Names To Watch Come January...

The US college soccer season is in full swing and next month we'll be watching as conference tournaments crown new champions before the big dance crows a national champ. Last season's national champs, Wake Forest, continues to dominate having won all of their games aside from a hard fought draw against ACC rival Duke. Wake has chalked up convincing wins against perennial powers Maryland, UCLA, UCSB, Clemson and more. At this point it seems like their high powered offense will roll against all opponents, however we know what happens in single elimination tournaments and someone else could come up and knock them off.

Here is the latest College Soccer News Top 30. The ACC isn't nearly as prevalent in the top 10 as in previous years. Is the power being distributed across more schools? Is MLS' popularity encouraging more college programs to win? It is hard to say but I think we can all agree that it is great to see a diverse group of schools cracking the Top 30.

And how about my team, Michigan! The soccer team appears to be making up for the Maize and Blue on the football field. Michigan chalked up big wins against Indiana and Notre Dame recently. Unfortunately some recent losses against State and Akron have brought the Wolverines back to ground. Hopefully they can make some noise in the Big 10 tourney coming up.

College Soccer News has a nice piece about some of the better team mate combinations out there. Senior forward Marcus Tracy was a player I hoped to see in the 2008 MLS draft as a GA player, but after another strong season the 6' 1" marksman has further proven his abilities. He and strike partner Cody Arnoux are tearing up the charts with 21 goals and 8 assists between the two in fifteen games.

O’Brian White isn't having a senior season to match his junior but he'll still be in the draft pool come January.

Andre Akpan will certainly be on people's minds after his Junior season at Harvard wraps up. Will he forsake a final year in school for a big money GA offer, if one is available?

Omar Gonzalez has been a highly watched prospect through his career and he has played at different levels within the US National team set up. At 6'5" and 200 pounds he is a physical presence on defense that many MLS teams want. Will he leave Maryland early if a nice GA contract is put out there? He was the ACC defender of the year in 2007, as a sophomore.

Brian Shriver is leading the North Carolina Tar Heels in scoring with 12 goals and 1 assist. If his Heels can continue to fly high he'll certainly get the attention of some professional scouts as the college season wraps up. He participated in the 2004 adidas ESP camps, putting his name on my list.

Jonathan Villanueva's Virginia Cavaliers are going to be looking for some post season magic as they haven't had the greatest of seasons. Can the junior midfielder propel his team to new heights before making the jump to the pros that his pedigree anticipates?

Nelson Becerra made my list when fellow blogger Ives profiled him awhile back. Now he leads his team in points and has helped the Red Storm to a #3 national ranking. He played for the regional power St. Benedict's Prep in high school and now in his junior year. Will the local Red Bulls come calling come January?

Speaking of the Red Bulls and Ives, freshman Matt Kassel is having a strong season for Maryland. He has played in and started all 15 of the Terps' games this year and is co-leader of the team in assists with 6. Maryland is currently ranked #6 nationally. If I recall correctly, Kassel will be a Red Bull if he chooses to leave school early. Is one college season enough for this youth star?

So there you go folks. As conference tourneys kick off I'll do my best to keep you all updated. I'll also be sure to update the players to watch margin item soon, it has been too long.

Steroids In MLS...

Young ones reading the blog, let this be a lesson to you.

SECAUCUS, NJ (Thursday, October 16, 2008) – Major League Soccer announced today that New York Red Bulls goalkeeper Jon Conway and defender Jeff Parke have been suspended for ten MLS games, including regular season and playoffs, effective immediately, and each has also been fined 10 percent of their annual salary. The suspension and fines are the result of testing positive for androstatriendione (ATD) and boldenone metabolites -- performance enhancing substances.

“Jon and Jeff have been valuable members of the Red Bulls organization, both on the field and in the Greater New York community,“ said Red Bull New York Managing Director Erik Stover. “This is a sad day for our club and our fans. We are extremely disappointed that Jon and Jeff have tested positive for a substance banned by MLS’s policy. We have met with both players and they informed us that they ingested an over-the-counter supplement that unknowingly contained a banned substance. However, the Red Bulls support MLS’ policy and believe that performance enhancing drugs have no place in professional sports.”

MLS isn't messing around when it comes to 'roids. Baseball may dodge and weave on the topic, who knows what football does, WWE...let's not kid ourselves...but MLS is taking the hard line with soccer players letting them know that the rules are firm. I applaud MLS for sticking to their policies despite the fact that both players said they were just taking an over the counter supplement. That may be true, but the fact of the matter is that athletes need to be careful what they take. Just because GNC sells it doesn't mean it will be good for you.

I've always been skeptical of those mall stores hawking all sorts of milks and powders. In college friends were taking Creatine like it was their job so they could look good over spring break. I didn't understand it then and I don't now.

Kids: Work hard, eat right, train, play, kick the ball. Just don't think that taking something is going to help you be a better pro.

MLS Receives Expansion Bids...What Does That Do To The Player Pool...

In the past I've blogged about the expanding pool of players in MLS as expansion teams are brought into the fold. Well folks, here we go again.

NEW YORK (Wednesday, October 15, 2008) – Seven prospective ownership groups from markets throughout the United States and Canada have submitted an application for a future Major League Soccer expansion team, MLS President Mark Abbott announced today on the League’s official web site, www.MLSnet.com.

MLS intends to add two more clubs in the next few years, bringing the League to 18 teams. Seattle Sounders FC begin play next year as the 15th team in MLS, and Philadelphia will join in 2010 as the League’s 16th team.

Recap of the player rules:
• 28 total players on the roster
• 18 senior players
• 10 developmental players
• 8 International Player slots per team, and the distinction between Youth International and Senior International has been removed

Remember Canadian teams (only TFC right now) play by different rules since they're in Canada, ehh.

Let's do the math:
14 current MLS teams * 28 players per team = 392 players currently playing in MLS. Expand by an additional four teams (which is how many are currently being discussed if the league is going to 18) and you get 504 players in MLS at the end of expansion. A 29% change.

Where are those additional 112 players going to come from? If rules don't change, 32, roughly 30%, are going to be international, coming from different countries. 40, or 36% will be developmental (recent college grads and other youngsters) and the remaining 40, again 36%, will be other American players presumably with some playing time under their belt in Europe or other foreign leagues. Hopefully by 2010 more players will be joining MLS teams out of their development academy.

Another aspect to consider is the youth development league below the MLS club roster. Here is the Rapids' pyramid of soccer development. Just think of all the kids who will get a chance to play the game in a club environment with this expansion.





As I've said in the past, I'm not sure College Soccer is producing enough players to meet this demand. There will certainly need to be more done to keep young pros in MLS as expansion occurs. There will also need to be more done to encourage boomerangs.

All in all I am for expansion, however MLS will need to be careful that it is bringing along players to fill the available roster spots without diluting the quality of play.

MLS Sets Another Milestone...

As always, Ives has the scoop. The LA Gals are set to make forward Tristan Bowen the first youth academy grad gone pro. The Rapids have had a kid from their youth team play in the annual intra-squad pre-season friendly, but the Gals are signing one. Perhaps they realize they can't field a full team with both Landycakes and Becks on the payroll?

Just kidding LA, well done. I hope Bowen pans out and becomes a MLS starter a few years down the road. This is the kind of progress American soccer fans have been waiting to see. The question I have for readers, does this spell the end to College Soccer as we know it? Not this year, not next...but five or ten years down the road will College Soccer be sending kids to MLS or will all new MLS players be coming up through the youth ranks?

Rapids Playoff Push...

This has been an up and down year to say the least for Colorado Rapids fans. I'm not going to do a season run down, this is a call to all the soccer fans in the Denver metro area to make sure you come out and support the playoff push. The Rapids are back in the swing of things. Coach Smith has the team back on the right track and they're playing great soccer. If you missed the Connor Casey game winning goal in New York last week, head over to the MLS website to catch the highlights. It was a world class service and goal.

This weekend Houston comes to town. The Dynamo are coming off a wild mid-week game in Mexico. They got a draw down there and are probably feeling good about themselves. The Rapids need to stamp them down.

This week the Rapids have launched a new campaign called Together We Rise. I like it. Here is the video.



You get the point, a packed house will help the team perform. Beating the first place team in the west this weekend will certainly help lock up a playoff spot in the tightest MLS playoff race ever. Three teams are currently tied for third in the west. A win and we make some breathing room while also closing in on 1st place Dallas Houston.

Come on out to Dick's Sporting Goods Park. The Rapids hopefully won't disappoint. Add to that the Supporter's Tailgate chili cook off in lot AA, starting at 5:30, and what more can a soccer fan hope for? See you there.

Send Them To Soccer Pro!!!

I am pleased to announce a new sponsor here at FCTP. The folks over at Soccer Pro have shown me their great customer service, so now it is your chance to experience the best soccer shop on the web. Take a look down the right hand margin and browse their goods. You won't be disappointed.

http://www.soccerpro.com