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ENHANCEMENT PLANS | Pat Grecco Leads the LIJSL Player Development
The Long Island Junior Soccer League is currently re-vamping the program formerly known as ODP. Now, the LIJSL Select Player Development Program, the league is looking to attract the top players on Long Island in every age group and expose them to the highest levels of the sport possible. Part of that charge is to provide added programs and services to the players.
Those efforts were on display recently as LIJSL Hall of Famer and Director of College Bound Athlete Services Pat Grecco spoke to the Select PDP program's high school players about the recruiting process.
"These are kids who are playing above their club level, with professional coaches, who expect to be recruited for a college scholarship, or to use their soccer skills to get themselves into a better college," Grecco told us before her talk. "The benefits of a program like this are to improve skill level, expose athletes to better players and higher levels of play, and get them identified by college coaches."
The meeting came about after Select Boys 1994 coach Stuart Love read one of Grecco's entries on the LIJSoccer.com Blog. He contacted her to see if she could speak to all the high school Select players, and was impressed by all he heard.
"It is clear that Pat has a wealth of experience in this field and provided some invaluable information on the college recruiting process," Love said. "She went to great lengths to review the whole recruiting process and was kind enough to provide each player with an information packet that they could use as they try to realize their dreams of becoming college soccer players (anyone who did not receive a packet should e-mail Pat at soccervol@aol.com).
"Pat spoke to all of our High School age teams, from current freshman to current juniors," he continued. "She explained to each age group what stage of the process they are in and told them exactly what they need to do to achieve positive results. "
What student-athletes need to do is take ownership of the process and become intimately involved in choosing their future path
"Tonight, my plan was to give them the map and the passport, and empower them to approach the process in an intelligent way, with limited stress, and a greater chance of finding the college that best fits them," Grecco said.
"One of the key points Pat made was that the players have to be very active in the process themselves," Love added. "They should not rely on their parents to contact college coaches and she emphasized that the players must demonstrate their ability to be responsible and to show that they possess the necessary motivation to succeed at the next level, both on and off the field."
"That is the key to the college recruiting process," Grecco agreed. "Networking by the player; not by Mommy, not by Daddy, not by the Coach. Players have to be proactive. They need to get video of themselves online. They need to contact coaches and let them know where they will be playing, what level of competition they are playing at, and what kind of student they are (SAT scores, GPA, etc)."
While Love was happy to be able to expose his players to Grecco's expertise, and felt setting up the meeting was just part of his role in the process.
"Aside from direct assistance with the recruiting process, I also feel that it is important for a select coach to stress to the player what type of things a college coach might be looking for when they observe the player," he explained. "The player needs to be educated about the demands of high level college soccer and prepared for the next level by increasing their tactical knowledge of the game."
"I also believe that realistic advice can be one of the roles of the select coach in the recruiting process," Love continued. "The Select Coach should be able to give each of their players an honest evaluation of their playing ability and guide them towards colleges that fit their level of play. I also feel that the select coach should act as a reference for each of their players and be willing to discuss the player with a College Coach who was interested in recruiting them."
The overflow crowd in the bleachers at Soccer Park's Petro Field took in a lot of information, but Grecco hopes they heard the most important part. No matter how good an athlete you are, your first responsibility is as a student.
"The better student you are, the more coaches will be interested in you," she said. "Technically there is more money out there for good students than there is for good athletes."
Long Island Junior Soccer League's 29th Annual
By Pat Grecco
Pat Grecco, in one of her many volunteer roles, the LIJSL and Eastern New York Soccer Hall of Famer is the Chairperson of the LIJSL's Scholarship Committee. Dubbing herself "the original Soccer Mom," Pat will be discussing College Search: The Parent's Role.
Kevin McCrudden will deliver opening remarks. Kevin is a motivational speaker and Editor of Long Island Soccer Magazine.
Joe Lee, the St. Joseph's College Women's Coach, will be discussing the phrase that made Rod Tidwell and Jerry Maguire famous, "Show me the money!"
Betty Bohringer, the current NYIT Women's Coach will be speaking about the ins-and-outs of the NCAA Eligibility Center.
Frank Vertullo, Coach of the National Champion Suffolk Community College Men and 2010 National Junior College Coach of the Year. Frank will be discussing Nuts and Bolts: When, How, Where to Begin the College Search.
Pat Horne, the Concordia Women's Coach, is speaking on Academic/Athletic Success in College.
John Fitzgerald, the long-time Associate Men's Coach at the U.S. Merchant Marine Academy will be discussing life at U.S. Service Academies.
Eric Teepe, the current U.S. Youth Region 1 Olympic Development Coach and former Iona Women's Coach, will be discussing, Am I a Division 1 Player?
Alvaro Phan, The All-American from Brentwood and current Coach will talk about What is it Like to Play on a College Team? Which should have plenty of useful info. from his days with the Fordham Rams.
Joe Behan, the long-time NYU Men's Coach is speaking on What is a College Coach Looking for in a Future Player?
Ernesto Phan, the Women's Coach at Nassau Community College is given the subject of the Benefits of 2 Year Programs.
Matt McElwee, the former player and current LIJSL Coach discusses Payback Time, which encompasses giving back to Soccer by volunteering as an adult.
The Phans will be translating the College Forum into Spanish for Latino parents who might not understand English.
Long Island Junior Soccer League's 28th Annual
By Pat Grecco
The College Forum consisted of college coaches, from several varsity schools: Gary Book, Hofstra University, Joe Lee, Saint Joseph's College, Pat Horne, Concordia College, John DiRico, Dowling College, John Fitzgerald, United States Merchant Marine Academy, Ernesto Phan, Nassau Community College, Joe Behan, New York University, Al Phan, Chaminade High School Coach, Matt McElwee, College Player and Coach, Chris Goodwin, 12th graders, Pat and Mike Secko, College Bound Player Programs, and Pat Grecco, Director of College Bound Player Programs.
Buffalo and Back: Nardin Academy
By Pat Grecco
About two years ago, I was invited to do a College-Bound Player Workshop at the National Soccer Hall of Fame in Oneonta, New York. That's where I met Joe Goergen and his family, who were participating in The Hall of Fame Soccer Tournament. Joe and I kept in touch and he asked me to come to Buffalo, where he lives, and do a workshop at his daughter's high school, Nardin Academy, a nationally ranked, honors high school.
On Monday, August 24th, 2009, after much preparation and discussion, I boarded a plane at LaGuardia and took off for the forty-five minute flight to Buffalo, landing at Buffalo Airport and meeting up with Joe and his wife Jackie. We went to Joe's house where I went over my Power Point Presentation with Joe and his daughter Genny to be sure I had everything covered. This workshop was not just for Soccer Players who attended Nardin, which is an all-girl school but also included Basketball, Volleyball, Lacrosse, Track, Softball, Crew, Golf, and Squash. I tried to have my PPP representative of all these sports.
Lunch was next on the agenda and I had requested we go to the famous Schwabl's Restaurant, where they served Beef on Weck, which can only be found in Buffalo. Afterwards, we headed to downtown Buffalo, where I had a brief but informative tour of the city.
We arrived at Nardin Academy, a lovely building in a residential neighborhood, that reminded me very much of the all-girl high school I attended in New Rochelle, New York. I met the Principal, Becky Reeder who was warm and welcoming. We all went to the gym to set up for the PPP and meet with the panel that Joe Goergen and I had prearranged. The panel included Jim Wedling, Head Coach of Women's Soccer at D-I, Canisius College, Christina Gullo, a former Nardin Soccer standout now a Sophomore at Canisius College, Joe Ferraro, former Principal in Oyster Bay School District on Long Island, a long-time Soccer Volunteer, who just recently moved from Long Island to Buffalo and myself.
Our over-flow audience consisted of students, their parents, and faculty members from Nardin Academy. We had an information packet for each student-athlete, which I sent Joe Goergen and he copied and had available.
We kicked off our program at 7:00 PM and blended the speakers and PPP on such topics as:
Lots of people came up to me at the end of the program with questions, but unfortunately I could only speak with a few; Joe Goergen told me at about 8:45 PM that we had to get to the airport. I did provide my e-mail, phone number and invited the audience to contact me if any questions were left unanswered.
I thoroughly enjoyed my visit to Buffalo, the wonderful hospitality of the Goergen family, the kind reception by Becky Reeder, the quality student-athletes and the privilege of working with such a terrific panel. I learned a lot about Buffalo and the Beef on Weck was simply delicious! I hope Principal Reeder will invite me back again.
College-Bound Player Information Seminars
By Pat Grecco
The College-Bound Player Workshop is a program that offers on-site help to clubs and teams involved with the college search process. At the request of Susan Allers, Administrator for the Long Island Olympic Development Program, we gave an information seminar to Long Island ODP Members. An information packet was distributed and auditorium was packed with players and their parents. The College Workshop Team spoke about NCAA Clearinghouse Rules and Regulations, as well academic issues, SAT changes, the role of the parent in the college search process, and where, when and how's of the college search process. Joining John Morris, Bill, Roller and myself, was Mike Maire, former ODP Player, a collegiate standout at Virginia Military Institute, currently working as Assistant Coach at Saint Joseph's College in Patchogue. Col. James Banz, USAF (Ret.) spoke about the benefits of Federal Academies/ROTC Scholarships and finding money at D-III Programs. A very productive Q & A Session followed.
At the request of Joe Lee, Club Coach for the Sachem Soccer Club, the C.B.P. Workshop Team journeyed to Sachem High School and made a presentation to student-athletes. Sue Ryan, Head Coach, Women's Soccer at Stony Brook University and Region I Head Coach joined the workshop. Coach Ryan, regarding scholarships, offered an excellent Power Point Presentation on the financial nuts and bolts of the college search process.
The C.B.P. Workshop offers about 6-8 workshops per year to the member clubs of the Long Island Junior Soccer League on a first come, first serve basis. In March, during the LIJSL Convention, we invite every 11th grader to a College Forum. Every student-athlete receives an information packet. Parents are also invited to attend. The forum consists of College Soccer Coaches representing D-I, D-II, D-III, NJCAA, and Federal Service Academies. We always invite a student-athlete who has just completed his or her search. Bill Roller runs the convention workshop and does a fabulous job. I'm on board to speak as "The Original Soccer Mom" and about the parents' role in the college search process.
I have given workshops twice in Virginia for Beach F.C., in New Jersey for Jersey United. I also offered a workshop at a Connecticut summer camp, at the Varsity Week, as well as a few camps here on Long Island. A few local High Schools also invited us to do a comprehensive workshop not only for their Soccer Players but also for all Varsity Athletes, such as one at Kings Parks High School.
Recently, I participated in a Connecticut Workshop hosted by John Salvatore, Former Goal Keeper at UCONN.
I moderated on the topic: What You Need to Know to Play Soccer in College at the Connecticut Soccer Workshop for College Bound Players held at Newtown High School Auditorium on April 7th, 2009.
There is never a charge or a fee, though I usually ask for a small amount per student in attendance to cover printing and publication costs.
In the 30 years that I have been working with the college-bound players, I've given workshops on the soccer field, in the bleachers, public library rooms, school libraries, cafeterias, auditoriums. Individual teams have invited the workshop and hold their programs in homes.
The LIJSL is very committed to helping the student-athletes in our program find their way to collegiate ranks and continue playing Soccer. Yes, there is a place for everyone to study and to play Soccer. As an individual, I am also very committed to helping the student-athlete who wishes to play at the collegiate level.
Ralph Willard, currently the Head Coach of Basketball at College of the Holy Cross once said, "Pat, anyone can get his top three players identified for college play but it really takes a dedicated coach to find opportunities for his bottom three players."
If you are interested in the C.B.P Workshop, contact me at 631 754-0026 or e-mail: .
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