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    #31
    Originally posted by Unregistered View Post
    While this poster sounds like a real jack@ss, he makes some valid points. If your kid is not willing to commit to soccer as a job, then playing D1 will be problematic. That's why most of the posters were talking about "academic fit" that he so quickly dismisses.
    If their kid is not willing to commit to it why are they even bothering with soccer if their true priority is academics? Nothing wrong with that at all but if someone wants to focus on the academic fit then why not just go be a student, why not just leave all the sport headaches for someone who really wants it? All those who want to pursue soccer while trying to find that "academic fit" end up doing is trying to fit a square peg into a round hole and making compromises that probably shouldn't be made.

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      #32
      Originally posted by Unregistered View Post
      While this poster sounds like a real jack@ss, he makes some valid points. If your kid is not willing to commit to soccer as a job, then playing D1 will be problematic. That's why most of the posters were talking about "academic fit" that he so quickly dismisses.
      A lot of kids (parents) focus too much on the soccer piece up front - then if it doesn't work out (no pt, burned out, can't keep up with school, even get cut) and they're unhappy with the school they have to either deal with it or transfer. When I think of academics that what I think of (besides it just being a good fit - not too easy, not too big a stretch). Love the school for what it brings to you as a student.

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        #33
        Sorry but that's the D3 mindset and it just doesn't translate that cleanly to D1. Not as easy to walk away. The D1 mindset is more like sifting through job offers. The academics are a part of the equation but if your kid doesn't get the athletic fit right they usually won't stay at the school to enjoy the academic fit. If a kid just sees themself just quitting soccer when the going gets tough why not be smart enough to avoid all of the headaches and just plan on being a student from the start

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          #34
          Originally posted by Unregistered View Post
          If their kid is not willing to commit to it why are they even bothering with soccer if their true priority is academics? Nothing wrong with that at all but if someone wants to focus on the academic fit then why not just go be a student, why not just leave all the sport headaches for someone who really wants it? All those who want to pursue soccer while trying to find that "academic fit" end up doing is trying to fit a square peg into a round hole and making compromises that probably shouldn't be made.
          Did you ever think that a kid may actually just like playing the game? Competing against good competition and the social aspect of the team.

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            #35
            Originally posted by Unregistered View Post
            Sorry but that's the D3 mindset and it just doesn't translate that cleanly to D1. Not as easy to walk away. The D1 mindset is more like sifting through job offers. The academics are a part of the equation but if your kid doesn't get the athletic fit right they usually won't stay at the school to enjoy the academic fit. If a kid just sees themself just quitting soccer when the going gets tough why not be smart enough to avoid all of the headaches and just plan on being a student from the start

            Because they're kids. They'll learn along the way. And despite the naysayers it often works out just fine

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              #36
              Originally posted by Unregistered View Post
              Please stop indulging the loon. He doesn't actually know squat about how to proceed in your situation. His advice will end up with your kid going to some D3 school to play soccer and you left paying the freight for the privilege of that happening. Haven't you pumped enough money into the soccer industry? Isn't it time to get something in return?

              Here are a couple of things to think about.

              #1 - The knuckleheads on this site typically see recruiting as something akin to a beauty pageant when in reality it is more a marketing exercise. What you are really trying to do is sort through a ton of clutter to find the situation that values her skill set the most and in return is willing to offer her the most resources to help her get the highest quality education possible.

              #2 - Your daughter's ability to play soccer is a commodity. When you are talking about chasing a scholarship you are really talking about selling her ability to play soccer in exchange for a promise of an education. Fit in the D1 world is a complicated thing to sort out because in order to truly get the promised education you need to produce on the soccer field. You need to come to grips with the business aspect of D1 college sports and realize it is essentially a produce or perish type of environment.

              #3 - If you or your daughter are not prepared to fully sell out for the scholarship then stop right now and forget playing soccer in college. Being a D1 athlete is a full time job. If your daughter goes into it with the mindset that soccer is second she will end up rightfully perceived as an uncommitted player and will find herself at the end of the bench and likely miserable. Not being committed to your job is a recipe for disaster on many fronts.

              #4 - If your daughter is going to play a sport at the D1 level, you will need to recognize that there is no way she will get the same education that a "normal" student at that same school will get so you can't actually base much on the supposed "academic fit" people around here like to tout because her fit will largely be a function of the academic resources provided by the athletic department and the attitudes of the head coach towards academics. If you are not careful she could end up with a degree (the NCAA will ensure that) but not much in the way of an education.

              #5 - When it comes down to parlaying an ability to play a sport into an education, you should probably know that the high brow academic colleges around here like the Ivies and Patriot League schools generally offer the least amount of money, the least amount of academic resources, and the school administrations and faculty generally have the worst attitudes towards athletes. In order to get a high quality education (not just a degree) from one of these types of institutions you have to be both abnormally bright and abnormally dedicated as well as able to fight through a whole lot of indifference to get through to graduation. The love affair some around here have for these highly ranked academic institutions shows a complete lack of understanding of what is going on in the world of college sports these days as well as what else is out there.
              Very interesting post. As a parent with a player who values a great education I'm concerned about your remark that D1 soccer is a full time job and that one (most except fit the truly gifted), will have to realize they are just " getting a degree" not an education if they pursue D1 soccer ( presumably due to the pressure it places on athletes leaving them very little time to study). Is this really true? Are there many cases of regret from such athletes ? How did you reach this understanding?

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                #37
                Originally posted by Unregistered View Post
                Very interesting post. As a parent with a player who values a great education I'm concerned about your remark that D1 soccer is a full time job and that one (most except fit the truly gifted), will have to realize they are just " getting a degree" not an education if they pursue D1 soccer ( presumably due to the pressure it places on athletes leaving them very little time to study). Is this really true? Are there many cases of regret from such athletes ? How did you reach this understanding?
                Typo: "... except for the truly gifted..."

                Comment


                  #38
                  Originally posted by Unregistered View Post
                  Very interesting post. As a parent with a player who values a great education I'm concerned about your remark that D1 soccer is a full time job and that one (most except fit the truly gifted), will have to realize they are just " getting a degree" not an education if they pursue D1 soccer ( presumably due to the pressure it places on athletes leaving them very little time to study). Is this really true? Are there many cases of regret from such athletes ? How did you reach this understanding?
                  Do you need the scholarship to pay for that great education you value so much? If not then skip soccer and have them just focus on getting that great education because soccer is just going to be a distraction.

                  Comment


                    #39
                    Originally posted by Unregistered View Post
                    Very interesting post. As a parent with a player who values a great education I'm concerned about your remark that D1 soccer is a full time job and that one (most except fit the truly gifted), will have to realize they are just " getting a degree" not an education if they pursue D1 soccer ( presumably due to the pressure it places on athletes leaving them very little time to study). Is this really true? Are there many cases of regret from such athletes ? How did you reach this understanding?
                    As a parent of D1 + D3 soccer players, I agree D1 is a job. And your kid better show up and make themselves irreplaceable year 1. Soccer is #1, education is number 2.

                    D3 soccer is still important to those that play, but it is a bit more balanced. It reminds me of D1 sports 30 years ago. And school is first.

                    Comment


                      #40
                      Originally posted by Unregistered View Post
                      Very interesting post. As a parent with a player who values a great education I'm concerned about your remark that D1 soccer is a full time job and that one (most except fit the truly gifted), will have to realize they are just " getting a degree" not an education if they pursue D1 soccer ( presumably due to the pressure it places on athletes leaving them very little time to study). Is this really true? Are there many cases of regret from such athletes ? How did you reach this understanding?
                      It has nothing really to do with how gifted a soccer talent a kid is and everything to do with the sort of soccer environment they place themselves in. When it comes to being a scholarship athlete, the situation becomes a balancing act akin to being a part time student while holding down a full time job. A lot comes down to the environment you are working in and how tolerant your boss is of your academic aspirations. If the boss is a bottom line type then they typically aren't going to be all that willing to accommodate much that interferes with achieving that bottom line. The real trick is to either stay away from those types of coaches or find a school that is so super easy that you can pull the grades you need for the next step in your education without having to ask for any accommodations.

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                        #41
                        D1 is just preseason (August) and fall right? Can't they use the winter and spring to "catch up"?

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                          #42
                          Originally posted by Unregistered View Post
                          Because they're kids. They'll learn along the way. And despite the naysayers it often works out just fine
                          Love this advice, not. So supposedly all you need to focus on is the name of the school and the rest is just a hard lesson that kids today are so well prepared to weather and grow from? Who writes this sort of stupidity?

                          Comment


                            #43
                            Originally posted by Unregistered View Post
                            D1 is just preseason (August) and fall right? Can't they use the winter and spring to "catch up"?
                            No that is D3. D1 is 10 hours per week of "countable" activities and roughly twice that of uncountable ones during the off season. Definitely can't kick back much though because that is when you actually earn your playing time.

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                              #44
                              Originally posted by Unregistered View Post
                              Sorry but that's the D3 mindset and it just doesn't translate that cleanly to D1. Not as easy to walk away. The D1 mindset is more like sifting through job offers. The academics are a part of the equation but if your kid doesn't get the athletic fit right they usually won't stay at the school to enjoy the academic fit. If a kid just sees themself just quitting soccer when the going gets tough why not be smart enough to avoid all of the headaches and just plan on being a student from the start
                              I've heard some of the top d3 soccer can be just as demanding soccer-wise. Amherst, Tufts have pretty intense seasons.

                              Comment


                                #45
                                Originally posted by Unregistered View Post
                                Do you need the scholarship to pay for that great education you value so much? If not then skip soccer and have them just focus on getting that great education because soccer is just going to be a distraction.
                                It's not about the scholarship money (and realistically the amount of scholarship money you get is not really much compared to the total cost of attendance for most players). For my kid it's about playing at the highest of his capabilities while getting a great education. Is that possible in D1?

                                Comment

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