Men's Soccer Program

[bullsareit]

I know that it is just an olympic sport, but have you seen the kids that are coming in to play for the Bulls? One was on the Trib the other day............Any feedback on men's soccer would be good

[mattegunz]

Mens soccer inked the 10th ranked recruiting class in 2003 and this years class looks just as good.  The team should be stacked next year. It will be the 3rd year for our head coach which means most of the players here now were recruited by him.  

[Papa_Bull]

Here is the USF soccer release on the recruiting classof 2004:

USF Soccer (Men)

News Back

Head Coach George Kiefer Announces 2004 Men's Soccer Recruiting Class

(March 11, 2004) Tampa, FL – The University of South Florida Head Men’s Soccer Coach George Kiefer has announced the signing of seven players to national letters of intent. Rodrigo Hidalgo, Christian Jimenez, Osmany Hernandez, Freddy Hall, Frankie Slater, Colby West, and Simon Schoendorf comprise the 2004 recruiting class.

“I am very excited about the incoming class both academically and athletically,†said Kiefer.

The 2004 class is Coach Kiefer’s second while at South Florida. College Soccer News ranked the 2003 recruiting class tenth best in the nation. This year’s class boasts a talented group of individuals who have been successful at the international and regional level.

Rodrigo Hidalgo a 6-1, 175 pound midfielder/forward from Atlantis, FL comes to South Florida from the U-17 United States Youth National Team residency program in Bradenton, FL where he has established himself as one of the top players in the country and in the state. Currently he is a member of the U-18 and U-20 National teams. He has been a member of the Region 3 US Olympic Development Program. Prior to his invitation into residency, he played club soccer for Weston Fury who is coached by Alvin James. He led the team to a Florida State Championship and winning numerous prestigious youth club tournaments throughout the country. Hidalgo was chosen to the 2003 PARADE All-America Boys Soccer Team. He was also named to the all-state, all- region, and the 2003 NSCAA Youth All-America Team. TopDrawerSoccer.com voted Hidalgo as one of the Top 100 Prospects in the country. He attends the Edison Academic Center in Bradenton.

Christian Jimenez a 5-10, 160 pound midfielder from San Dimas, CA arrives at South Florida as one of the highest rated midfielders in the country. A member of the U-17 United States Youth National Team residency program for the past two years, Christian is currently serving his country as a member of the U-18 and U-20 National Teams. Jimenez has trained with the full US Men’s National Team under Bruce Arena. Jimenez is a member of the Region 4 US Olympic Development Program and participated in the prestigious Adidas Elite Soccer Program, which is an invitation-only showcase for the top 150 players across the country. He is a member of the 2003 NSCAA Youth All-America Team. Jimenez was also a Top 100 Prospect in the country by TopDrawerSoccer.com. He attends the Edison Academic Center.

Osmany Hernandez a 5-7, 135 pound midfielder from Miami, FL is one of the best left- footed players coming out of Florida. Hernandez has seen success on the field both at the club and high school level. Osmany played with the Plantation Premier Club under coach Hugo Muniz. He led the team to a Florida State Championship and winning numerous prestigious youth club tournaments throughout the country. In high school, he played for Jay Flipse at perennial power Miami Sunset Senior. At Miami Sunset, Osmany played in four consecutive Final Fours and led his team to a 2004 State Championship and a No. 1 NSCAA national ranking. A member of the Region 3 US Olympic Development Program, he participated in the prestigious Adidas Elite Soccer Program with current signee Christian Jimenez. Hernandez was also named to the all-state and all-region team.

Freddy Hall a 6-2, 165 pound goalkeeper from St. George, Bermuda hails from Holderness School in New Hampshire. Hall was a member of the U-17 Bermuda National Team, and he currently serves his country on the U-21 National Team. While at Holderness he was all-state and a Lake Region All-Star for coach Bob Lowe. He led his Holderness team to many prep state championships in his four years and was voted for the Weston Lea Award, symbolizing passion for the game. He was a Boston Globe all- scholastic player and an all-New England selection.

Frankie Slater a 5-11, 155 pound defender/midfielder from Viera, FL comes to South Florida as one of the best left-footed defenders in the state. Slater is an all-state and all- region player at Melbourne Central Catholic High School where he played for coach Robin Chan. In 2002 Frankie led his team to the Florida High School State Championship. He was a member of the Florida State Olympic Development Program and the Region 3 US Olympic Development Program.

Colby West a 6-2, 175 pound goalkeeper from Bradenton, FL is an accomplished goalkeeper who played for the nationally recognized Tampa Bay Kickers. West was a major factor to the Kickers four state championships. The Kickers also won the prestigious Atlanta Cup tournament four times while West was the goalkeeper. He was a four-year All-State and All-Area player and was named defensive MVP four consecutive years at Manatee High School. He posted a school record of 36 shutouts. Colby is the younger brother of USF sophomore sensation Hunter West.

Simon Schoendorf a 6-2, 165 pound midfielder hails from Karlsruhe, Germany. He played in the junior system of Karlsruher Sport Club of the German Bundesliga, which is the same club of US National Team star Conor Casey. Schoendorf was a major contributor in the center of the midfield when his team captured the Badische Meister, which is equivalent to a state and regional championship. He also played and captained his school team, European School, and was the 2003/2004 Sportsman of the Year.

You can read up on USF soccer on the Official site:

http://gobulls.usf.edu/Sports/sport.asp?i=8

[Velcro]

2 high ranked goal keepers in the same class... wow.

[bulls96go]

do we play the gnats in soccer?

[Chip]

Let me float this: get rid of men's soccer to help title 9 compliance. Thoughts?

[The Sheriff]

Float this: Get rid of Title IX. Besides softball (and because they're doing well), I really could care less about other women's sports at USF. I want us to win, but unless I'm dating someone on the team, I'm not going out to watch women's track or tennis or golf or sailing or hoops. Softball is at least enjoyable because you get a good tan. Title IX discriminates against men.  

[Papa_Bull]

Men's Soccer could become a big sport at USF with all the great recruits:

The University of South Florida’s soccer stadium holds 3,800 people, so the school brought in another 400 bleacher seats to meet ticket demand for D.C. United’s exhibition match against the Kansas City Wizards on Feb. 19.

Even with the extra seating, the clamor was so great to see D.C. 14-year-old phenom Freddy Adu that people sat on fences, tree limbs  anything they could find  to get a glimpse of Adu, who comes to Charleston on Saturday night for the first of two exhibition games that are a part of the four-team Carolina Challenge Cup.

“There were people scalping tickets in the parking lot,†USF assistant men’s soccer coach Jeff Negalha said, still incredulous. “It was great.â€Â

http://www.thestate.com/mld/thestate/sports/8223459.htm

[Guest S. Bien]

While I don't usually put a lot of weight in the PARADE All-American team for football, typically the Olympic Sports are great indicators of talent.  For some reason PARADE's attempt to be equitable in football forces them to skip over better players.

Although, it should be noted that now Hildalgo is a two time PARADE All-American, he won it in 2003 as well.  Add in Hunter West, a PARADE AA in 2002, and the fact that Hunter's little bro is an amazing goal keeper, and the Men's Team will be formidable for year's to come, possibly start seeing some consistent rankings starting next year.  

Women's basketball is on an upswing as well, if we can get these two  JUCO All-Americans that will be a tough team with Rae Rae, and Dickson, we will be loaded with scorers.

[BullDoug]

Title 9 needs to be reworked. They simply must take football OUT of the equation entirely. The number of athletes required/used in that one sport alone has no equivalent in female athletics. It typically is also where the money comes to fund the rest of the teams in the first place. Basketball, while it is often the chief bread winner depending on the school-- does have a female equivalent.

Title 9 is slowly killing the sport of college wrestling, among others.

Wanna take it one step further.  Any sport which is self supporting financially should not be part of Title IX which includes football and men's D1 basketball.  Not to be sexiest but if the women want equal status they should have equal interest & equal venue sources.