So you want to play college soccer?
First, understand the landscape. D1 and D2 Men's schools aren't even allowed enough scholarships to field a full team of scholarship players. Many D1 schools in the SE US don't even have men's teams. D3 schools, like all sports, don't have scholarships. There are no D3 schools in SC, but in a sport without much scholarship money many quality players opt to play at D3 schools with extremely high academic reputations. The level of play between D3 and the scholarship divisions is probably closer than any other sport, with some top level D3 schools routinely beating D2/D1 schools in friendlies.
The situation is even tougher than lack of scholarships, as the coaches of the men's scholarship teams by and large have foresaken US talent for foreign players. Many D1/D2 teams, especially in the SE US, are 1/2 to 2/3 foreign players. Generally, these foreign players arrive 2 years older than US players graduating HS and have the "aura" of being from a european club. Some of these college teams have "developmental" squads loaded with US players who are told that after 2-3 years of "development" they might have a chance to play with the new foreign players arriving. That isn't to say all these foreign players are better than the US players being overlooked, but they will get first look. Some teams loaded with foreign players are routinely at the top of their NCAA divisions, others year after year are among the worst teams at their NCAA division. I wonder how many are missing the boat with US players.
Women's teams have more scholarships, more schools that actually have teams, and fewer foreign players. The competition for these scholarships are still high, as the supply has "driven" interest and demand especially in metro areas with strong history of producing players.
If your player is interested in playing in college, understand the player is a needle in a haystack. Most clubs do the bare minimum to help them be found. It will be up to you/the player to get seen. Around 10th grade year, start attending "focused" ID sessions. By focused I mean a session ran by a school of interest, or a small group of schools with one or two of which you are interested in. Also, start getting game tape and learn how to clip video. Reach out to coaches expressing interest. Reach out to coaches before showcases to try to draw them to your game. I don't have experience with recruiting services, but I know others who received most of their contacts through them. If you have specific schools of interest, probably not necessary, but possibly worth it if looking for a shotgun approach.
