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As Cainhoy Athletic says the information provided thus far is rather thin. There is an ODP brochure available online, but it is the brochure for last year. Apparently, in the redevelopment of the SCYSA website, preparation of informational materials for this year's program has gotten somewhat lost in the shuffle.

Has anyone contacted Allen Bishop directly expressing the need for additional information? In the past we knew the costs, schedules (including tryouts, rain dates and Region 3 Camp)and expectations of commitment prior to the initial tryouts.

My youngest is now done, so I'm no longer on the mailing list. It does say at the website the tryouts are $70, but overall budgets have yet to be determined.

Sounds like a "bumpy" transition thus far from "old" to "new".

This email, which provides more information, was forwarded to me:

ONLY 4 DAYS LEFT TO REGISTER FOR ODP
REGISTRATION DEADLINE: NOVEMBER 20, 2010
Birth Year 1994, 1995, 1996, 1997, 1998, 1999 & 2000 are eligible for this program.

District Tryouts: Sunday, December 5
Boys from 10am–12pm (Registration starts at 9am)
Girls from 2-4pm (Registration starts at 1pm)
Coastal District: Patriots Point, Mount Pleasant
Midstate District: BB&T, Columbia
Piedmont District: MESA, Greenville

Note: 15-20 players from each district will be invited to attend the State Team Tryouts on Sunday, December 19

Note: If you are unable to attend tryouts on December 5th. for any reason you must register for the ODP Tryouts online at www.SCYSA.org by the deadline. You must also inform Allen Bishop, SCYS ODP Administrator, of your intentions prior to the District Tryouts (December 5). Please note that your excuse MUST BE APPROVED by Allen Bishop and documented as well.

State Tryouts: Sunday, December 19 @ BB&T
Boys from 10am–12pm (Registration starts at 9am)
Girls from 2-4pm (Registration starts at 1pm)
Note: Attendance at the State Tryouts are by invitation only.

Next week we will be sending out the list of coaches for the respective age groups.

Hey Dog,

I'm thinking we're basically on the same page. My impressions:

The "training/evaluation" sessions at Region Camp generally accomplish neither. Not organized, well-run, revealing, or even evaluated. At least not regularly.

The daytime games generally include at least one evaluator, though it's fairly obvious they're in place to CONFIRM, not DISCOVER. I say this because I have seen previously unheralded kids pretty much show everything it takes, then not get a sniff of a night-time game, much less a holdover camp.

My gripe would be: Why haul "X" number of kids to a Region Camp? Why not just bring "X-minus" to a de facto holdover camp, put them in a rigorous, first-class training environment, and really SEE who has what?

Have coaches been announced or assigned? This is a key decision factor in our household.

Backscreen17,

I may be wrong here, but I'm getting a growing impression that one of the dissatisfactions of many with ODP is based on parents' expectations that ODP will provide the training/development they should be getting at the club/local level... and don't.

Region Camp is a tryout. Are there training sessions there? Yes. And, the sessions there that my daughters participated in at those camps were far better than what you've described. Again, I ask if you are talking about experiences with the girls' camp in Montevallo or the boys' camp in Tuscaloosa? Again, I ask who has been running the boys' side... college coaches or club coaches?

True story from a girls' region camp a few years ago...

After a technical training session, several region coaches (these are, hopefully not to become "were", all college coaches) took players from my daughter's club to the side and began asking "This drill we just did, do you do this at your club?" they answered, "No." The coaches continued, "What about drills like this?" "No." Then the coaches began describing different technical drills and training techniques, and after each description the girls answered, "No." Finally, one of the coaches started laughing and asked, "My god, what are they teaching you at that club?" The girls, in unison, just shrugged their shoulders. Because of the camp environment those coaches were able to recognize the players' work ethic, intelligence, physical talent and desire to learn. That's why they, the coaches, were scratching their heads over our girls' weak technical skills being brought to camp and began asking questions.

Now, I don't want to dismiss my daughters' own responsibilities for their development, but if the problem we're REALLY having in SC is lack of individual player development at the club/local level that is leaving our players' ill-prepared to compete at the tryouts of Region Camp, and the "new" approach to SC ODP (at least on the girls' side) is to bring the club/local coaches in to improve player development, then I begin to wonder... why didn't those coaches just do what I hired them for the first time?

$70 for district tryouts sounds pretty steep. The last time district tryouts were part of the process the first tryout was $15 followed by a $30 tryout fee for the state tryout if you were selected at district. I'll grant you rising costs, but $70 to a player that can be cut right up front the first day? Sounds steep. Sounds club.

How about free for the first tryout to increase participation in initial evaluation followed by $70 for those selected to participate in the state level tryout?

A fee to tryout but yet they want more participation..
Does not sound much different to me..
What if that 70 dollars kept some talented boy or girl from trying out?