2022 D3 Men's Soccer National Perspective

[Mid-Atlantic Fan]

This might seem a bit "off topic" but I'm wondering what the impact of the new OT rule will have on the season.  And - from my lens I tend to agree with the poster who mentioned Chicago and Messiah as two titans...and all others in a different class.  Maybe Amherst, maybe Conn being in the upper echelon but it seems like there's a lot more parity this year and fewer dominant teams.  Really seems completely wide open through first 2-weeks of the season.

The OT rule has definitely factored into many games thus far and IMO hindered the competition. It's a silly rule that will only make the selection process more complex...as if it wasn't complex enough already 

[EnmoreCat]

Don't the better teams find ways to win inside 90 minutes?  I have a different attitude to draws (I was trying to think of a clever cultural reference to support this, but gave up) and believe it's part of the game, sometimes a team might have done really well to get that result.  Do they deserve half the points? No, but rather than have OT, perhaps if it really does become a "problem", which I suspect it won't, then offer 4 points for a win and the see how teams play.  I guess it comes down to what you want to get from these games.  For previous tournament winners is there an asterisk next to their name that says, "won six games in overtime"?

[oacalum]

I'm a somewhat recent player (graduated in 2018) and I, along with many of my former teammates, would hate this new overtime rule. And I imagine a large majority of current D3 players would've voted to keep overtime in the regular season, as well. More good moments come from those overtime games, and an extra 20 minutes at a maximum wouldn't really put any players in overload, especially with unlimited subs.

This new rule benefits D1 players more as they typically have more travel involved and less recovery time and a longer spring season.

[blue_jays]

The birds have spoken (Falconer and bluejay)....Messiah and Chicago are headed towards a titanic, all-time classic national final.

The Messiah plea/plug was next, next level stuff.

In all seriousness, at the moment -- and notwithstanding that it is early to know where to place the NESCAC four horsemen -- Messiah, Chicago, and North Park have separated themselves from the rest of the top tier pack.

Right now, I'd say North Park is the scarier side and frankly I have them favored against UChicago at the end of the month when they meet up. The Maroons are better than last year, but NPU still feels like they have an offensive gear that few other teams can reach. The Maroons kept Olsen off the scoreboard in both games last year, but not having him be the focus might be an advantage for NPU this time around. It all comes down to who possesses the ball better.

[PaulNewman]

The birds have spoken (Falconer and bluejay)....Messiah and Chicago are headed towards a titanic, all-time classic national final.

The Messiah plea/plug was next, next level stuff.

In all seriousness, at the moment -- and notwithstanding that it is early to know where to place the NESCAC four horsemen -- Messiah, Chicago, and North Park have separated themselves from the rest of the top tier pack.

Right now, I'd say North Park is the scarier side and frankly I have them favored against UChicago at the end of the month when they meet up. The Maroons are better than last year, but NPU still feels like they had an offensive gear that few other teams can reach. The Maroons kept Olsen off the scoreboard in both games last year, but not having him be the focus might be an advantage for NPU this time around. It all comes down to who possesses the ball better.

Should be a good one...especially if both are still unblemished.

[PaulNewman]

I am not a recent player but I think I prefer the change on OT.  Teams favored to win and/or that need to win have to press to score that final 10 minutes of regulation.  Otherwise, I'd prefer they play out two 10 minute OTs or one 15 minute OT without golden goal.  Also think it's harsh for a very good team to be punished for 2-3 OT losses that could keep them out of postseason play.

[PaulNewman]

To change the gestalt a little....if an inferior opponent plays an incredible game and can hold Messiah, Tufts, Chicago, Amherst, North Park, etc to a draw after 90 minutes I'd like to see them credited with the draw.  After all, those superior teams had a full 90 to avoid a draw.

[D3Navy]

In the last two games, Trinity tied and lost on goals scored by their opponent in the last 19 seconds combined (an amazing mid-field free kick and throw-in header).  Dumb fouls played a large role.

They need to get their heads on straight, but they are likely to still win the division and qualify for the tourney.

The birds have spoken (Falconer and bluejay)....Messiah and Chicago are headed towards a titanic, all-time classic national final.

The Messiah plea/plug was next, next level stuff.

In all seriousness, at the moment -- and notwithstanding that it is early to know where to place the NESCAC four horsemen -- Messiah, Chicago, and North Park have separated themselves from the rest of the top tier pack.

Another group -- Calvin (the least of this group but still the Knights have tied Aurora and nipped Millikin 2-1), Kenyon, W&L, Montclair, Christopher Newport, Cortland, etc -- has looked rather pedestrian at least compared to very lofty expectations....BUT...do not count them out.

There's the "minding our own business but we're good group," like Rochester, Pac Lutheran, Stevens, etc.

There's the surprise group (at least so far)....Dickinson, Drew, MSOE, Western CT, UW-Eau Claire, Clarkson, CMU, McDaniel, Hamilton, Baldwin Wallace, etc -- and among this group some will fall off and others may continue to surprise.

Then there's the "what in the heck is going on" group with Wash U, OWU, St Olaf, Wash Coll, Rowan, Trinity (TX), John Carroll, MIT, NYU, C-M-S, Redlands, etc....but don't be surprised if a handful in this cadre find a way to make the NCAA tourney and could be dangerous.

Addendum:  Add Hopkins to the "minding our own business but we're good group."

[Gregory Sager]

Wash U returned most of its players from what was a really good 2021 team. But the Bears lost Sergio Rivas and Nolan Wolf, two of their three best creators up top, from that team, and it shows. Joe Clarke just doesn't seem to have replaced their firepower ... although it may be too early to make a definitive statement about that, as this was only the third game of the year for the Bears.

The Bears lost 5-6 guys that featured heavily in to the rotation including Yanase in the midfield as well as Shaw and Smith in the back.

You're right; I did forget about Alistair Shaw, who was a really solid defender. And Smith did start in Wash U's playoff games last season, although he wasn't a starter for much of the season. But the Bears backline still has Nicholson and Lamba, so it's in good hands. I don't think that the defense was WU's problem yesterday.

(I forgot about Nao Yanase for a good reason. He lost his starting job in mid-October last year, and didn't even get into the WU @ NPU second-round game.)

The team is very young overall so I expect them to improve over the course of the season.  But they were completely outclassed tonight.

I agree that the Bears will get better ... and, of course, I will certainly be rooting for them to do so. But I still think that Joe Clarke has to be worried about where his goals are going to come from. Owen Culver can't do it alone.

(I like the Ryan An kid's potential, though. Technically sound, with good wheels. He's a local product out of Stevenson HS up in the north suburbs. His classmate and fellow forward Adam Hamad got his first minutes for the North Park varsity yesterday, which makes me wonder if NPU recruited An as well -- or if any other CCIW school went after An.)

[WUPHF]

Injuries plagued the team in 2022 including Yanase, Panagos and more.

You really have to be high on the North Park offense to suggest that there were no issues with the defense.  Between this and the Carthage game, the Bears have work to do.

[Gregory Sager]

In all seriousness, at the moment -- and notwithstanding that it is early to know where to place the NESCAC four horsemen -- Messiah, Chicago, and North Park have separated themselves from the rest of the top tier pack.

I'm not quite ready to buy a seat on the NPU "top tier pack" hype train yet.

It's not so much a matter of what I've seen; it's more what I haven't seen. What I've seen is all positive thus far. I've said all along that this is a pretty potent crop of newbies that Kris Grahn has brought in this season, and it's allowing him to go deeper into his bench than he has in the past -- plus, his key returnees such as William de Carro, Angel Barriga, Toby Lunde, Christian Vaaland, Noel Holm, and Alfie Swärd have noticeably upped their games from last season. It's what I haven't seen that worries me. The attitude of the Vikings coaching staff is, "We know we have a good team ... but we're a little unsure as to how comparatively good we are, because the power programs that we scheduled [St. Olaf, Wash U] for pre-conference play weren't up to their usual standards." I think they're right about that. Although I do expect St. Olaf and Wash U to get better as the season goes along (especially the Oles, who have really underperformed when you take into account what they returned from last season's Sweet Sixteen outfit), as of this moment I'm uncertain as to whether the Vikings have been conclusively tested yet.

That will no longer be an issue after the Vikings take the Dan Ryan Expressway down to 55th and Cottage Grove on September 28 for their date with the Maroons.

Another group -- Calvin (the least of this group but still the Knights have tied Aurora and nipped Millikin 2-1)

Sleep on the Knights at your peril. Pedestrian performances against Aurora and Millikin notwithstanding, that Calvin team is loaded to the gunwales with both talent and experience. I would not be shocked even one tiny bit if we see the Knights in Salem, VA the first weekend of December.

[Gregory Sager]

Injuries plagued the team in 2022 including Yanase, Panagos and more.

You really have to be high on the North Park offense to suggest that there were no issues with the defense.  Between this and the Carthage game, the Bears have work to do.

I think that the problem for the Bears yesterday had a lot more to do with possession than penetration. The Vikings were much more effective in the air game when Martin was kicking it upfield -- even when a Bear appeared to get a better head on a 50-50 it was usually a Viking getting to the second ball and settling it -- and Swärd rarely bothered kicking it deep, because what pressure the Bears offered was so ineffective that the Vikings GK was content to just let his team build from the back, or to get the ball 30-40 more yards upfield and then let Vaaland go direct by targeting Isak Flo up top. The Vikings controlled possession so solidly that they could basically sit in the forward third for long stretches, rock the ball from side to side, and pick the Bears apart. Even a good defense can't hold out against that forever, unless you send more guys back and pack it in. There were a number of times when a Viking would simply stop the ball, put his foot atop it, and survey the defense for a few moments before he decided where to go with it next. That's a sure sign of a team confident in its ability to possess at will.

I'm not ready to say how much of this was NPU -- as I just got done saying in the previous post, the Vikings are good, but I'm not 100% sure yet how good -- and how much of this was just growing pains on the part of a Bears team that has yet to develop the ability to sustain attacks, much less convert them.

I think that Joe Clarke has bigger concerns than his back line.

[WUPHF]

I think that Joe Clarke has bigger concerns than his back line.

And hence my suggestion that the Bears were outclassed rather than beat in the final third.  But go look at that first goal and the second goal in the Carthage game and maybe you'll see why I mentioned players from the back line.

[PaulNewman]

Greg, you don't need to buy a seat on the hype train (at least not yet).  You can relax and enjoy the broadcasting and some of the rest of the us here will give the Vikings the respect they deserve (so far).  They have stood out and I assume you are pleased that the two words 'North Park' are now among the first words being said when citing current faves (in contrast to some past years when some needed a nudge to pay more attention to your squad.  We don't know how goood anyone is yet.  But for now, based on results to date, NPU stands out.

As for Calvin, I specifically said do NOT count out any team in that group, and I clarified that Calvin has been the least pedestrian of those cited.  The Knights are a strong contender to get to the Final 4 and win the whole thing, I agree.  One of the things that is impressive is their poise/ability to scramble back into games.  They can go down one or even two goals and I believe they hae full confidence they will somehow get the job done...like being down THREE times to Redlands and still winning, being down 1-0 at OWU at the half at OWU, etc, etc.  Imo they just haven't clearly dominated like the other three mentioned. 

[Gregory Sager]

I'm a somewhat recent player (graduated in 2018) and I, along with many of my former teammates, would hate this new overtime rule. And I imagine a large majority of current D3 players would've voted to keep overtime in the regular season, as well. More good moments come from those overtime games, and an extra 20 minutes at a maximum wouldn't really put any players in overload, especially with unlimited subs.

This new rule benefits D1 players more as they typically have more travel involved and less recovery time and a longer spring season.

I'm with you and Mid-Atlantic Fan on this. I hated to see overtime go. I'm all about upping the ante on the excitement.