TOP STORY
1. The 21st Century Model
 by Tom Hindle, TopDrawerSoccer
"In 2000, a group of prominent men’s Division I college soccer coaches approached the NCAA with a vague idea. They’d seen their players toil through condensed seasons, and wanted to stretch the schedule out from fall through to the end of spring. College sport’s governing body had a fairly straightforward answer.
“We were basically told to go away,” Maryland coach Sasho Cirovski said in a news conference.
Almost 22 years later, that original suggestion has been fleshed out into a viable plan. And that response might just be flipped, too.
For over two decades, a group of leaders in college soccer — players, coaches, and conference officials — has put together a plan to alter the season. Arguing that the current model hurts player welfare, media coverage, development, and, perhaps most importantly, the quality of the game on the pitch, they’ve developed a new approach to the season. And soon, they’ll finally see if their work has amounted to change, when the Division I college council votes on their so-called 21st Century Model."
>> Field Awareness: "Cirovski and other top minds in college soccer pieced together a plan that would lengthen the season, stretching it from August through to a College Cup in May. They identified key areas that needed amending, such as a lack of recovery time between games, and a drastically short preseason — both of which impacted player development. But there’s also an academic factor. Such a tight schedule allows little time for freedom of choice in classes, as well as small windows to study and complete assignments."
>> Of Note: "A vote was originally scheduled for 2020, but the COVID-19 pandemic halted the momentum — and pushed back the vote. That interruption, though, provided a perfect tester for a two-semester model. The ACC toyed with a COVID-flex plan, which spread out the season to nearly seven months. And those teams enjoyed successful years."
>> What's Next: "So, what started as a slighted suggestion has turned into a full-fledged movement. A tentative vote has been scheduled for mid April, and the model’s proponents insist it will pass."
>> What They're Saying: "The numbers don't lie. The solution is pragmatic. It's time for the information to get out that this is the right thing to do,” Cirovski said."
>> Be Smart: If it is adopted by Division I, it won't be long until it comes to DIII.
>> Continue Reading >> The 21st Century Model >> CoSIDA Response
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