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SMU soccer commits GK Craig Hill and MF Casey Hibbs, both south texas products, have been named to the 2005 NSCAA/adidas Boys High School All-America Team. The other SMU commit, Leone Cruz is an Under 18 national team player. Very interested in who else Schellas will bring in to complement a final four team that returns most of its starters.

Weren't you telling us how much of an uphill climb recruiting was for us? Looks like we are doing OK.

What I am talking about is our ability to successfully recruit a class primarily from the top 40 players in the country year in and year out. These are the players who probably will have the opportunity to go pro at some point. We always get a few of these and we have had some top rated classes but we are not as consistent as some of the other top rated major programs. So far this year only Cruz fits in this top 40 category. These are players who are or have been in the US residency program (the pool for the Under 17 national team) or who have otherwise regularly played on the national level in the US or elsewhere. The two high school all americans are very good players but I do not believe they are considered top 40. Maybe I am unrealistic but I would like to see the Ponies not just be in the dance each year but to be a consistent final four contender.

Name the teams in the last 10 years that have made multiple trips to the final four. By my research there were six of them. Indiana, Maryland, St. Johns, SMU, Stanford and UCLA. That's it. Maryland took four trips before it won. That's pretty heady company. In fact the only two teams with more than two trips in the past 10 years are Indiana and Maryland. So, we are in a pretty elite strata already. Where are the other top 40 going. All to one school or scattering to the winds. As I said earlier, improve the home game atmosphere at soccer games, and you'll pull in more recruits, its as simple as that. Ever been to a soccer game at Maryland or Indiana? They give new meaning to the term "home field advantage". Any wonder why they have an astounding record over the past decade and why recruits go to those schools. The Maryland-SMU game was an eye openner.

Many of the top 40 go pro either here or abroad. Of the ones that go to college, it just seems to me that programs such as UCLA, Indiana and Maryland get more than their share of these top players. I agree that fan support, stadium, press coverage and tradition play a large part in this. We have a fantastic, high level national program we should all be proud of and we do compete for the top players. I would just like for us to get more of them on a consistent basis. Not only to make us a better team but also for the pleasure of watching them play. Of course, an unknown factor is how many scholarships or partial scholarships we have available in any given year and how many of these top players would qualify for other kinds of financial aid.

i'd like to see a championship brot to SMU

Just another example of why we need to invest more into the soccer program

we need to invest in the track program

I was just playing on smumustangs.com and in the bottom corner I noticed a small link for the SMU Soccer Campaign. First I had heard of this.

that's great raplh wrote:we need to invest in the track program

hey gordon, isn't phish getting back together next halloween?

Pony_Fan wrote:

that's great raplh wrote:we need to invest in the track program

hey gordon, isn't phish getting back together next halloween?

Where did you hear that?

we are getting off the topic, but supposedly phish has set aside msg and the spectrum for shows over halloween timeframe.

quick, what member of phish was a student at SMU?

Go Ponies!

No Cal Pony wrote:we are getting off the topic, but supposedly phish has set aside msg and the spectrum for shows over halloween timeframe.

quick, what member of phish was a student at SMU?

Go Ponies!

We need to have a PonyFans reunion at the show then

94, I'd be interested. Though I miss the earlier days. Just one bus and hanging out w/ Page and the rest. Best time was either at the Palace in Hollywood or the Arlington Theatre in Santa Barbara. Had some good times showing the guys around LA while they were recording Hoist.

Go Ponies!