College Discussion Panel Held at SDDA Showcase
The San Diego Development Academy (SDDA) College Showcase allowed top level youth soccer players from San Diego to put their skills to the test in front of college scouts who were searching for upcoming talent. The College Soccer Showcase also provided players and parents with the highly valuable opportunity to hear from college recruits in a discussion panel held on both days of the tournament.
Youth Soccer News: Presidio Soccer League and San Diego Development Academy (SDDA) were proud to host their 4th annual College Showcase with 244 youth soccer teams participating in this year’s successful event.
The event was held on November 12th and November 13th at the San Diego Polo Fields — featuring teams from birth years 1997 – 2005.
The two day event included highlighting talented younger players with five Cal South ODP coaches scouting on Saturday. On Sunday, the College Showcase took place.
The SDDA Youth Soccer event also included two conferences on playing soccer for parents and players. SDDA partnered with Jeff Jaye and iSoccer Path to coordinate the discussions that included six college coaches per session.
An interactive question and answer session followed the college coach discussion period and parents and players were able to ask questions on what coaches look for and what can and can’t be done according to NCAA rules.
“It was so relevant,” said Presidio Soccer League President Bob Turner. “The players and parents both had so many questions – it was great. The question and answer period could have gone on much longer. We are so proud we were able to offer this to our soccer players and their families.”
“iSoccer’s slogan is Your Bridge from Club Soccer to College Student Athlete and Jeff did a great job at the SDDA Showcase,” said Turner.
“The SDDA showcase panel was one of our best attended events,” said Jeff Jaye, Managing Director of iSoccerPath and College Soccer Panels. “We offer our panels for free to as many youth club or group as we can and we were honored to be partnered with San Diego Presidio Soccer League to provide college education. Bob, his staff and Board of SDDA ran their event in a highly professional way — the showcase was amazing. We look forward to being invited back and helping more players and parents.”
iSoccerPath offers a one of a kind comprehensive parent/player education and assistance program for players starting as early as the 8th grade.
At the Showcase, Turner spoke about his experience as a parent of college bound players and his son’s youth development during his teenage years. Turner clearly explained to the audience that in his opinion, players do not receive a lot of assistance from their high schools with the college process — and while many youth soccer clubs try to help meet the needs of all their players, many are only able to concentrate on the top, elite players.
“Parents need to be educated,” said Turner. “Having an athlete want to play collegiate sports, and having them apply to college is not a simple process. SDDA is happy to help provide information.”
The process of applying to college, searching for scholarships and tryout for roster spots is often overwhelming. The discussions received an overwhelmingly positive response from the 375 individuals that were in attendance.
SDDA and Presidio Soccer League remain dedicated to providing teams in attendance with the necessary resources to help prepare them for the next step in a player’s career along with top competition at their events.
