SC Soccer Forums SCSoccer.com Forums Boys Varsity Soccer Academy Players Can't Play High School Soon?

I am always willing to listen to someone that is offering to buy me a round! Just ask Coach Chass about. We will probably be there to watch the champions league final Saturday afternoon.

Is your son going to play in college?
If your son had to make the choice, which would he choose? Which would you want him to choose?

The point about winning 20+ games...It is my job as a coach to develop my entire team, even my bench players so all games matter to me, even blow outs. Are bench players at Wando going to get better in training or beating Goose Creek 9-0? You don't have to answer that. It doesn't help my arguement.
I think alot of the issue is, some people look at this from a parents point of view. "What's best for my kid?" and some of us are looking at it from a coaches point of view. "What's best for the 20 players on my team?"

Belligerent, What would you say the cost per season is? I am really curious about that and haven't seen the answer.

Alister: In the end, virtually identical to club and ODP expenses in any given year. And don't get me started on ODP and its "value."

http://www.scunitedda.com/aboutus/index_E.html
because of the family time commitment & cost, i just don't see it being a factor affecting high school soccer.
if its just for developing the best, then it won't take many from each team.. theres definately room for both.
& like one coach said, the real problem with HS soccer is not enough kids are playing club during fall.

Alister, every Academy program is priced differently but $3500-$4000 per player is a typical cost. If someone tells you a lot less.....find out if quoted cost includes travel, meals, uniform,etc. Some Academy programs "only" charge a base fee of maybe $1000. But then your plane tickets and training fees are on top of that. It all seems to even out except for the Chelsea clubs. A friend of mine's son plays for CASL and I think they only had to pay $600.

We pay $3700 for my son's team and that covers everything except pocket money for him when he travels and our travel expenses if my wife and I choose to travel out of town.

Academy is for players who want to play at the absolute highest level. I agree with the move towards a 10 month season that would exclude HS play. My guess is.....95% of the kids who play Academy now....if they were given the choice of playing HS or having an extended Academy season, would choose Academy.

I'm not saying the choice wouldn't have cost or that some of the kids wouldn't miss HS a lot. I'm sure some would and for those kids at top tier HS programs, most would probably miss it a lot.

But most of these kids hunger to play at the Academy level and HS just can't offer it. Maybe 2-3 HS's can simulate it at practice, but thats about it.

Its like Chris Paul playing in a pretty competitive summer Y league. My guess is he would be grateful for the Y league so long as that was his only outlet to play. But....if he had the chance to play in a summer league that approximated NBA play.......thats where he would be.

I am not here to rain on the Academy parade. I think programs that promote development of our top players is to be applauded as I feel it can only help.
At the same time it has been stated in this thread that for whatever reason, many of our best 16-18 year olds are not playing Academy.
There are quite a few kids IMHO that just have god given talent that is not necessarily developed even at the club level. If a kid can play, he can play and you will see it early. Will they develop further at the club or Academy level--absolutely.
This is quoted from Wikpedia on Clint Dempsey's youth playing."Dempsey was born in Texas and for much of his childhood his family lived in a trailer park, where he and his siblings grew up playing soccer with the local children.His older brother Ryan was offered a tryout with The Dallas Texans" an elite youth soccer club, but it was young Clint, juggling on the sidelines who was noticed and recruited." Yes, Clint went on to captain and be a great player on that team, but what was his background? You guessed it--virtually none--he was a player---he had touch, skill and vision that perhaps he shouldn't have, but he did.

You will find a similar story(except with alot more poverty) when you research Pele's early youth development. And while I am talking Brazil( I think very few people would argue are the most technical and creative players in the world) up until about 20 years ago, Santos is the only professional club team I can find with an Academy affiliate.

I certainly don't have all the answers but I can tell you this. Kids need to play almost every day in a semi competitive setting to develop the skills young Clint was able to demonstrate(giving God his due also) and here in the US that is tough to find in many places.

But like I said in my opening, I applaud the attempt at what Academy is trying to do.

I really don't accept your statement that "many of our best 16-18 year olds are not playing Academy."

Outside of the GSP area....that simply isn't true.

I can tell you that with 2 Academies in Charlotte, 1 in Greensboro and 1 in Raleigh...not to mention the two in Atlanta.....the vast majority of top players are in Academy. And my guess is....if you sat down and made a list of the top columbia area players and coastal players, 85-90% of them are playing for SCU.

Of course there is the odd straggler.....but if you knos the kids in those areas (Or Charlotte, Raleigh, etc) .....they are playing Academy.

GSP isn't......because CESA turned down an Academy slot and then wasn't able to get one because of regional saturation.
If CESA had an Academy....trust me, no one would be making a statement like that because the Low country, Midlands, and Upstate would all be covered.

The CLint Dempsey story I'm sure is true. Also largely irrelevant. Again, if a kids goal is to play at a D1 level and hopefully progress on to a professional career at whatever level...if you look at the signings over the last 2 years they are dominated by Academy kids. Not many kids from.....Club x playing at the SC Classic level being recruited into a top tier D1 program or the professional ranks. Those kids.....are coming from Academy or non Academy clubs like CESA.

I didn't make the statement--read the thread--IH8KATZ and Backscreen did, I just repeated it.
How can you call the youth development of arguably our best national player irrelevant? Man, are you playing with blinders on!
I didn't tear into the Academy program, I applauded it. Couldn't help but notice you didn't want to address Pele's development or the Brazilian example I brought up.
If you have time, look up David Beckham's youth background and the circumstances he had to overcome.
Go ahead--spend your money. See where you are in a few years---ODP,--Super Y--Academy--?