Pato 2 – Genoa 0

Alexandre Pato was born on September 2nd, 1989. By this time, Paolo Maldini had already made over 110 appearances for Milan, Cafu was making his debut for Sao Paulo, and Ronaldo was five years away from riding the bench as a gap-toothed teenager for Brazil at USA ‘94. Pato’s getting regular time in Milan’s first team side now, and he’s stealing the spotlight away from his older teammates.

It’s amazing how quickly the top players develop. If you take a look at any professional league, there’s sure to always be a few players who have to take the metro to training (a la 17 year old Iker Casillas in his first year at Madrid), and they are standing out at some of the top clubs in the world. Barca has Bojan and Giovanni (17 and 19). Arsenal has got so many talented youngsters that David Bentley (who will eventually relieve Becks of his spot in the England midfield) and Steve Sidwell (now at Chelsea) left the Emirates, but check out Denilson (19) and Carlos Vela (18). Manchester United’s new young signing Anderson (19) is quickly replacing Paul Scholes. The list goes on, but Pato appears ready to top them all.

I was sitting on my couch this Sunday, flipping between FSC and Gol TV when Milan came on against Genoa. Pato was playing by himself up top – mind you Gilardino and Ronaldo were on the bench – supported by Kaka, Pirlo and Seedorf. So having just turned 18, he’s leading Milan’s attack and trying to save their season. When I turned 18, I had a season of college soccer under my belt, but was spending most of my time in the dining hall taking advantage of the soft serve ice cream machine.

Genoa managed to keep Pato under wraps in the first half, but he exploded in the second, scoring twice (#1 and #2) and getting Genoa’s keeper sent off on what should have been another goal. I could feel the excitement he brought to the San Siro, and every time he touched the ball I was just waiting for him to make some magic. He’s quickly moving up my list of favorite players, especially after seeing him cry when he scored in his debut. So here’s to The Duck, may he live up to the billing and keep embarrassing players almost twice his age (except when Milan plays Arsenal in February).

Quick shoutout to Kyle Altman, my club and high school center midfield partner. Kyle went to Trinity, where he captained the team that lost to Middlebury in the D3 final. New England took him in the MLS Supplemental Draft a few days ago and I can’t wait to see him suit up.

DIII Champions!!!

What a weekend it was! Eight teams went to Disney, but only two got to enter the magical kingdom of national champions. For the second year in a row, Wheaton College beat Messiah to win the women’s crown.

On the men’s side, Trinity dug deep and overcame a Messiah team that had won the national title for three years in a row. Unfortunately for Trinity, the magic ran out in penalties in the final against Middlebury. (See my post from a few days ago for my take on penalty kicks as the way to decide games… let alone the national titles.).

For me, it was great to see a NESCAC team finally win. Those teams have been battling it out in New England for a long time, only to come up short in the tournament. No less, it was painful to see a couple of Albuquerque boys on Trinity go home empty-handed.

Meanwhile, the Wheaton women’s juggernaut rolls on. I have seen this team play a couple times in the last few years, and they are in a word, imposing.

Loving the Tournament

I have been avidly following the NCAA tournament over the last few weeks — much to the detriment of my regular blogging. It’s been a thrilling couple of weeks, and it’s only going to get better.

 

Having coached and played in men’s Division III, I am always interested to see what’s going on there. I was bummed when Wesleyan, my alma mater, didn’t get into the tournament. It just goes to show how competitive the NESCAC really is. Somehow though, the quality in that conference has never really shown in the tournament. Williams in particular has had some ridiculous teams in recent years, but just hasn’t been able to put together a run to the title.

 

This year it’s a little different. Middlebury is in the Final Four after beating an excellent York team that I blogged about earlier this season. Middlebury faces Loras College, a team that has come a long way in the last few years. But the most mouthwatering semifinal matchup has to be between Trinity University and Messiah College.

 

Messiah has won the national title for three years in a row. They’re just ridiculously good year in and year out. I don’t understand how they do it. Trinity is undefeated this season, and has been ranked #1 throughout the year. I watched two of Trinity’s stars grow up in Albuquerque — Kyle Altman and Robbie C’de Baca. That game is going to be an absolute thriller. If you live in Florida, there’s no excuse not to go…

The Tournament Beginneth!

It has always amazed me how quickly the season passes.  You get back from summer vacation, and immediately you’re in the thick of it all.  And then, two short months later it’s all over.

Monday was D-Day for Division III and Division II teams. (Brackets: IIM, IIW, IIIM, IIIW.) (Scoreboards & Links: W, M)For many on the bubble, including my alma mater, things didn’t go so well. I guess a 10 game winning streak isn’t good enough for the selection committee.  Go figure. But for a small minority of teams, the season lives on.

I’m headed out this afternoon to watch Wheaton College play Carroll College.  Wheaton is one of those powerhouses in Division III.  Year in and year out, they bring excellent teams to the field. Say no more than last year their women’s team won the national title and their men’s team lost in the national final.

If you have the opportunity this year to see some tournament games, whether they are Division I, II, or III, I highly recommend checking it out.  The mania and intensity of March Madness, with which everyone is so familiar, is no different in soccer.

The games are unbelievably intense, and even when the result isn’t that close, there is a palpable sense of urgency in the air.

That Crazy NESCAC

The New England Small Colleges Athletic Conference has to be one of the most intense and competitive conferences in all of college soccer.

On any given day in the NESCAC, any team can win. No less, much as it pains me to say this, Williams College has been consistently the best team in the league. This year, Amherst has been the cat’s meow. Amherst was undefeated late in the regular season and was ranked second nationally. And then, on Amherst’s homecoming, my dear alma mater Wesleyan came to town.

Before I tell you what happened, I am going to indulge myself with a little reminiscing. Because it was under these exact circumstances — at Amherst on homecoming — that I was involved in one of the best games of my college career. Amherst went up on us in the first half, 1 – 0. We were undeterred, and came roaring back in the second half. I scored the tying goal, and then a good friend of mine scored the winner late in the game. In the waning moments, Amherst came at us manically, but the dam held. I don’t think I’ve ever been as exhausted after a soccer game. It was thrilling to say the least.

This year, the same thing happened. Just the stakes were a little higher. Not only was Amherst ranked second in the country, but Wesleyan was on a huge roll, having won eight games in a row. Once again, Wesleyan went down 1 – 0 and came back to win 2 – 1. I guess it’s just the indomitable spirit of the Cardinals!!!

In the final weekend of the regular season, Wesleyan was scheduled to play Bowdoin College. Wesleyan came back twice from behind and ended up winning 3 – 2 in overtime. Here’s where it gets crazy. Less than 24 hours later, the two teams played again in the first round of the NESCAC tournament. Fortunately, both games were at Wesleyan. But had Bowdoin won the first game, the two teams would’ve had to travel up to Maine to play the next day. Go figure. Alas, in the tournament, Bowdoin won 2 – 0.

So now, the waiting game is underway for Wesleyan, as the team keeps its fingers crossed that it will get an at-large bid to the NCAA tournament. FYI, last year four NESCAC men’s teams went to the dance. We’ll see what happens…

The Best Fan in College Soccer

There are some fans who clap politely, some who yell at the ref, others who print out the Facebook profiles of the opposing players so they can heckle them about their girlfriends and the fact that their favorite movie is “Beauty and the Beast.”

Then there’s University of Chicago superfan Tyjuan — aka Top 50 — the most prolific, impassioned, hilarious fan in the history of college soccer.

Tyjuan has been known to travel with the teams. He’s come out to support the players at practice along with the 300-strong media contingent that follows the UChicago Maroons wherever they go. (Okay, maybe not that last part.) Then there was the game where the referee wouldn’t let play resume until Tyjuan was escorted off the premises. As he left, the several hundred UChicago fans in attendance saluted him with a standing ovation.

Tyjuan’s Trademarked War Cries:

“Welcome to the JUNGLE!”

“We must protect this house!”

“Get that ball!”

One Eye on York, Another on My Alma Mater

Where is York, PA? Geographically it’s here. Soccerwise it’s #9, and moving up. York’s DIII men’s team started out last week ranked 17th in the NSCAA poll. By the end of the week, the team had unseated back-to-back-to-back national champion Messiah, a team that just never seems to lose. On Wednesday, York beat #5 Johns Hopkins. Could there at last be a changing of the guard in Division III?

It would be tomfoolery to count Messiah out. They just seem to know how to win when it counts. I listened to the webcast in agony a few years back as they came back from 1-0 down to win against my alma mater Wesleyan in the second round of the NCAA tournament. Speaking of which, after a rough start, Wesleyan has resurrected its season with eight straight wins, tying the school record. What is it going to take to break the record? A win on Saturday against a mighty Amherst team that’s 11-0 and ranked #2. Is anyone driving from Chicago to Western Mass. this weekend?

The College Selection Pyramid: Part Dos

So I blogged last week about selecting a school based on #1. Academics, #2. Social Fit, and #3. Soccer Fit. In part two of this 73 installment series (jk) we’re going to put said methodology to use. Let’s see how it works. I’d like you to meet our test case, my new hypothetical friend Effie Salinas, a high school junior at Tappahannock South High School in Tappahanock, VA. (BTW – all details come from one of the most amusing sites on the web, Fake Name Generator. Refresh often!)

Academics First! I argued oh so eloquently in my last post that if you start with a huge, overwhelming pool of colleges (say all of those on planet earth) and then cut out the ones that aren’t in your academic range, you’ll reduce the pool drastically. To be practical, we’re going to start with this week’s Top 25 DIII men’s teams. In the real world, I recommend college counselors and Destination-U to help narrow the field.

Okay, so Effie is a high school junior, a good student (B+, 29 ACT, 2040 SAT), and he absolutely loves chemistry. The ionic bonds in lithium fluoride move him to tears. Let’s see if we can narrow the Top 25 accordingly. I’ve underlined (and linked to) the schools that more or less fit his academic needs.

1. Trinity (Texas), 2. Amherst (Mass.), 3. North Carolina Wesleyan, 4. Loras (Iowa), 5. Messiah (Pa.), 6. Rochester (N.Y.), 7. Case Western Reserve (Ohio), 8. The College of New Jersey, 9. York (Pa.), 10. Centre (Ky.), 11. Johns Hopkins (Md.), 12. Middlebury (Vt.), 13. Puget Sound (Wash.), 14. Stevens Institute of Technology (N.J.), 15. Capital (Ohio), 16. New Jersey City, 17. Emory (Ga.), 18. Franklin & Marshall (Pa.), 19. Washington (Mo.), 20. Carleton (Minn.), 21. St. Lawrence (N.Y.), 22. New York, 23. DePauw (Ind.), 24. Williams (Mass.), 25. Dominican (Ill.)

Voila! Where once there were 25, now there are 7, which is a much more manageable number. No doubt, there are some controversial choices in there. But at a certain point, you’ve gotta start cutting fat. I didn’t include Amherst or Williams because, much as I love dear Effie, those colleges would be serious “reach schools.” (By pure coincidence — I swear! — they also happen to be the arch rivals of my alma mater, Wesleyan.) Hopkins and Case Western are also reaches, but probably more reasonable. The rest are really in the wheelhouse — schools that Effie might get into on any given day.

The most important point is that with reasonable rigor we just cut out 72% of the original pool. That makes our job waaaaay easier. Up next, we’ll narrow the pool even further, based on Effie’s social preferences. Stay tuned…

Case in Point: The Remarkable Transformation of Case Western

Imagine losing every conference game for six years. That was the plight of Case Western Reserve University’s mens soccer team. Yet in the last four years, Head Coach Dan Palmer and his players have turned the program around. Their hard work has paid off with regular conference wins in the highly competitive University Athletic Association, a strong run in the 2006 NCAA tournament, and a #2 national ranking.

In this go around of Radio CaptainU, I spoke with Dan Palmer about Case Western’s impressive turnaround, what the program is all about, recruiting, and what he anticipates during the fast-approaching conference season.

So check out Episode 3(!!!!), by clicking below, or subscribing to our podcast feed through iTunes. BTW – Keep the good feedback coming about the podcast. We’re constantly trying to improve it.

Listen Here:

Here are some highlights, in case you’ve only got a few minutes to listen:

2:45 – How a high ranking changes things

4:00 – The breakthrough 2006 season

6:15 – The make-up of the 2007 squad

8:15 – Recruiting during the rough years…and now

11:00 – How college soccer has become much more competitive

12:30 – The crazy rigor of the UAA conference

Break it Down

I spent the weekend eating fried twinkies at the Minnesota State Fair. To say the least, it took a few days to recover from fried Oreo devastation, but I finally made it to my first regular season game yesterday, a men’s game between UChicago and Dominican. I took the L from downtown Chicago to River Forest, a ride that is never short on new experiences.

Dominican v. Chicago has become a bit of a rivalry in recent years, so the stage was set. The first 30 minutes were a midfield battle, with neither team generating much of an attack. I confess that I am typically a naysayer about short corners. But I swallow my pride and eat my words, because clearly I am wrong. Dominican ’s Juan Saldana scored in the 31st minute on an absolute tear off a short corner. Dominican added a second in the 70th minute off a deflection.

Throughout the game, both teams had trouble breaking down the opponent’s defense. This is an area where a lot of college teams seem to struggle. Across the board, the quality of possession play has really improved in recent years. A lot more teams are pinging the ball around, trying to find seams, rather than just hoofing it upfield to some fast forwards. But much has yet to be learned in the final third when it comes to quick combinations that break down defenses.

One quick shout out: I must tip my hat to the Dominican grounds crew. Their field is utterly immaculate. Bar none, it’s the best I’ve seen in Division III. A few years ago, I watched the US MNT train there. Bruce Arena voiced his delight with the pitch conditions and was light on his toes, as if he was dancing through fields of daisies.