Hi,
Throughout high school I went back and forth with whether or not I wanted to play college soccer and waited too long until I realized I can’t live without it. I’m probably going to end up playing club at my school (which is a large D1 university) I e-mailed the varsity coach and he told me that I could come to a camp. I’m a very good player I have a lot of experience playing the game and my technical skill is at a higher level than others because I played on many advanced teams. I’ve also played with many college girls and I know I can compete with them so it’s not a matter of my capabilities. The coach at my school said he would decide if I could play for him or not based on my performance however I can’t make it to the camp because of expenses.
The questions I’m looking to have answered are: Is there anyway I can move up playing club soccer at my college to playing varsity soccer there? Can I get recruited from another university while i’m in university to play for their team even if im on club? Someone please help.
Of course you can move from club to varsity under the same conditions as a walk on. It is not easy. You may get ‘recruited’ by another school, but I think the onus will be on you to do the contacting, follow up, etc. Most D1 coaches do not spend time watching other schools’ club teams thinking those players are interested in transferring.
thank you so much for your response, very helpful!
Another reason the coach wants to see you at the camp is to be able to compare you against players that he is actively recruiting - players he already knows are up to the standards for the program. Club teams can vary greatly in how strong they are compared to the varsity teams (usually they are much weaker, occasionally they are pretty good, and very, very rarely they are better).
The fact that you were unable to decide if playing in college was right for you, club soccer might be a better choice than playing on a d1 team. The time expectations of a d1 soccer team are huge - 25+ hours per week - more on travel weekends. It can be a great experience, but it severely limits your ability to participate in other activities.
What would be the appropriate steps to try and move up from club to the school team?
The coach already told you what he wanted you to do. Have you told him you can’t afford to attend camp? What was his response?
Varsity coaches do not typically recruit from college club teams within their own schools and especially not from another school. While the varsity coach at your school is telling you to attend his summer camp, our experience was that it is difficult to stand out at those camps-they are typically more of a money-making tool for the school. D1 coaches tend to recruit from high-level tournaments where they will see a lot of very good players. You say you are a very good player because you have played on advanced teams- you should realize that every single player on a D1 team has most likely played on highly ranked club teams, as D1 recruitment is very selective. As a club player in high school, were you recruited by college coaches? Did you play at a very high level on a highly ranked team (Dallas, Surf, etc?) If so then it might be worth attending the camp. If not, it might not be worth your money to attend the camp. Look at club teams you have played on in the past to see what the level of college recruitment from those teams was. If a lot of those players went to D1 teams then it is an indicator that your level of play might be on a D1 level. If there was not a lot of recruitment taking place then you might want to reevaluate your chances. Club teams at D1 schools are usually very competitive and include very talented players. You may find a very challenging environment w/o as much stress as a D1 team would have. If you have already tried out for and made the Club team, give it a chance and you may end up moving it.
^^^“loving it”, not “moving it” in the last sentence. Darn phone.
Do you think you would make the Varsity team and get a scholarship? Would this be worth the investment in the camp?
D1 coaches have most likely already used all of their scholarships for the coming year and possibly even for the 2016/17 year. D1 scholarships typically go to the highly recruited players.
I have noticed that a number of men’s soccer teams have tryouts during the school year for existing students. It usually occurs after the regular season, not before. I am not sure if they ever pick up any players through those tryouts or whether it is just something the school requires them to do. You may want to see if that is an option. I have also known some players who have been invited to practice preseason with the team so that the coach can take a look at them. This was done without a firm commitment.
My son’s D2 team does hold a sort of “1-day try-out” during May of the preceding year for the following fall. This try-out is really just for players who have not been recruited but who have shown that they might be suitable for the team and are interested in walking-on. If the coach is interested in them after this session, then they may be invited to a formal try-out with the team just prior to the fall season. In the past only 0-4 have been invited to the fall try-out. This means they must arrive at school prior to the fall quarter and do a 1 week try-out which includes existing players and new recruits of the team along with any of these walk-ons. While supposedly even the existing players and recruits of the team are doing the “try-out” I have never heard of any of them not making the team. Any member from the previous season who did not work out for whatever reason was already cut from the team, so any returning members know they are already going to make the team. Cuts start occurring mid-way through the week with final cuts on Friday. If the walk-ons don’t make the team then they return home and come back to school with all of the other students during the regular fall move-in. Each year there might be one or two who are invited to play with the team but it is not a given- there may be 0.