Specialization not the answer for most players

from the Evansville Courier Press, March 1, 2009 MIKE JACOBS COLUMN

As the spring season gets ready to kick off for youth soccer players, it would be a healthy reminder of why players should (and should not) be playing soccer all-year round.

In an age where more youth athletes are getting "specialized" by playing only one sport, it's important to stress the idea of participating in as many different activities as possible. I once told a town meeting in New York that I thought the drawback of young American soccer players as compared to European counterparts was that kids in our country were too distracted with other interests to be able to train properly and hone their skills. A parent immediately hold me to task, asking who I was to tell them that their 9-year old child should only play soccer.

Years later, I have to plead ignorance in both being fairly young at the time of that comment as well as lacking in life experience as a parent myself. Having two young children involved in sports at the recreational, school and travel levels, it's important to reference a couple of things about being diverse and well-rounded:

— Most American youths stop playing soccer by 15, which tells you that maybe they play too much at too young an age. There are exceptions in players committed and determined to do so. But the exceptions are the ones with the genuine interest in doing so themselves. Any parent who has to figuratively or literally drag their kid along to their next practice needs to decide if their kid really wants to participate as much as the parent themselves.

— Our country develops the best athletes in the world is because they're so well-rounded.We're short international level players out in the field, but we are developing world-class goalkeepers at a rapid rate. U.S. National team goalkeepers Brad Guzan and Tim Howard both played out in the field in high school, and Howard was a standout in basketball. Former National team goalkeeper Tony Meola won an athletic scholarship to Virginia in both soccer and baseball.

— If you as a parent are investing money in year-round training, coaching and travel with the intentions of receiving an athletic scholarship, think again. Former IU basketball coach Bob Knight spoke at the Five Star Basketball Camp years ago, and referenced that out of 240,000 high school basketball players in the country only 3,000 actually play Division I basketball. That number is slightly more than 1 percent —and the numbers are even lower in Division I soccer, with more players on a high school soccer team and fewer Division I soccer programs. If you are encouraging your child to play 'select' or 'travel' soccer for the potential for an athletic scholarship, you would be better served to save the money spent on gas, hotels, personal trainers and uniforms and pay for college yourself.

There are plenty of enefits to playing soccer on a year-round basis. The opportunity to play and train with players who are more serious about their sport; the opportunity to play for coaches who are working year round themselves; the chance to play against teams with other players who are training together on a more regular basis with the standard much higher than at the recreational or school levels.

The idea to specialize in one sport is on more of a case by case basis, opposed to a specific rule to be able to play at the collegiate level.

Some of the best collegiate athletes are two-sport or three-sport athletes, and some of the best collegiate players only play soccer in their high school years.

It is fine and appropriate for a child to cut down on commitments as they get older and are asked to manage their time better. Just make sure that your child does it on their own terms for the right reasons.