Women’s’ Soccer

[mike412]

How far is the women’s’ program coached by Randy Waldrum behind the men’s’ program? I would argue not that far. However, the one caveat is that as good as the ACC is in men’s’ soccer, it is much more dominant in women’s’ soccer.

Five ACC teams were selected for the smaller NCAA tournament this year. All 5 are in the Elite Eight. Pitt went 3-5 in the ACC this year, but went 8-0 outside the conference. The only lopsided defeat it suffered was to national #2 FSU. It lost 3 road conference games by one goal. Two of those losses were to teams that made the Elite Eight.

There is only one senior on the roster along with three juniors. The best players on the team are sophomores and freshmen. With so many players coming back, I assumed that the recruiting class would be small. I was wrong. Besides two transfers (both of whom played this Spring) Waldrum signed 12 high school players. Nine of them already graduated early and enrolled at Pitt for the Spring semester. Unlike the men’s’ team, there is a local flavor to the recruits. Two are from the two-time state champion Norwin team and one is the star of the state champion (in a different division) Mars team. We know that HS soccer is not as important as club soccer, and all of the recruits come from top club teams.

A few didn’t even play HS soccer. Two ran track. One is an outside defender who qualified for nationals in the sprints. Perfect for a right or left back.

One big advantage of being in the ACC is to be able to tell recruits they will have a chance to play in the best conference in the country against the best players in the country. Waldrum seems to be successfully doing that.

With the number of players returning and the size of the incoming class, the roster will be too big if everyone remains, so I think we can expect some attrition, but the road ahead looks bright.

 

[joeypitt]

How far is the women’s’ program coached by Randy Waldrum behind the men’s’ program? I would argue not that far. However, the one caveat is that as good as the ACC is in men’s’ soccer, it is much more dominant in women’s’ soccer.

Five ACC teams were selected for the smaller NCAA tournament this year. All 5 are in the Elite Eight. Pitt went 3-5 in the ACC this year, but went 8-0 outside the conference. The only lopsided defeat it suffered was to national #2 FSU. It lost 3 road conference games by one goal. Two of those losses were to teams that made the Elite Eight.

There is only one senior on the roster along with three juniors. The best players on the team are sophomores and freshmen. With so many players coming back, I assumed that the recruiting class would be small. I was wrong. Besides two transfers (both of whom played this Spring) Waldrum signed 12 high school players. Nine of them already graduated early and enrolled at Pitt for the Spring semester. Unlike the men’s’ team, there is a local flavor to the recruits. Two are from the two-time state champion Norwin team and one is the star of the state champion (in a different division) Mars team. We know that HS soccer is not as important as club soccer, and all of the recruits come from top club teams.

A few didn’t even play HS soccer. Two ran track. One is an outside defender who qualified for nationals in the sprints. Perfect for a right or left back.

One big advantage of being in the ACC is to be able to tell recruits they will have a chance to play in the best conference in the country against the best players in the country. Waldrum seems to be successfully doing that.

With the number of players returning and the size of the incoming class, the roster will be too big if everyone remains, so I think we can expect some attrition, but the road ahead looks bright.

Thanks for the information!

 

[Fk_Pitt]

How far is the women’s’ program coached by Randy Waldrum behind the men’s’ program? I would argue not that far. However, the one caveat is that as good as the ACC is in men’s’ soccer, it is much more dominant in women’s’ soccer.

Five ACC teams were selected for the smaller NCAA tournament this year. All 5 are in the Elite Eight. Pitt went 3-5 in the ACC this year, but went 8-0 outside the conference. The only lopsided defeat it suffered was to national #2 FSU. It lost 3 road conference games by one goal. Two of those losses were to teams that made the Elite Eight.

There is only one senior on the roster along with three juniors. The best players on the team are sophomores and freshmen. With so many players coming back, I assumed that the recruiting class would be small. I was wrong. Besides two transfers (both of whom played this Spring) Waldrum signed 12 high school players. Nine of them already graduated early and enrolled at Pitt for the Spring semester. Unlike the men’s’ team, there is a local flavor to the recruits. Two are from the two-time state champion Norwin team and one is the star of the state champion (in a different division) Mars team. We know that HS soccer is not as important as club soccer, and all of the recruits come from top club teams.

A few didn’t even play HS soccer. Two ran track. One is an outside defender who qualified for nationals in the sprints. Perfect for a right or left back.

One big advantage of being in the ACC is to be able to tell recruits they will have a chance to play in the best conference in the country against the best players in the country. Waldrum seems to be successfully doing that.

With the number of players returning and the size of the incoming class, the roster will be too big if everyone remains, so I think we can expect some attrition, but the road ahead looks bright.

I

How far is the women’s’ program coached by Randy Waldrum behind the men’s’ program? I would argue not that far. However, the one caveat is that as good as the ACC is in men’s’ soccer, it is much more dominant in women’s’ soccer.

Five ACC teams were selected for the smaller NCAA tournament this year. All 5 are in the Elite Eight. Pitt went 3-5 in the ACC this year, but went 8-0 outside the conference. The only lopsided defeat it suffered was to national #2 FSU. It lost 3 road conference games by one goal. Two of those losses were to teams that made the Elite Eight.

There is only one senior on the roster along with three juniors. The best players on the team are sophomores and freshmen. With so many players coming back, I assumed that the recruiting class would be small. I was wrong. Besides two transfers (both of whom played this Spring) Waldrum signed 12 high school players. Nine of them already graduated early and enrolled at Pitt for the Spring semester. Unlike the men’s’ team, there is a local flavor to the recruits. Two are from the two-time state champion Norwin team and one is the star of the state champion (in a different division) Mars team. We know that HS soccer is not as important as club soccer, and all of the recruits come from top club teams.

A few didn’t even play HS soccer. Two ran track. One is an outside defender who qualified for nationals in the sprints. Perfect for a right or left back.

One big advantage of being in the ACC is to be able to tell recruits they will have a chance to play in the best conference in the country against the best players in the country. Waldrum seems to be successfully doing that.

With the number of players returning and the size of the incoming class, the roster will be too big if everyone remains, so I think we can expect some attrition, but the road ahead looks bright.

I know the staff and half the roster. I’ve sat in Coach’s office and had intimate conversations with him. He’s women’s soccer’s Coach K. I truly believe that. He’s also a good man. Ben, Dustin and Erica are solid coaches and people too.

I’m too close to the situation to comment publicly in a forum
about the players. But all I will say is some are ACC level and some aren’t. That’s the reality of it. Is the program far behind the men? My guess is 2 years behind the men. But they’ll make another leap this Fall. They can be a sweet 16 or round of 8 team this year in my opinion. The transfer from Dayton is ACC level by far and will help make the attack lethal in the Fall. The fact that she went to Dayton and not Pitt is an indictment on the previous staff.

 

[Sean Miller Fan]

I don't really follow women's soccer that closely. I know of Waldrum's reputation but I never thought he would make Pitt into a NCAA title contender like I did with Vidovich. Women's soccer recruiting is much different than on the men's side. The best players are Americans. Specifically upper middle class white girls from the suburbs. I cant see Waldrum landing enough of those types of players to play at a city school. I do think he can get us to be a semi-consistent NCAAT team but probably not much more than that

 

[Fk_Pitt]

I don't really follow women's soccer that closely. I know of Waldrum's reputation but I never thought he would make Pitt into a NCAA title contender like I did with Vidovich. Women's soccer recruiting is much different than on the men's side. The best players are Americans. Specifically upper middle class white girls from the suburbs. I cant see Waldrum landing enough of those types of players to play at a city school. I do think he can get us to be a semi-consistent NCAAT team but probably not much more than that

He has good connections everywhere and has a pipeline in Texas. Being #1 in the country, a top #1 or #2 team in the ACC and a favorite to win the national title is a pretty high bar. I won’t discount his ability to get Pitt there, but it is a very high standard. But I at least see Sweet 16’s in the future and then from there all bets are off.

of course that’s what we thought we might get from Capel too, and that doesn’t appear to be working out.

 

[Sean Miller Fan]

He has good connections everywhere and has a pipeline in Texas. Being #1 in the country, a top #1 or #2 team in the ACC and a favorite to win the national title is a pretty high bar. I won’t discount his ability to get Pitt there, but it is a very high standard. But I at least see Sweet 16’s in the future and then from there all bets are off.

of course that’s what we thought we might get from Capel too, and that doesn’t appear to be working out.

I expected bigger things from Waldrum than Capel. I just think men's recruiting is so different, a guy like Vidovich can turn pretty much anyone into a title contender. Waldrum has to fight a ton of great schools, programs, and warm weather campus for suburban girls. Its not going to be easy.

 

[Chaos]

He has good connections everywhere and has a pipeline in Texas. Being #1 in the country, a top #1 or #2 team in the ACC and a favorite to win the national title is a pretty high bar. I won’t discount his ability to get Pitt there, but it is a very high standard. But I at least see Sweet 16’s in the future and then from there all bets are off.

of course that’s what we thought we might get from Capel too, and that doesn’t appear to be working out.

Maybe you could change your picture from Capel to Waldrum?

 

[Fk_Pitt]

Maybe you could change your picture from Capel to Waldrum?

Nah. Not controversial enough. I like to troll the petulant children of the lair community who rag on our coaches.

 

[mike412]

You think maybe the criticism of Capel has proven to be justified?

 

[Fk_Pitt]

You think maybe the criticism of Capel has proven to be justified?

Criticism is certainly justified. Just look at the results. But childish and entitled behavior should only be reserved for Barcelona and Bayern fans. . Pitt is not at the level. The entitlement and lack of patience of our fan base is a real head scratcher for me.

 

[ThePanthers]

Criticism is certainly justified. Just look at the results. But childish and entitled behavior should only be reserved for Barcelona and Bayern fans. . Pitt is not at the level. The entitlement and lack of patience of our fan base is a real head scratcher for me.

Amen.

 

[Sean Miller Fan]

Criticism is certainly justified. Just look at the results. But childish and entitled behavior should only be reserved for Barcelona and Bayern fans. . Pitt is not at the level. The entitlement and lack of patience of our fan base is a real head scratcher for me.

Lack of patience? We are going to be picked 14th in the ACC in Year 4. It shouldn't be a 7 year rebuild in college hoops. You need 3 good players.

 

[Fk_Pitt]

Lack of patience? We are going to be picked 14th in the ACC in Year 4. It shouldn't be a 7 year rebuild in college hoops. You need 3 good players.

We are following a virtual death penalty in a corrupt sport.

 

[Joe the Panther Fan]

But all I will say is some are ACC level and some aren’t.

I was going to say something similar about some of the local players. As someone said to me, if a couple of them ever play for Pitt it will be a bad, bad sign.

But hey, you never know who is a late bloomer and might turn out better than expected. But I can't imagine many of the local girls are getting much scholarship money. In fact I think that at least one or two of them have parents who work for Pitt, so they aren't getting any actual soccer scholarship money.

 

[Sean Miller Fan]

We are following a virtual death penalty in a corrupt sport.

You need 3 players, a PG, a Big, and a wing. How long should the rebuild be? 10 years? Honest question

 

[Fk_Pitt]

You need 3 players, a PG, a Big, and a wing. How long should the rebuild be? 10 years? Honest question

If it were that easy everyone would be doing it. Listen, all criticism is fair. I just hate the rinse, wash, repeat cycle that we seem to have with our coaches. Maybe we can do better than Capel. But I know we can do worse.

 

[Fk_Pitt]

I was going to say something similar about some of the local players. As someone said to me, if a couple of them ever play for Pitt it will be a bad, bad sign.

But hey, you never know who is a late bloomer and might turn out better than expected. But I can't imagine many of the local girls are getting much scholarship money. In fact I think that at least one or two of them have parents who work for Pitt, so they aren't getting any actual soccer scholarship money.

There is a player very near and dear to me that was offered by this staff...but when she saw some of the offers going out to other local players who were not at an ACC level, who weren’t top producers at the club or HS levels locally, it gave her reason to consider if it was the right fit and she committed elsewhere. But there’s enough talent at the top half of the roster to make some serious noise, and I think they will.

 

[Sean Miller Fan]

If it were that easy everyone would be doing it. Listen, all criticism is fair. I just hate the rinse, wash, repeat cycle that we seem to have with our coaches. Maybe we can do better than Capel. But I know we can do worse.

Everyone is. Rutgers, Creighton, Wichita, SHU, VT, etc. Its easy. Just need a coach

 

[Fk_Pitt]

Everyone is. Rutgers, Creighton, Wichita, SHU, VT, etc. Its easy. Just need a coach

Why is Jeff Capel worse than Kevin Willard or Greg Marshall? I just don’t get. (I realize Marshall is no longer at Wichita but their recent success is his project, not the jabroni who replaced him). I’m asking this question seriously. Capel has more pedigree and charisma than 75% of the coaches in D1. Honest question.

 

[Sean Miller Fan]

Why is Jeff Capel worse than Kevin Willard or Greg Marshall? I just don’t get. (I realize Marshall is no longer at Wichita but their recent success is his project, not the jabroni who replaced him). I’m asking this question seriously. Capel has more pedigree and charisma than 75% of the coaches in D1. Honest question.

He cant recruit. Willard can. Of course. Willard was on the verge of getting fired so he hired that NYC HS coach who brought his cousin + a few more great recruits. You need to do stuff like that

 

[Dointhatrag]

He's closer to Ralph Willard

Pittsburgh Panthers (Big East Conference) (1994–1999)​
1994–95	Pittsburgh	10–18	5–13	9th
1995–96	Pittsburgh	10–17	5–13	7th (BE 7)
1996–97	Pittsburgh	18–15	10–8	T–2nd (BE 7)	NIT Second Round
1997–98	Pittsburgh	11–16	6–12	T–5th (BE 7)
1998–99	Pittsburgh	14–16	5–13	9th
Pittsburgh:	63–82 (.434)	31–59 (.344)

 

[JD1976]

I know the staff and half the roster. I’ve sat in Coach’s office and had intimate conversations with him. He’s women’s soccer’s Coach K. I truly believe that. He’s also a good man. Ben, Dustin and Erica are solid coaches and people too.

I’m too close to the situation to comment publicly in a forum
about the players. But all I will say is some are ACC level and some aren’t. That’s the reality of it. Is the program far behind the men? My guess is 2 years behind the men. But they’ll make another leap this Fall. They can be a sweet 16 or round of 8 team this year in my opinion. The transfer from Dayton is ACC level by far and will help make the attack lethal in the Fall. The fact that she went to Dayton and not Pitt is an indictment on the previous staff.

FK- I enjoy your WoSo posts because, like you, I follow the sport closely and have a number of personal connections to NCAA women’s soccer, past and present. However, I think you are a bit too optimistic and unrealistic about the situation.

I’m not as familiar with Pitt’s roster as other programs out there, but to say they could be a Sweet 16 or Elite 8 program when they haven’t even qualified for an ACC Tourney or beaten any of the top-half programs yet seems to be off base. The fact that they took UVA to OT and have now consistently beaten the likes of Syracuse and BC is a good first step, but to be an Elite 8 or Sweet 16 team would require them to beat teams like Clemson, UVA, Louisville and Duke. And I’m sure you’d agree the chances of them getting on the level of FSU or UNC are slim to none.

Also, Pitt tends to play a cupcake non-conference schedule. They need to play and beat someone like Penn State or WVU — that is if they can even get on their schedules.

Aside from the obvious need to increase the talent level (which it seems Waldrum has done), the key will be to keep and grow a roster together. The hard part about that is that women’s soccer has very little roster churn because even the best players stay 4 years. That means FSU and UNC have national team rosters that stay together 4 years, and in FSU’s case they always dominate the international market.

So unlike the men’s game where there is lesser competition, more roster churn and more international options like we see Vidovich utilizing, the climb to respectability is going to be mighty big for Waldrum. I would say his job is the most daunting of any Pitt head coach.