Across the country college students are returning to campuses and looking forward to fall and spring semesters with a nice long winter break in between. Pretty soon, college soccer players may find their season taking on a familiar schedule.
Currently, the NCAA soccer season is a three-month war of attrition. With the full season compressed to the fall semester, teams sometimes face up to three games per week – meaning that depth, fitness and health are all-too-frequently the keys to victory, not skill or teamwork. And crowning a champion in the middle of December seems more appropriate for the "other football." It's not exactly a schedule that is conducive to the beautiful game.
But a proposal has surfaced that considers spreading the 25 games of the men's NCAA soccer season (and in the future perhaps the women's season as well) across the fall and spring semesters, more closely resembling the schedule of professional leagues. Like those leagues, the season would be split by an extended break between November and February.
Early indications are that there is widespread support for this evolved schedule with MLS, many college coaches, and NCAA doctors all in support of a pace that should reduce wear and tear and increase the quality of play. Moreover, many are arguing that this extended season will actually allow student-athletes to better balance the demands of the sport and academics. With spring soccer and team activities creating an informal second season already, there would seem to be a benefit to creating a less intese schedule across both semesters that allows for reduced distraction during the fall semester.
There are certainly challenges to a year-round schedule related to facilities and logistics, as well as numerous process hurdles to get through before we'll see this new schedule take effect. However, with the sport's thought leaders seemingly in support of the change, it seems like there is a good chance we will see NCAA soccer look a lot more like the all-year nature of the rest of the game.
