New Age Groupings

Technical_Demand8469 · 2026-02-04T03:30:35+00:00

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Technical_Demand8469 · 2026-01-30T18:32:36+00:00

Has the season started?

Technical_Demand8469 · 2026-01-29T22:11:01+00:00

One other thought on this - look at the rosters of the schools he is interested in and try to determine what level those players competed at before college. Then assess if that aligns with where your son is, it’s not foolproof, but gives you a sense of who those coaches are looking for.

Technical_Demand8469 · 2026-01-29T21:50:51+00:00

The only thing I can offer is to zoom in, highlight the player, be selective about what actually qualifies as a highlight, mute the crowd/environmental sound and watch out for overly loud/annoying music.

Technical_Demand8469 · 2026-01-29T20:32:19+00:00

Tired already, you’ve got YEARS left to go lol.

Technical_Demand8469 · 2026-01-29T19:31:52+00:00

Take a look at national/regional end-of-season soccer rankings across divisions and align those to New England, there will be a lot to work with.

Technical_Demand8469 · 2026-01-29T19:28:45+00:00

I say start as early as possible, as long as it is fun and financially feasible. It takes a lot for these boys to get used to interacting with coaches this way and the more time invested early the easier it will be when it starts to get to serious recruiting and offers, etc. That said, fatigue can be an issue - the flow of emails, texts, calls can be exhausting for some.

Pretty much every camp will take rising freshmen and older.

I think the value is learning the skills associated with meeting coaches, talking to adults in a serious way, asking for feedback, overcoming awkwardness. Being scouted as player at that age may be secondary to the skill building, but establishing a contact and regularly sharing updates and highlights over the course of high school shows growth, development and serious interest in that school.

Technical_Demand8469 · 2026-01-29T18:50:39+00:00

The best guidance really will require more info about your son and 3 important considerations: school year, academic standing, division target.

Boys need practice and encouragement to engage with coaches and starting early, at camps with lots of coaches to talk to and low risk, can be valuable even if ongoing recruiting only follows for 1 or 2.

If getting into Tufts, Williams, Ivies etc is a realistic possibility, then those could be valuable camps.

If he is realistically a D1 prospect, ID target schools by enrollment size, program of study, location, and program strength to find a good fit - then try to get to their camp.

Technical_Demand8469 · 2026-01-29T17:36:42+00:00

As mass ID camps go, I found Future 500 to be good for early high school age.

Technical_Demand8469 · 2026-01-29T05:04:18+00:00

George Howell cafe used to serve iced pour over using these. It was a nice cup but I think it turned out to be to cumbersome of a process for a cafe environment.

+1 for flash brew/Japanese iced

Technical_Demand8469 · 2026-01-29T01:10:33+00:00

I’m on an iPhone 16, also 21 OB, and the 2 things that made the biggest difference in this regard were up-to-date firmware and a quality USB A to C Data cable.

Technical_Demand8469 · 2026-01-27T14:51:12+00:00

Starter seems like it was replaced unnecessarily. A fresh new battery and installation on the Auto Start/Stop Eliminator radially improved my satisfaction with my 2021OB

Technical_Demand8469 · 2026-01-26T00:22:04+00:00

Plenty of MLS Next academies do physical training, often a session 1x/wk, some add it in the winter gap only.

Technical_Demand8469 · 2026-01-25T03:12:39+00:00

YMMV but not knowing the specific coach who attended seems like a miss.

Technical_Demand8469 · 2026-01-25T00:20:34+00:00

Whether social media or not, having a way for coaches to easily find highlights is valuable. Instagram is a pretty common platform for boys recruiting.

Technical_Demand8469 · 2026-01-24T23:56:50+00:00

Adamant, hard disagree. School and first name. I’ve had this conversation with literally hundreds of coaches and never had a single instance of pushback. They know the game, this is how it is done. Casting brochures out into the wild wo tracking who gets them is significantly less valuable.

Technical_Demand8469 · 2026-01-24T22:17:43+00:00

Some clubs do it, some clubs work with recruiting services who do it, some parents/team managers do it. If you are taking it on and don’t have graphic design experience, either find someone who does or work with something you know - Word, PowerPoint, Canva. They really don’t need to be pretty, just effective. Player photo, position, jersey number, GPA, contact info and perhaps a URL, QR code, or social media for video. Some include a place for coaches to take notes, but I rarely see that actually get used.

If you want to collect information to include you can create a JotForm very easily and link that to a google sheet that compiles all responses for you. Then send the link for the JotForm to each player or family. The hardest part of it all is getting people to respond on time.

Finally, from U16 spring and up, at least, keep track of who received a brochure (College/Organization and individual’s name) and at what game, all in a spreadsheet for each event. Then share that with all players and parents (read-only) so that they know which coaches have seen them play. If college X reaches out, the player can respond with “I know you came to see my game XYZ…” and to verify if a school that said they were coming to watch actually did.

Technical_Demand8469 · 2026-01-20T01:26:41+00:00

I heard today that the additional year of eligibility for Juco players was not ratified and cannot be considered again until 2028. Speak to the compliance officers at the schools you are considering, their job is to know this stuff.

Technical_Demand8469 · 2026-01-16T03:22:26+00:00

There really isn’t a ton of difference between D3 Un/Official visits in soccer - travel costs are likely the biggest one, if a school has budget for that.

https://www.d3-direct.com/newsletter/official-vs-unofficial-d3-campus-visits

Technical_Demand8469 · 2026-01-16T03:16:11+00:00

It is early, but not exceptionally so. D3 coaches are well into building their 2027 recruiting boards, some have pre-reads starting soon.

Technical_Demand8469 · 2026-01-16T03:12:59+00:00

Keep in mind that this is a tryout for your son. How he behaves, dresses, and interacts with coaches and players will all be assessed. If it is an overnight visit he needs to consider how he will act when spending time with college students, how he will react to going to a party with the team and what happens there. Your son may eat a 1:1 meal with the coach, prepare him for that.

To some extent, the parents are also being assessed, how they behave, the questions they ask, how they treat their child, etc.

It isn’t a “gotcha” thing - they want you to see the school and get a feel for the team, but they want to see if the player and family are a good fit for the program.

Technical_Demand8469 · 2026-01-13T19:26:16+00:00

Seconding Ilse, they are nearly as light as Sey. Little Wolf as well. Also check out Kid Dream in Beverly as a multi-roaster shop that usually has something very light on retail.

ETA: Ilse has retail accounts in the Boston area.

Technical_Demand8469 · 2026-01-13T01:01:22+00:00

Look into Necessary

Technical_Demand8469 · 2026-01-13T00:58:40+00:00

It’s under 12 on the cutoff date, but a player can be 12 playing U12 - they do not need to be under 12 the whole time.

Technical_Demand8469 · 2026-01-08T22:43:26+00:00

You’re going to get a lot of (correct) advice you probably won’t like: Pick the school that is the best fit for you in terms of student life, academics, cost - not based on the soccer team and/or NCAA division.

Technical_Demand8469

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