First day of the 2022 soccer season today. Thoughts on the season? Hoping for some good discussion this year.
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My bold prediction is that Prairie has a worse regular season, but actually qualifies for state, beating an improved Jefferson in the substate final this time (if their excellent wingbacks stay healthy). My boy played with a bunch of the Prairie guys this winter in indoor high school invitational camps. They were raw but had that cleverness on offense that previous Prairie teams lacked.First day of the 2022 soccer season today. Thoughts on the season? Hoping for some good discussion this year.
Looks like several scores missing in VB from the scrimmages, and I know you can't rely much on scores from scrimmages as coaches may be using them to try out different approaches, roster combinations etc.How are teams looking this spring after some scrimmages?
Regina was missing several starters in that scrimmage due to a retreat. And, had only had a couple of days of outdoor practice as a team. West Liberty scrimmaged City the day before, which resulted in an almost identical score. Not sure what to expect this season in 1A. I'd say Burlington/ND is the clear front runner, with the usual suspects on their heels (Beckman, Regina, W. Liberty, Columbus, Assumption, etc.).
I don't know about a 0-10 vs Prairie. It's an incredibly tough match, but I don't know about a mercy rule loss. I mean history doesn't mean much to any given team, but since Varsity Bound records (2011 season) Regina's worst loss was 0-5, which has happened twice (3 times now)Solon is pretty damn good this year. 9 seniors on the team.
That coupled with the fact that regina has talent but has no identity with this team led to that result. Think it's going to be a long season for regina. Killer schedule and they've yet to play a game with all their starters due to conflicts and injury. I'll go out on a limb and say they finish below 500 if they play their full schedule. Prairie up next. They won't have a full team for that game either. Score could end up 10-0 prairie.
Nice start for GCGR, off to a 2-0 start with some really decisive wins.First game for the GCGR Rebels. Nice 6-2 win vs Columbus. Rebels could make some noise this year. Experienced group. Goalie will be their biggest issue
Agreed. Think there has definitely been a fire lit by Rick this week with the kids. And based on early scores, it looks like Prairie might not be as good as I thought.I don't know about a 0-10 vs Prairie. It's an incredibly tough match, but I don't know about a mercy rule loss. I mean history doesn't mean much to any given team, but since Varsity Bound records (2011 season) Regina's worst loss was 0-5, which has happened twice (3 times now)
I don't know why they wouldn't play their whole schedule, other than the scattered weather cancellations, but I think it's highly probable that they finish under 500. It's a tough schedule. Coach Larew has never shy'd away from tough schedules/opponents. This team might find their identity by losing those tough matches. If they go under 500 regular season, I still wouldn't count them out for State (and my comments are based on Coach Larew's ability to build with what he has and also based on not having seen them at full strength or against a 1A side yet.) They have a lot of work ahead - The good thing about soccer is the season starts over at the post season.
Or is West that good?Agreed. Think there has definitely been a fire lit by Rick this week with the kids. And based on early scores, it looks like Prairie might not be as good as I thought.
Interesting that West debut's as number 11 in 3A, Prairie number 12.....Agreed. Think there has definitely been a fire lit by Rick this week with the kids. And based on early scores, it looks like Prairie might not be as good as I thought.
And not to call out your favorite team (lol) but if you look at West Branch's schedule for example, they should finish with only one loss, which likely would keep them ahead of both BND and WL (even if/when WL beats them). This will result in a possible scenario where you are getting WL, BND, or regina in the same district. In sum, you are going to see state tournament matchups happening in districts/substate.Didn't realize that's how they generated the most recent rankings. And, the system seems flawed to the point it's worthless. They don't even have the defending 1A champion ranked, which is ridiculous.
The coaches should be putting the ranking together, not a computer. They have better insight into the nuances of the season than a computer.
Note that the IHSSCA is using the VB rankings. From the athletic association 2022 handbook:That would be disappointing if that's how it plays out. If there were going to make a significant change to how the playoffs are determined, they should have made that clear to the coaches ahead of time, so they could adjust.
They will see schedules adjusted for the worse in the future if they use that approach.
There you go, the rankings are important before substate.Note that the IHSSCA is using the VB rankings. From the athletic association 2022 handbook:
e) IHSSCA rankings will be used to determine the top one (1) or two (2) seeds in each substate.
f) Remaining seeding will be based on the regular season point average of games played through Saturday, May 7th, 2022.
g) After using IHSSCA rankings, remaining team’s seed will be determined on their regular season point average of games played through Saturday, May 7th, 2022.
3 Points for a win over a Class 3A School
2 Points for a win over a Class 2A School
1 Point for a win over a Class 1A School
I don't think it's a tough balancing act at all for 1a schools. Play weak upper class teams (even just a couple- those four extra points on your average go a long way) and 1a teams you know you can beat. Not hard math at all.There you go, the rankings are important before substate.
So, now there is incentive to play just a challenging enough schedule, to generate wins and get yourself good competition. That's a tough balancing act to follow, I guess you can take the approach of "we'll play the best teams we can schedule and accept that we'll get a lower seed in substate and hopefully be better prepared. It does open the door for more upsets earlier in substate.
Hmmm, I thought I was supporting your posts - I agreed with your original premise that Prairie is better this year and I supported the additional information you provided on the use of the rankings that I wasn't aware of. Sorry you thought discussion was "second guessing." Didn't mean anything to be critical at all of your posts. My apologies.I don't think it's a tough balancing act at all for 1a schools. Play weak upper class teams (even just a couple- those four extra points on your average go a long way) and 1a teams you know you can beat. Not hard math at all.
Another interesting component will be when the conferences step in and demand a conference season. RVC, for example, is filling up with conference teams. Guessing it won't happen in the next couple years but good food for thought. The way the seeding is being done, it would make sense. Then you get your seeding bonus by scheduling a handful of games out of conference against upper classes.
Since you always second guess all my posts, I'm sure you'll have something to add RC.
Saw that and lost all respect for the Prairie coach, although he does suit a very limited number of players for varsity. He's evidently well respected among his peers. Hope there is a little fall out over this though.
Prairie soccer is not known as being very classy. My understanding is that their coach is not respected among other coaches due to their lack of class.Saw that and lost all respect for the Prairie coach, although he does suit a very limited number of players for varsity. He's evidently well respected among his peers. Hope there is a little fall out over this though.
Good to know. Odd that Larew has been trying to schedule them for years. That schedule is tough enough already. And now needs to be backed off a bit in my opinion, especially given the lack of depth at the varsity level for Regina.
Off topic, pine and rc, how long do you think Larew will coach and who do you see as his replacement? I know Miller is assistant for both girls and boys but I don't see him as a head coach. Not many other assistants anymore on the boys side other than Reeves and Tovar who have both been around a while.
Not to be negative towards Regina but I've heard the "younger classes are really good" for a while now. I'm aware of only two 8th graders that will even sniff varsity next year. Combine that with the fact that the leading goal scorer from this year is headed to West next year and it looks like an uphill battle at least the next two years for Regina. I hope I'm wrong, as I like seeing Regina be successful.I understand the value of playing matches you have no chance of winning if it helps you grow, as individual athletes as team mates. I don't know how the boys take those losses. In the end, they don't matter - nothing matters until substate and yes, there's seeding impact, but ultimately if you go all the way, you need to beat everyone. The only downside to playing tough 3As are the mentail state of your team and the seeding impact. Seeding only matters if it puts yo in a situation to get knocked out by someone you'd beat most days, but the circumstances of the day stack up against you. imho. I would think there could be some quality 2A programs around that could give a team both a challenge and a chance to win, but I don't know about scheduling. Seems a lot of it follows history, and I don't know how easy it is to change that (other than maybe one or two different teams a year, build a new historical matchup.
As for Rick, I hate to speculate - I stayed away from that same conversation in football. I'll just say that I hope he continues as long as he has the passion for it each year. The kids feed off his passion and he knows how to get the most out of what he has. Selfishly, I hope that adds up to at least another 3 years. I'd be thrilled if it was another 10. As for replacements, I would hope there's someone, either currently in the program or outside who has a passion, who wants to build his program, and by that I mean more than a coaching record to build a resume. Someone who takes pride in the role they play building young men and who cares about the future of the program as well.