me all roads lead back to MLS for top American soccer players. Rumors of Brian McBride returning to MLS and Claudio Reyna joining for the first time make me realize that Americans are apt to love their country and want to play their sport here at some point. So we may miss some of their prime years. We got to see Eddie Pope's prime and I have no doubt more Americans will follow in his footsteps in the future.

Then again, Davies may find he can't cut it in Sweden and he'll pull a Jovan Kirovski in a couple of years. Who knows, by then we may not want him here.

Charlie Davies Continues to Search....

Yanksabroad.com is reporting Charlie Davies is leaving his Ajax trial without an offer. Many people with Facebook accounts reported he posted on his site that he is signing with Ajax, but I guess he got too excited too soon. Davies reportedly has interest from other clubs, but not receiving an offer from Ajax must dampen his spirits. I wonder if MLS is looking any better to the young attacker?

2006 College Soccer Awards

Well folks, as any sporting season winds down and the championship hangover starts to go away, awards roll on in. I figured I'd point you towards some I've been keeping my eyes on. Earning one of these awards gets the player a spot in my tracking spreadsheet so pay attention. The Freshman you'll read about later, will be the same ones who end up in the margin, in addition to others.

2006 College Soccer News - All-America Teams

2006 College Soccer News - All-Freshman Teams

2006 NCAA Division I NSCAA/adidas All-America Team

Those are the biggies. As more pop up I'll post them.

Here's the most recent as of 12-13-06:
2006 Soccer America Player of the Year

2006 Soccer America MVP Team

13 Year Old - Charles Renken

American soccer was taken by storm a few years back when rummors of an incredibly gifted 13 year old started to appear. Now we're all aware of Freddy Adu and many probably think he was a once in a lifetime type of player. However, the soccer boards are alight with talk of another 13 year old these days. Charles Renken of Edwardsville, Illinois started getting invited to regional ODP camps two years ago as an 11 year old. Renken was born in Zambia and adopted by an American family at the age of 9 and he has played for St. Louis super-club, Scott Gallagher. This year at the Nike Friendlies Renken is playing with the U-15 National Team and yesterday he was the only player to score for the US against FC Delco. On Friday Renken had the pleasure to play against Italian youth side Juventus.

Rumors are out there that the 13 year old star will follow in Adu's footsteps to join the US U-17 residency program. If he does, and if he excels there, we could see a second 14 year old phenom joining MLS. That is getting a little ahead of things but it is exciting to see that Freddy may not have been a once in a lifetime occurrence.

Someday we could be reading about Renken skipping MLS all together as he has already had interest from AC Milan, 1860 Munich, Reading, Bayern Munich and Arsenal.

United States Under-20 Men’s National Team To Hold Camp....

US U-20 National Team head coach Thomas Rongen named a 26 man roster for the upcoming training camp from Dec. 12-23 at IMG Academy in Bradenton, Florida. Do to the European season being in progress, this camp does not include any European based players.

The camp does include fourteen college players, eight who are professional players in Major League Soccer and two are part of U.S. Soccer’s Under-17 Residency Program. Many of the players featured heavily in the recently completed College Cup however champions UCSB is not represented.

Presumably the MLS players have a better chance of making the roster for the January U-20 World Cup qualifying, but some of the younger guys could upset the more senior players with high quality performances during this camp.

Freddy Adu is the most experienced player on the team with appearances in the past two U-20 World Cups. As I said a few posts ago, this Qualifying Tournament is the time for Freddy Adu to step up and take a leadership role. Amazingly, he is the most experienced American available for the U-20 World Cup and it is now time for the hype to turn to reality. If Freddy has a break out Qualifying and then Cup, look for the transfer rumors to really start flying.

This camp is the last chance for players to make the coaches take notice. Coach Rongen will announce the final twenty player qualifying roster before the team returns to Bradenton on Dec. 30 for an eight day camp. There is a chance the European based players will be unavailable, but Rongen will not invite in any additional players to fill any vacant spots. The players will regroup on Jan. 10 in Fort Lauderdale where they will train before heading to Panama for the qualifying tournament on Jan. 14.

2006 Nike Friendlies Are Underway....

Back in October US Soccer announced an event called the Nike Friendlies. I'm not sure on the history of the event, but I know they've been going on for a few years now. The Friendlies are meant to give high level competition to some of the best young American and foreign players. There are multiple age groups and teams from around the US including US Youth National teams and a Youth National Brazilian teams. The action kicked off yesterday and you can see the results here. Notice the US U-17's drawing Brazil. Studio 90 is even covering the event al la World Cup 2006. In the U-16 division the US U-15 team tied Juventus' youth. In the U-17 group the US U-17 beat Arsenal.

Check it out!

2007 MLS Draft...by the numbers...

In my opinion it is never too early for drooling over the upcoming draft. Heck, I've been looking forward to the season ending for this to start for some time now. So I decided to look at the draft by the numbers.

To start with, all of the following data is up to date as of 12-5-06 to the best of my knowledge. I am relying on 3rd Degree's draft list for help.

First off, who has the most picks in the upcoming draft?

COL 11
KC 11
LAG 11
CHI 9
FCD 8
RSL 8
CLB 7
DC 7
HOU 7
NE 7
TOR 7
CHV 6
NYRB 5

Colorado, Kansas City and LA have that distinction with 11 each. Having so many picks gives these teams a lot of leverage. They can either draft and hope to pick a winner or trade for a known quantity. Guess who will possibly be willing to give up some talent for picks...those at the bottom of the list; Chivas USA and NY Red Bull. A team like Colorado 24 players on the roster after last season. If the team max stays at 28...there aren't too many spaces for new draftees. Either the Rapids are going to trade a bunch of picks or they are going to draft a lot of players assuming a fight between the rookies and the sophomores come March for those available spots.

Next, how does each team look in terms of their highest pick?

CHI 8
CHV 7
CLB 2
COL 6
DC 11
FCD 9
HOU 13
KC 3
LAG 5
NE 12
NYRB 19
RSL 4
TOR 1

Toronto goes first for being an expansion team. Then those who didn't make the playoffs, then those who did in the order they fell out. Colorado moved up by trading with NYRB for Jean Philippe Peguero. LA got a second first rounder from Colorado in exchange for Jovan Kirovski.

This next one is very interesting to me. When will each team pick their second player?

CHI 21
CHV 46
CLB 15
COL 17
DC 24
FCD 14
HOU 26
KC 16
LAG 10
NE 25
NYRB 58
RSL 54
TOR 27

In years past we've seen a trend growing on draft day. Many of the first round picks are Generation Adidas (formerly P-40) players who have tremendous upside but don't count against the cap for a few years. The second and third round sees a lot of the top college graduate prospects and the fourth round on down becomes a crap shoot as each club selects the player they think fits best. So, I'd say Chivas USA, NYRB and RSL will have trouble finding quality in this draft without trading to move up.

Note: I am not saying a diamond in the rough will not fall out to the 5th round, but consider this...only 18 of 47 (38%) of the Supplemental Draft picks of 2006 made it through the season. Only 4 (9%) of those players made it onto the field for more than 10 matches. So, finding a diamond in the Supplemental gets very difficult. Additionally there is one more team in this year's draft competing for talent. Granted, Toronto are going to be drawn towards Canadian born players, there are no rules saying they can't draft the best American talent as trade bait.

Being as that I believe the first three rounds are the most talent rich, who has the most picks in the first three rounds?

COL 7
CLB 4
FCD 4
KC 4
LAG 4
CHI 3
DC 3
HOU 3
NE 2
TOR 2
CHV 1
NYRB 1
RSL 1

I'm pleased to say Colorado. Again, they're going to have a great chance to draft top talent early or they'll have a lot of ammunition to pull off the big draft day exchange. Chivas USA, NYRB and RSL are going to have a tough time fielding any draft classes of substance with one pick in the first three rounds.

As a Rapids fan I'm giddy over the upcoming draft. Fernando Clavijo and John Murphy have proven in both New England and Colorado they can scout talent. Last year they didn't have a lot of top picks because of previous trades but this time around they'll have a lot of fire power to draft a top class. LA and KC will have a lot of picks and 4 in the top three rounds so they should be able to put together a strong class. Columbus and Dallas won't have as many total picks, but 4 in the first three rounds gives them good odds.

Overall I think we're going to see an exciting draft next month. There will be plenty of surprising trades and once again MLS will look totally different kicking off in 2007. I can't wait!

2006 Missouri Athletic Club’s Hermann Trophy Winner...

Ladies and Gentleman, your 2006 Missouri Athletic Club’s Hermann Trophy winner....Junior forward Joseph Lapira from The University of Notre Dame.

Lapira had a massive 2006 scoring 22 goals and making 6 assists and he led the Fighting Irish to the Quarterfinals of the 2006 NCAA Tournament. Lapria's impressive season has earned him a spot on the Generation Adidas prospect list obtained by 3rdDegree, however Lapria has said he will stay in college for his senior season. Lapria's Sophomore season was not as impressive as he scored 1/3rd the number of goals.

The top runner-up vote getter was Boston College junior forward Charlie Davies followed by Southern Methodist University senior midfielder Jay Needham.

As in any sport, winning the top college prize is by no means a ticket to success at the professional level and in soccer that is no different. Past winners of the Hermann Trophy have often struggled to earn a place in MLS. Right Luchi Gonzalez, Ali Curtis and Chris Wingert? Maybe the fact that Danny O'Rourke & Alecko Eskandarian won the award before becoming solid MLS players shows the selection committee is becoming better at scouting pro-players.

If Lapria wants a professional soccer career I worry he may be making a mistake by returning to college. Right now the buzz around him have made a lot of people take a look at him. Going into the draft as a GA player would help a lot of teams take a gamble on him due to his size. However, as a college graduate he's not going to have the protected roster status GA provides and he could slip into a much lower draft slot. On the other hand, graduating from Notre Dame is a great accomplishment and you can't underestimate an education to backstop a professional sports career.

In other news, by the looks of the above picture, someone needs to tell Joseph the 70's porn star look isn't in. Congrats!

MLS Generation Adidas team wins first game in England...

The following is a press release care of the Colorado Rapids Communications Department.

Striker Jacob Peterson Leads MLS Generation adidas to Victory Over Queens Park Rangers Reserves 2-0

The Colorado Rapids’ Jacob Peterson Played 75 minutes and Hunter Freeman Played 25 in the Team’s First Game During Their European Training

ENGLAND (December 4, 2006) – Colorado Rapids forward Jacob Peterson scored the first goal for the Generation adidas team in their 2-0 victory over the Queens Park Rangers Reserves here today. Generation adidas is currently on a weeklong European training tour in the UK.

In the 17 th minute, Peterson took a cross from the Kansas City Wizards’ Will John, who was on the left, and beat goalie Jake Cole to give the Americans the lead.

Chivas USA’s Brad Guzan made a big save at the end of the first half to preserve the lead for Generation adidas.

A half hour into the second half, Generation adidas made nine substitutions. Ten minutes later the fresh legs lead to the team’s second goal. FC Dallas’ Dax McCarty and the New York Red Bulls’ David Arvizu worked a give and go to add an insurance goal.

Sacha Kljestan of Chivas USA and Kei Kamara of the Columbus Crew both hit the post during the run of play.

Generation adidas will play their second game tomorrow against the Crystal Palace Reserves before the team goes the UEFA Champions League match between Chelsea and Levski Sofia.

Score: Generation adidas 2, Queens Park Rangers Reserves 0

Scoring Summary:

Ga- Jacob Peterson (Will John) 17
Ga- David Arvizu (Dax McCarty) 85

Generation adidas: Brad Guzan, Marvell Wynne (Quavas Kirk 40’), Drew Moor (Patrick Ianni 75’), Michael Parkhurst (Nikolas Besagno 75’), Blake Wagner (Hunter Freeman 75’), Nathan Sturgis (Tim Ward 75’), Willie Sims (Jamie Watson 75’), Sacha Kljestan (Dax McCarty 75’), Will John (David Arvizu 75’), Chad Barrett (Ryan Pore 75’), Jacob Peterson (Kei Kamara 75’)

Queens Park Rangers Reserves: Jake Cole, Taku Watanabe, Matt Hislop, Stefan Bailey, Ugo Ukah (Karl Yelland), Maoro Milanese, Shabazz Baidoo, Scott Donnelly (Matt O’Brien 15’), Paul Furlong, Adam Zerkas, Nick Ward

University of California - Santa Barbara : 2006 NCAA Men's Soccer Champions!

Congratulations to the Gauchos of Santa Barbara, they stormed through the NCAA Men's Soccer tournament like a top ranked team, only they were unseeded. It shouldn't be surprising that UCSB made it deep into the tourney despite their disappointing season. After all, they were here two years ago, however they were ranked as a top team in 2004. This time around they knocked off the #2 and #3 teams to eventually beat the #8 UCLA Bruins.

The Gauchos learned from other's mistakes and they didn't give star attackers Sal Zizzo, Kyle Nakazawa, Jason Leopoldo or David Estrada any room to operate. When any of the Bruins attackers touched the ball there were two guys there or a hard foul coming. UCSB used brute force to subdue their Southern California rivals.

Well folks, this season was a fun one and an exciting tournament capped it off. The ACC is no doubt scratching their head wondering how such dominance during the regular season could not provide a National Championship. A lot of the kids we've been talking about will be throwing their hat into the MLS draft ring, and it will be exciting to see where these young stars of tomorrow end up when the dust settles next March.

Half of the 2006 Men's College Cup Final is Set....

And 50% of the final won't be part of the ACC as Virgina was spanked by UCLA, 4-0. In the early going UVA looked to be the better team and had UCLA on their heals. But after a scoreless first half, UCLA's creative attackers poured it on and made UVA's solid defense look like swiss cheese. Freshman forward David Estrada's quickness and ball control allowed him to slice through the defense scoring the first two goals of the match within minutes of each other. Kyle Nakazawa and Chance Myers added the final nails in the coffin.

So another ACC falls out of the tournament and over in the second game unseeded Santa Barbara has held the #2 team in the land to a zero - zero tie into overtime. We could see a final without the ACC after a season in which college soccer couldn't stop praising the conference. I love what happens come tourney time.

2006 NSCAA All-Americans...

The National Soccer Coaches Association of America (NSCAA) has announced their 2006 college All-Americans. You'll no doubt see a corelation between the combine list, GA prospect list and this one. Congrats to the 2006 NSCAA All-Americans!