PonyFans.com

A review of the two major soccer recruiting lists indicate that SMU currently has two commitments for 2006, Leone Cruz, a defender, of Roundrock who plays for the Austin Capitals club and a goalkeeper Craig Hill of San Antonio. Cruz is ranked by rivals as number 17 nationally of the non-residency recruits and was being recruited by UCLA, Santa Clara, St. Johns and New Mexico, all top national programs. What is interesting is that most of the top Dallas players have already committed to major programs outside Dallas. It looks like at this point that our recruiting will be outside Dallas as opposed to last year where we had 7 Dallas Texan signees.

We need to market our soccer program better to the Dallas community. There are a lot of soccer fans in this city and the surrounding burgs, while soccer may never be the force in Texas that football is, it might be big enough to generate some good will for the University with a great program.

I have discovered that Leone Cruz is now on the roster of FC Texas the youth club of FC Dallas the MLS Frisco club owned by Lamar Hunt. So I guess there is a Dallas connection to the Cruz commit.

abezontar wrote:We need to market our soccer program better to the Dallas community. There are a lot of soccer fans in this city and the surrounding burgs, while soccer may never be the force in Texas that football is, it might be big enough to generate some good will for the University with a great program.

I agree. Both the men's and women's programs are currently the jewels in our team programs and both sit in the middle of one of the largest and most successful youth soccer programs in the country. SMU is a leader in national college soccer and if marketed aggressively we should be able to fill up the stands for every game. You would think this would spill over into more broad based support for our revenue programs.

It is all about marketing. We have a large hispanic population in Dallas that loves soccer. Would't it be nice to get those folks intersested in supporting SMU soccer. We are a hell of a lot closer than Frisco for a little good ole soccer action.

This is especially true given the number of latino players Schellas recruits and the fact his teams normally play more of a latin style that I personally find very appealing as a fan. I know FC Dallas is attempting to re-establish its latino fan base it lost when it left the Cotton Bowl. Since we are not in competition with MLS and since FC Dallas has SMU ties through the Hunts, maybe there could be some kind of joint marketing effort. FC Dallas might be able to call on a highler level of marketing expertise than SMU with regard to the latino fan base. Just a thought!

Didn't we have some sort of spring exhibition game against FC Dallas? That seems like a joint marketing opportunity. Perhaps we should have a game or two in the Cotton Bowl or somewhere in South Dallas to build the fan base. We have an annual soccer tournament, why not play the first round in South Dallas? The tickets would probably be cheaper than MLS tickets and these fans might get hooked.

Yes, the team plays FC Dallas each spring in a scrimmage. For what it's worth, the marketing department does hit every local soccer club for miles around. Some of them are the tykes you see running the lines as ballgirls and ballboys.

I guess the question is whether SMU soccer should be marketed to the public at large especially the Latino adult market. One avenue would be the Latino media including Spanish newspapers and radio. TV would probably be too expensive. I am sure there are many other ways of doing targeted marketing to areas that have large Latino populations.

Directing marketing resources to youth clubs and organizations is great but this only reaches a portion of the potential audience in the Dallas area. Soccer has been a big time youth sport in Dallas for at least 30 years. There are now many adults in their 30's and 40's in this area who grew up with Soccer. There must creative ways to reach these people and get them interested in the successful SMU program.

abezontar wrote:We need to market our soccer program better to the Dallas community. There are a lot of soccer fans in this city and the surrounding burgs, while soccer may never be the force in Texas that football is, it might be big enough to generate some good will for the University with a great program.

-----

C'mon guys, there are HS fields better than our alleged soccer field.

If you want to recruit, tear up the track around Wescott and act like a soccer school................

The track is going to stay. Many people contributed money for the track, and we all know the corrupting allure of money on the Hilltop.

But what has to go are the jump pits. The field is too short and too narrow. According to the coaches at the fall kickoff, it does not meet NCAA standards. All you need is about half a million.

And while I am at it, could the fans get some restrooms and a concession stand located such that they do not have to walk through the Letterman's Barbeque or around the football trailer to access the facilities. Most of the time it looks like a truckstop out there. Make that 3/4 a million.

It is pretty sad that the most successful part of SMU athletics has to deal with sub par facilities.

I guess there is still women's track?

When it was built (for the World Cup in .... was it 1994?), the surface at Westcott Field was beautiful. You're right, it's been beaten up over the years. The proposal for the new facility includes vastly improved stands (including on-site facilities!), and new (larger) playing surface, better lights and I believe a better drainage system underneath the grass. Let's hope the money is raised, because this would become an absolutely first-rate facility.

I like the sound of Westcott Field at the Hunt Family Soccer Stadium.