Men's Soccer 2011 Schedule Breakdown

[DanFreibergerForHeisman]

Game 1 - William and Mary - August 27 at Westcott Field

Everybody will remember the SMU-William and Mary game in the NCAA tournament last fall at Wescott which SMU won 1-0 to advance to the Elite Eight.

While SMU did lose some important players in Josue Soto, Leone Cruz, Kekoa Osorio, and Craig Hill - it is nothing compared to William and Mary who lost 10 seniors from last year's squad.

Included in the ten players are three of their top four scorers (Alan Koger, Ryan Snyder, and Second Team All-American Nat Baako), as well as their goalkeeper who played every minute for the Tribe last season (Andrew McAdams).

Granted, William and Mary's 2011 recruiting class has been named a class to watch by TopDrawerSoccer, but catching them early with such massive roster turnover is certainly an advantage for the Mustangs.

Of course, SMU's five-man recruiting class has also recieved national accolades as is to be expected from the program. Combined with last season's stellar freshman class who now all have a full season of experience, SMU should be in good position to replace the departed senior class.

Obviously, the wild-card for SMU early in the year will be in goal as it is hard to replace a solid goalkeeper who has played a majority of the minutes for the past three seasons, but assuming the keeping is solid, the Mustangs should certainly be able to start the season with an impressive victory.

Up next - vs. NC State at the Duke Tournament in Durham.

[Vitale]

Good report. Thanks.

[DanFreibergerForHeisman]

To be fair, we also lost two of our three leading scorers, and the leadership and presence in midfield from Osorio that doesn't show up on a scoresheet - but, you can also look at the numbers and say SMU is returning three of its top five scorers from a team that reached the final eight last season.

You can obviously only get so much from looking at another team's roster, scoresheet, and recruiting press release, but I think it will be interesting to take a quick look through this schedule that looks like a total beast on paper and see what we have to look forward to this fall.

[DanFreibergerForHeisman]

Game 2 - NC State - September 2 at Duke Tournament in Durham

A very interesting second match is on the cards for the Mustangs. NC State is coming off a 10-8-2 season where they only went 1-5-2 in the ACC, but 25-year head coach George Tarantini retired and has been replaced by Kelly Findley who led the resurgence of the program at Butler - taking the Bulldogs into the NCAA Tournament undefeated and ranked #5 last season (although they did bow out in the second round which was their first game).

NC State lost four seniors from last season's squad, including the team's three leading scorers. However, both goalkeepers who played last season have returned this year.

With a new coach, it is hard to know what to expect in this one - especially with the game basically on their home turf. One advantage NC State will have is they will enter the SMU game with two exhibitions and two full matches under their belts, while SMU will only have played one exhibition and one full match.

Conversely, the four games NC State will have completed plus a review of Butler last season should give Tim McClements and his staff a pretty decent idea what NC State will be doing, so SMU should be well-prepared.

NC State only added two recruits this year. While both players are ranked in the top 150 nationally by TopDrawerSoccer, neither one looks to make any sort of early impact on the NC State squad this fall.

While SMU should be able to handle a match like this one, it does have the potential to be a very fascinating game. NC State certainly has talent being located in such a hotbed of college soccer, and with the new proven coaching staff the Wolfpack should provide a challenging test for SMU.

Coming up next is, of course, Duke, who was eliminated in the second round of the NCAA Tournament by our good friends South Carolina last season...

[DanFreibergerForHeisman]

Game 3 - Duke - September 4 at Duke Tournament in Durham

Well, this contest certainly shapes up as a difficult test for the Mustangs. Duke made the NCAA Tournament last year and SMU will be facing them on their home turf. In the NCAA tournament last year, Duke advanced to the second round where they were eliminated by South Carolina.

Of course, this game would probably have been a lot tougher if it wasn't for the Ryan Finley saga. Finley was "suspended indefinitely" from the team on the eve of last season's NCAA tournament, and has subsequently transferred to Notre Dame. This bit of information is crucial considering FInley was the ACC Offensive Player Of The Year, first team ACC, third team NSCAA All-American, and either scored or assisted on 20 of Duke's 34 goals last season - all as a sophomore.

Duke's recruiting class of 8 is littered with academy players, national team development players, etc., so they certainly should have little problem replacing the seven seniors from last year's team.

Including Finley, Duke has lost three of their top four scorers, which unfortunately for the Blue Devils means they have lost the scorers of 30 of their 34 total goals last season. It will certainly be a challenge for Duke to replace that goal scoring, and it should be an advantage for SMU to face them early before they find some offensive flow.

On the positive side for Duke, they do return their top goalkeeper from last season - and he's from England so he has to be good, right?

When the schedule came out this match looked quite daunting for the Mustangs, but it's actually the kind of game where SMU really should have a decent chance at getting a good result.

It would certainly be a fantastic start to the 2011 season for SMU to go to Durham and win the Duke Tournament. I just might not be an unrealistic goal.

Next - up to Tulsa for their tournament where SMU will face Oakland first.

[DanFreibergerForHeisman]

Game 4 - Oakland - September 9 at Tulsa tournament in Tulsa

Upon first glance at the SMU schedule, this one would look like the first "easy" game for the Mustangs. Although Oakland was only 7-11-3 last season, they made the NCAA Tournament as the winner of The Summit League tournament where they defeated Oral Roberts in the final. The Golden Grizzlies did bow out to Michigan State in the first round, but they will certainly be able to carry that experience, and the cumulative experience of being in the tournament three of the past four years, over to this season - especially since they only lost one senior from last year's team.

Oakland has a very interesting roster - they played 23 players last year and this season they will have four redshirt seniors, so they certainly will have a lot of experience mixed in with their youth (10 redshirt sophomores and sophomores). The Golden Grizzlies also feature a 6'7" midfielder!

Oakland only scored 20 goals in their 21 games last year, but they did appear to be reasonably solid on defense by only allowing 27 goals (1.24 per game). The Golden Grizzlies have suffered some turnover on their coaching staff, with 20-year assistant Steve Seargeant retiring, but head coach Eric Pogue is still in place so it shouldn't affect the program too much - at least not initially.

On paper, this looks like the kind of game SMU should win easily, but facing an experienced team who is solid on defense has a way of being tricky. SMU should still be expected to take care of this one.

Yet another NCAA Tournament team is on tap when SMU faces Connecticut next!

[DanFreibergerForHeisman]

Game 5 - Connecticut - September 11 at Tulsa tournament in Tulsa

Another NCAA tournament team from last season is up next for the Mustangs on the second day of the Tulsa tournament. UConn posted a 12-2-6 record last season, including an impressive 5-1-3 Big East conference record on their way to a second round elmination in the NCAA tournament on penalties to Brown (Connecticut earned a first round bye). The Huskies ended the season ranked number 13 in the final NSCAA poll.

The Huskies return all four of their top scorers from last season - including leading scorer Tony Cascio who was named first-team All-American, first-team All-Conference, and Big East offensive player of the year. Cascio, who posted 10 goals and 6 assists last season, was also selected as a Hermann Trophy semifinalist.

Fortunately for the Mustangs, third-team All-American goalkeeper Josh Ford and his 0.34 goals against average has graduated. The Huskies have also lost two of their starting defensemen.

UConn put up some ridiculous numbers last season - 47 goals scored and only 7 goals against in their 20 games.

This game will obviously be a difficult test for SMU since UConn is one of the top teams from the Northeast region. It will be interesting to see if UConn is able to maintain their scoring ability and their defensive ability from last season based on who is returning to their team this season.

One other thing to note about this game is the 11:00am start - so while it's not in the blazing sun of the afternoon, the heat should certainly pose more of a challenge to UConn than it will to SMU.

Finally, back to Westcott for our tournament next, where SMU will face another tournament team from last season - Dartmouth.

[DanFreibergerForHeisman]

Game 6 - Dartmouth - September 16 at SMU Tournament

SMU finally returns home to host their own tournament after participating in two very difficult tournaments on the road. It doesn't really get any easier for the Mustangs though with a first game against Dartmouth.

The Big Green had an impressive run through the NCAA tournament last season, including a victory over Notre Dame, making it all the way to the Sweet 16. Last season marked Dartmouth's second Sweet 16 appearance in the past three seasons.

Dartmouth graduated nine seniors, which included four of their top five scorers from last season. Their nine-member recruiting class does not look like it contains any players who will make an immediate impact this season. They split their goalkeeping evenly last season, with two keepers each playing in 10 games. One of the keepers does return this season so they will not be lacking for experience in goal.

The Big Green were only 12-7-1 last season, with their Ivy League record only 4-3-0. While none of their players received any national recognition, they did place two players on the first-team All-Ivy team, although both of them were seniors.

Dartmouth scored 33 goals and allowed 24 goals in just 20 games last season, so it would be fair to expect some scoring in this one.

This game will be Dartmouth's first big road trip of the year, and considering it will be mid-September the combination of travel and heat should be at least some advantage for SMU.

One other interesting note - this one is probably somewhat of a recruiting trip for the Big Green, considering two of this year's freshmen are from Texas.

SMU finally gets to face another non-tournament team in the second game of the tournament when they face the Huskies of Washington.

[Soccer15]

To be fair, we also lost two of our three leading scorers, and the leadership and presence in midfield from Osorio that doesn't show up on a scoresheet - but, you can also look at the numbers and say SMU is returning three of its top five scorers from a team that reached the final eight last season.

SMU is returning both of its top scorers from last year and only lost one of its top 5, Josue Soto.

Arthur Ivo: 10 G, 5 A = 25 pts.
Juan Castillo: 10 G, 4 A = 24 pts.
Josue Soto: 7 G, 7 A = 21 pts.
Robbie Derschang: 5 G, 5 A = 15 pts.
Zach Barnes: 5 G = 10 pts.

[DanFreibergerForHeisman]

To be fair, we also lost two of our three leading scorers, and the leadership and presence in midfield from Osorio that doesn't show up on a scoresheet - but, you can also look at the numbers and say SMU is returning three of its top five scorers from a team that reached the final eight last season.

SMU is returning both of its top scorers from last year and only lost one of its top 5, Josue Soto.

Arthur Ivo: 10 G, 5 A = 25 pts.
Juan Castillo: 10 G, 4 A = 24 pts.
Josue Soto: 7 G, 7 A = 21 pts.
Robbie Derschang: 5 G, 5 A = 15 pts.
Zach Barnes: 5 G = 10 pts.

Correct - miscount on my part...

We should be really really good this season. I can't wait.

[DanFreibergerForHeisman]

Game 7 - Washington - September 18 at SMU Tournament

The Washington Huskies are up next for the Mustangs on the second day of the SMU Tournament. This game will only be the second time SMU has faced a team this season that was not part of last year's NCAA Tournament.

Washington went 11-6-1 last season, with a 5-5-0 record in the Pac-10. The Huskies did not have anybody receive any national recognition last season, although they did have five players receive conference honors - including two players on the first team.

One of last year's first team conference members returns this year - leading scorer Brent Richards who will be a senior. Washington also split goalkeeping duties last season and will return one of the two keepers who played extensive minutes last year.

The Huskies look like another team that keeps things close to its vest - in 18 games they scored 29 goals and only allowed 17, although they do feature a new coaching staff this season so they could certainly spring some surprises on their opposition.

Their new head coach is Jamie Clark, who is the son of Notre Dame head coach and Scottish Premier League veteran Bobby Clark. I'm sure the SMU soccer fans who also follow the Scottish League will remember Bobby Clark's nearly 20 years with Aberdeen.

Jamie Clark was the head coach at Creighton last season, so he will certainly be familiar with SMU from the SMU-Creighton meeting in last season's NCAA Tournament, and I would expect Tim McClements and staff will likely expect some of the same wrinkles out of Washington this season the Mustangs saw versus Creighton last year.

One other impressive note - Jamie Clark coached Harvard for two seasons which both ended in the NCAA Tournament. He then spent just the one season in Creighton which also ended in an appearance in the NCAA Tournament, so SMU should definietly be ready for a hearty Washington side in this one.

The Huskies graduated five seniors (including two of their top three scorers), but looking at their stats their offense shouldn't be in too much trouble with Brent Richards returning. Their recruiting class features two pretty decent players (top 100 TopDrawer types) so they might be able to contribute this season.

This is also Washington's first trip out of the Pacific Northwest this season, so SMU should have some advantage with the travel and heat.

The key to this game will probably be how quickly Washington is able to implment the system of Jamie Clark, because he has certainly proven he can turn programs around quickly.

One more big trip, to California, for SMU before starting the Conference USA season. The first match on the West Coast will be Cal State-Northridge.

[DanFreibergerForHeisman]

Game 8 - at Cal State-Northridge - September 23 at Northridge, CA

Aside from the fact a trip to California is more than trivial, there really isn't too much to see here. Cal State-Northridge was 3-14-2 last season, with a whopping 2-7-1 record in the Big West. Their big news from last season was placing two players on the All-Big West team - one on the second team and one with an honorable mention.

Of course, this game does loom as somewhat of a trap game for SMU, considering the run of dangerous teams from last season's NCAA Tournament and the road trip, but the Mustangs should be prepared to not look past this one.

As for the Matadors, their leading scorer and top goalkeeper are back - although the team only scored 18 goals while allowing 34 in their 19 contests last season.

The recruiting class press release from Cal State-Northridge doesn't mention anybody with ridiculous prep accolades, so there probably isn't any reason to fear a sudden ascent of the program.

Certainly, at this level you can't overlook anybody - or even afford to take somebody lightly, but if SMU is focused for this game it likely will be the first time this season SMU shouldn't have any major problems.

Next on the schedule (and another reason for SMU to make sure to focus on CSN and not look ahead) are the UCLA Bruins, when the Mustangs will once again face an NCAA tournament team - and fellow Elite Eight member - from last season.

One note for the SMU soccer fans in Southern California - don't overlook the fact the SMU Women are in town earlier in September, with games against UCLA on the 9th and Loyola Marymount on the 11th.

[SMUguy]

Game 4 - Oakland - September 9 at Tulsa tournament in Tulsa

Oakland has a very interesting roster - they played 23 players last year and this season they will have four redshirt seniors, so they certainly will have a lot of experience mixed in with their youth (10 redshirt sophomores and sophomores). The Golden Grizzlies also feature a 6'7" midfielder!

Huh? Does he actually play, or is he just a circus freak they roll out for the coin toss or something?

[SMUguy]

These write-ups are great. Thanks for doing them! Based on your scouting reports, I see:

-> William & Mary — W (1-0-0)
-> NC State — W (2-0-0)
-> Duke — W (2-1-0)
Love the fact that Notre Dame will take a guy who gets run out of Duke (and no, a British goalie doesn't mean he's good. Remember that guy Green from the World Cup? Or is that why you said it?)
-> Oakland — W (3-1-0)
-> UConn — L (4-2-0)
47/7 goal differential? Those are video game numbers.
-> Dartmouth — W (5-2-0)
Home game, Dartmouth losing 9 seniors, New Hampshire guys not being ready for Texas heat, etc.
-> Washington — W (6-2-0)
("I'm sure the SMU soccer fans who also follow the Scottish League will remember Bobby Clark's nearly 20 years with Aberdeen." Seriously?)
-> Cal State-Northridge — W (7-2-0)

[DanFreibergerForHeisman]

Game 4 - Oakland - September 9 at Tulsa tournament in Tulsa

Oakland has a very interesting roster - they played 23 players last year and this season they will have four redshirt seniors, so they certainly will have a lot of experience mixed in with their youth (10 redshirt sophomores and sophomores). The Golden Grizzlies also feature a 6'7" midfielder!

Huh? Does he actually play, or is he just a circus freak they roll out for the coin toss or something?

He actually does play - he appeared in 8 games last season and had a goal.

(and yes - the English keeper crack was sarcastic...)