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I wasn't bashing Northwestern or anything, I think they are clearly the answer to the original question, it is just annoying when people throw out terms like National Champions when they weren't. If 13/50 states play now, that means 37/50 don't. Odds are, especially since the big time talent states like California, Florida, and Texas are part of that 37, the best team in the country is from one of those 37. Just by simple odds.

And the talent in states like California is not more spread out, it is the opposite. The talent in this state is spread out, which is why there are so few dominant club teams. You could go to cities like San Diego and Dallas and have 3-4 teams better than CESA, even though CESA attracts people from the entire state. There are usually 2-3 great players on a SC high school team max, most teams are lucky to have 1.

Here is the #1 team from winter rankings:

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1 Montverde Academy (Montverde, Fla.) 24-0-1 1
Season complete. Montverde closed out the first undefeated season in the program's history with a 6-0 win over Seminole. The Eagles outscored their opponents 106-12. The team's key victories were over Tampa Jesuit (twice), American Heritage-Plantation, Bishop Verot (twice), Tampa Prep and Boca Raton. Juan Jose Morales led Montverde with 27 goals. Joao Victor Ramalho added 20 goals and 12 assists. Henrique Novaes scored 15 goals, David Graydon had 11 goals and 12 assists and Marco Warren contributed nine goals and 12 assists. The team is coached by former Clemson player and assistant coach Mike Potempa. All six seniors are committed to NCAA Division I or II programs and four of Montverde's six junior starters are being recruited by ACC schools and the other two are Division I recruits, as well.



Huge shocker that is is a school from Florida. All seniors playing college soccer. Four juniors being recruited by ACC teams (clearly the #1 conference). Northwestern had 1 player go to an ACC school, albeit one of the best HS players ever.


I am going to weigh in here and inform folks that Northwestern was the "National Champion" and deservedly so for the Spring Rankings. Just because 13 of 50 states (AK-AL-AR-GA-IA-NE-OK-SC-TN-UT-VA-WA-WY) play boys prep soccer in the spring does not make its champion any less of one from the fall or winter seasons.

I can assure you that the powers-that-be at the NSCAA, ESPN Rise, and StudentSports.com levels take the rankings as a very serious matter and do so with a pretty good understanding of just how good those teams are in their respective regions of the country.