A coach explains how 5th graders can work toward college soccer. He says elite leagues don't matter yet, good coaching and club environment do. Record video of your kid playing and send it to him for feedback on where they actually stand.
What should you be doing if you're in 5th grade and you want to play college soccer? This is the Youth College Soccer Guide page specifically designed for kids below the age of 7th grade. I have another page specifically for 8th grade to and above, but this is just for that age group. So in 5th grade, I want you and your parents to be thinking about the clubs. You do not need to be playing for ECNL or MLS Next at that age. In fact, they don't have it for MLS Next at that age. You do need to know the club teams in your area. I think you don't understand, or I'm going to try and make you how competitive it is to play college soccer. It is insanely competitive. And the kids that are already playing for LAFC's youth academy at 10 years old are going to have a greater advantage to other kids. They're going to get better earlier. They're going to get better coaching. And they're going to get exposed to players who are going on to the next level. Now, at this age, the coach matters. I want you to do development, development. Winning does not matter. Yes, I'd like you to record video. So the coach would probably matter more than the club team, but the more connections you have, the better off you'll be. So you should be trying out for the best club teams. For example, when I was 5 years old, 10 years old, my parents didn't know freaking anything about soccer, and there were consequences to that. We worked really hard, but we were clueless. I went on to earn a full ride scholarship to play Division 1, but it would have been a lot better if somebody had told my parents, who were very hardworking and willing to listen and willing to invest the money, to go, hey, you should put your kid in these clubs with these coaches at these levels. You will have a better chance. If you're not sure the club teams in your area, if you're not sure what level your child is at their age, I do still need to see video. So submit some type of video and DM me and we can talk about it.
