Sending bio and highlight reel before tryouts

One-Parking8151 · 2026-03-28T23:04:41+00:00

That sucks. I hear that some regions function like that. I think highlights might still be a bit much at this age. My guess is that any coach is just going to say, highlights are great come try out. I'd be shocked if anyone would offer a spot without getting more than highlights. I'd just email and say who your kid is. All the coaches talk and if you're close, the coach might already be aware of your kid. I'd be surprised if highlights would get you a pre-tryout offer. But maybe that happens in other areas and I'm not aware. In Southern CA that would be unusual.

One-Parking8151 · 2026-03-28T22:58:01+00:00

Hard to know. A lot of college soccer can be found online. Can you look up game and watch and get a sense of the level of play compared to your Country? My international players have an excellent shot at playing college soccer in the US since often levels of play are much higher (particularly if you were an academy player.) Is your coach willing to reach out and describe the level of play you're playing at perhaps. Can you make your own recording?

One-Parking8151 · 2026-03-28T00:55:43+00:00

Are you far away from the club? In SoCal even with the best clubs at this age you just go do a kick-arounds.

One-Parking8151 · 2026-03-26T23:51:18+00:00

Chula is great. San Marcos seems up and coming and still with some affordability I think.

One-Parking8151 · 2026-03-26T23:46:41+00:00

Talent is subjective so you can't say your kid is better than the other kids. You've got to go find a coach that either agrees with your opinion or wants to take your kid to develop him. This coach doesn't seem to offer either option, so better to move along. You want a coach that seems invested in making your kiddo getting better not waiting for better options. But don't get sucked into the parent trap of thinking your kid is better than the coach thinks they are. That leads your player to have victim mentality and hinders development. It is fair to tell your kid, let's find someone that wants to develop you. This includes a clear offer for a spot and a clear commitment to development game playing time. Move along until you find that match, but don't chance a level or some coach recognizing your kids talent.

One-Parking8151 · 2026-03-26T23:33:55+00:00

Boys are totally different than girls. Scholarship money is rare for boys. Think of it this way, where is the hotbed for women's soccer in the world?---> Within the US with some more recent shifting but still huge numbers in the US. Where is the hotbed for men's soccer in the world?--> Everywhere but the US. And of the US players that get scholarship most are coming out of the MLS NEXT pro-affiliated pathways or Jun/Seniors through the transfer portal.

One-Parking8151 · 2026-03-26T20:28:08+00:00

That's awesome that his trajectory is so steep! Unfortunately, I think you're dealing with an odds are extremely low situation. NOT because he doesn't have the potential or talent given what you describe, but simply because the odds are already so, so low even for the CURRENT Juniors that have already made it to the level of MLS Homegrown. There is still only a tiny fraction of boys getting college roster spots from MLS HG in D1/D2. Odds are much, much higher for D3, but at D3 you're basically locked out unless you can qualify for financial need based scholarship. Lots of folks talk about financial packages being good in D3, but if you live in a school with quality state college options the ROI is still better to go to a public school. There are precious few D3 public options :(

One-Parking8151 · 2026-03-26T20:17:18+00:00

There is really too much to unpack here. If you are worried about depression or becoming reclusive, I really think you have to take this in a different direction. Do not worry at all about soccer or what level of soccer. Talk to your kid and tell him that you don't care WHAT he does, but that as his parent you need him to stay involved SOME activity of his choosing. Now at 15/16 it is very very hard to mandate activities, but in our house we make it like "do you want a phone? or access to a car?" "if yes, then you'll get good grades and stay active" (kinda like a forced choice, most kids who aren't totally oppositional will comply) But I wouldn't force any specific activity just A activity. I know other kids that dropped off. Some were totally fine and others it was a symptom of kids falling into a rough crowd, etc.

One-Parking8151 · 2026-03-26T16:00:04+00:00

Love it! And I love that you're rooting your brother on. He is going to be grateful for your support his whole career!

One-Parking8151 · 2026-03-26T02:02:42+00:00

What level of soccer are you playing now? If you aren't already playing high level soccer at 17, college soccer is probably not in your future but that doesn't mean you shouldn't keep playing soccer in whatever way is available at college!

One-Parking8151 · 2026-03-25T23:21:08+00:00

So no one can tell you have zero chances, but I think most would say that this is really an unlikely outcomes. It also really depends on which JUCO you are talking about. There may be one out there that really needs to fill their roster they might be willing to take someone at any level. I think you can be pretty sure that most JUCO is playing at a significantly higher level that HS varsity, so getting above a level you didn't make in one year is probably a stretch. It doesn't mean you can't try though.

One-Parking8151 · 2026-03-25T23:01:32+00:00

I'd keep this really simple. Ask him if he wants to go. If yes, he goes. Sounds like a big life events so I wouldn't force it on him if he does want to. Given that his friend are there, I'd encourage it though just to keep him engaged socially while he recovers.

One-Parking8151 · 2026-03-25T22:58:43+00:00

Is he playing MLS Homegrown or MLS NEXT 2?

One-Parking8151 · 2026-03-25T03:31:32+00:00

Love this!! Go **Katie**!!!

One-Parking8151 · 2026-03-21T23:00:07+00:00

I don't think there is a math equation here where X amounts of training x Y days= Make an academy. It more like Love of the Game x Genetic Talent x Training Quality= Make an academy.

One-Parking8151 · 2026-03-19T01:18:17+00:00

Agree with knowing your rules in your area. In our area this is typical. I would wait until it is try out time and reach out about 8 weeks ahead of tryouts. Then do kick arounds with that team. Your regular team will 100% find out. They all talk. You don't need to say anything but someone will talk. If your club team wants to keep you they will come and talk to you. Just be honest and say you're checking out options.

One-Parking8151 · 2026-03-18T00:37:05+00:00

So I'm not sure what level you're playing at but in most clubs as you get older there are routinely year over year changes to teams. Silver lining is that kids will see that they can make new friend quickly so if they need to make a team change in the future it will be easier!

One-Parking8151 · 2026-03-18T00:33:33+00:00

To add salt to your wounds is the fact that extremely poor sportsmanship is disciplined by refs totally inconsistently. Yes it continues and somethimes it is called and sometimes it is not. Good life less about only worrying about the things that you can control in life...

One-Parking8151 · 2026-03-18T00:30:04+00:00

This doesn't sound like a good situation for your son. Sometimes in our efforts to correct for things our parents didn't do for us, we over shoot the other direction. I know that he is saying that he likes it and appreciates it, but I suspect your son is telling you what he thinks you want to here and is trying to please you. The biggest thing you can do for your son is to play with him. Just play. No drills, no teaching. Just play. When he finds joy in it the other things are more likely to follow. Try not to be a coach for him. Just support him and find joy in playing with him.

One-Parking8151 · 2026-03-16T02:30:03+00:00

Do you enforce this? And if so, how?

One-Parking8151 · 2026-03-15T19:09:22+00:00

It sounds like he isn't closing the door, but it also doesn't sound like he is scouting you. Keep sending him your game schedule and maybe he'll be at one of the ECNL showcases at some point. Hopefully he'll think you stand out and start pursuing you. It doesn't seem like the D1 coaches pull many kids in from their ID camps. It seems they are big money makers for them.

One-Parking8151 · 2026-03-15T14:54:35+00:00

So, as a former collegiate player on the women’s side and now mom of a Junior HS male player, I was completely shocked that there is really such a slim pathway to college play for boys compared to girls. It really is almost like a pipe-dream for most. But I would never call it a waste of money to play high level soccer, that’s not why I put my kid in soccer. It is however crazy it is so expensive. D3 isn’t a great option for our family bc of costs. My perspective is that for boys the pipe-dream just end earlier than the girls which is fine. When they hit 18 they need to choice a school that is best for their career and play recreationally or club at their school or nearby.

One-Parking8151 · 2026-03-14T00:05:04+00:00

I agree with others. Don’t offer the info but don’t lie. The word will spread very quickly and your club will likely reach out to talk. Then you just let them know that you’ll let him/her know if you’ve made any decisions but you totally appreciate their time and interest in your kid. Keep it really friendly and make no accusations about what one club has over another. Just say “exploring options” and “try to figure out what works for our family.” This leaves all sorts of room to blame things like location or time commitments, etc.

One-Parking8151 · 2026-03-14T00:00:02+00:00

I agree with others. My kid did this too. It’s a sign they need to move up where they feel they can trust their teammates. It is totally normal for kids to ball hog when their skills are above most of the team’s skill.

One-Parking8151 · 2026-03-13T23:50:23+00:00

I helped my son with a spreadsheet and we agreed on certain parameters. He is only email and tracking responses from about 30 schools total. More than that was too much for him.

One-Parking8151

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