Posted by

Aaron Nielsen ,

December 16, 2014 Email

Aaron Nielsen



Twitter

@ENBSports

Read this on your iPhone/iPad or Android device





After what should be regarded as a less than stellar NCAA Men's Soccer season, the final ended fittingly with Virginia winning the College Cup tournament on penalty kicks after a 0-0 draw with UCLA. Virginia saw the school’s top player and MLS prospect Eric Bird return from injury for the final, although he only played 36 minutes and the Cavilers stuck to a defensive style that got them to the finals over earlier round favorites Notre Dame and Georgetown. Connecting on 4 out of 5 penalty kicks while the Bruins missed 2 out of 4, giving Virginia its first championship since 2009, and seventh in the school’s history. After the game many were critical of how Virginia played and thought they didn't deserve to win, especially after getting the easier semi-final draw against the Cinderella team UMBC. However, I had picked Virginia to make the final four and in a year with not many dominant schools, and the way the tournament draw was set up, it didn't surprise me especially after a run in last season’s tournament that the Cavaliers made it this far. On paper, even I will admit that UCLA had the stronger team and almost too much depth, with many high school and international student prospects not getting enough minutes for one of the best recruiting schools. Although like many programs this season, I found UCLA frustrating at times by not being able to put in a complete performance. This includes Leo Stolz, who will most likely win the college player of the year and be talked about regarding the MLS draft. However, the German didn't dominate this season like he did in 2013 and after choosing not to take a penalty kick his last action in college was a yellow card at the end of second overtime. This doesn't mean this year’s tournament wasn't entertaining. Arguably UCLA’s win over the University of North Carolina (“UNC”) to get to the final four was one of the most exciting games I've seen this year in soccer and could go down as one of the greatest college game of all-time. UNC, the other stacked team in terms of prospects with UCLA, had Alex Olofson red carded just 12 minutes in the game but they took the lead through Omar Holness. The teams shared goals, including one from UCLA freshman prospect Abu Danladi, who despite playing only 12 games in college is now being talked as a potential GA candidate for the upcoming draft. The game went into penalty kicks tied 3-3 and UCLA won in PKs 7-6. All except one of UCLA’s five tournament games went into extra time, including a 3-2 win over Providence in the Semis. The Canadians in the tournament performed well but were eliminated before the conclusion, most notably Syracuse lost to Georgetown in the round of 16. While Jay Chapman’s Michigan State were upset by Providence in the final 8, although this didn't harm the Campbellford, Ontario native’s profile. The school’s success as well as his performances up to that point have led to rumors of him being signed by an English Premier League club and seems he will leave school now to sign with Toronto FC as a potential Homegrown player or with a club in Europe. Meanwhile, maybe outside of Abu Danladi, the tournament didn't effect the top prospects regarding the upcoming MLS Draft. This led to an embarrassing situation from the American soccer media, such as MLSSoccer and the broadcaster ESPN, as they choose to only really cover the tournament during the Final Four and generally hyping up players who most likely are not going to make an impact in MLS. Personally, my own top 100 prospect list changed only slightly as the season progressed, while four of my top 20, including UCONN's Cyle Larin, didn't even make the tournament. However, the tournament did allow me to see some players more closely and despite no stats to speak of, a player who impressed me because of his defensive awareness is UNC’s Boyd Okwuonu, who I feel will bring the greatest value to the MLS club who drafts him. Other players to read up about before the draft are Georgetown's Joshua Yaro, who I like but have more concerns about than others. A few other notable players are St Louis forward Robbie Kristo, Notre Dame midfielders Nick Besler and Patrick Hoden, and Washington's Sophomore Christian Roldan. Meanwhile, Duke's Sean Davis signed a Homegrown contract with New York Red Bulls and expect the same with Jordan Morris and Darwin Jones in Seattle. While Toronto FC have a number of decisions to be made regarding Jay Chapman and Jordan Murrell, and unfortunately Allando Matheson has likely played himself out of a potential Homegrown contract with Toronto after struggling with UCONN this season. Like most soccer in North America, NCAA soccer isn't perfect with many structural and organizational issues, including schools being asked to play up to 25 games in less than four months. There has been talk of change such as a full calendar season with a winter break, and the addition of most MLS clubs now having USL Pro clubs so the expectation on drafted players should be less. Academy based players are having a greater impact on college soccer, although I still feel college soccer is a key stepping stone in both player development and North American scouting as it gives further opportunity to evaluate. However, it is up to MLS and its clubs to care about college soccer beyond the final four to fully take advantage of it.

