A college soccer recruit shares three regrets: not joining an elite club team early, sending full game videos instead of highlight reels to coaches, and limiting himself to in-state schools. He eventually got a full scholarship to Valparaiso but says broader geographic search would have helped.
3 things I regretted doing when I was trying to get recruited to play college soccer. Number 1, I wish I had understood the importance of playing for a high-level club team. My parents didn't know what they were doing. My dad was a surfer, my mom was a dancer. They never played college, and so we just didn't know about club soccer early enough. I really should have started playing for higher-level teams at a much earlier age. The college soccer landscape is really political, so I was probably good enough to play for the highest level team, but the teams were full, and so they wouldn't let me on the team. Number 2, I wish I knew about everytouch videos. I didn't know about every-touch videos because I wasn't like I am now, the college soccer guy. I was sending full-game videos and the coaches were not sitting through them. If I had just sent every-touch videos, I think I would have gotten a lot more interest. I wish I was more open-minded to the different types of schools. I was really lucky. I ended up at a school called Valparaiso University and had the best time ever. But I'm from Malibu, California, so I never thought of leaving California. And I think if I thought of that earlier, I could have really had more options. I did get a full ride, so I guess I didn't do that bad. If you want more help playing college soccer, comment "call" and we can schedule a call with you and your parents.
