UCF joins the Sunbelt for Soccer

[JoshuaC]

Would love a UL Men's Soccer Program. It just isn't feasible cost wise with all the teams being so far away, but man would we dominate the state in this sport. We would be the only D1 school in Louisiana with a soccer program and that would attract people.

We have the nicest field soccer wise in the state that is no debate. When UL hosted the LHSAA Soccer State Championship games in 2017 I heard nothing but amazing things about the surface of our field compared to Tad Gormley and Southeastern who annually host the state championship.

Louisiana High School Soccer is surprisingly pretty solid so we would have the entire state to pick from to go along with Texas players who are much bigger and faster as well.

Not to mention that LA TDP was just created which is basically a youth MLS affiliate for U13-19 in this state. It is fairly new but it is exposing our high school soccer players to talent all over the country as they play Colorado Rapids FC, Dallas FC, Austin FC, and every other MLS affiliate youth teams. If you just pull from that program you would have the best players in the state.

LSU-Eunice is nationally ranked every year at the D2 level and they just started a program only a few years ago so it is possible to start a program and have quick success.

The issue like everyone and myself keeps saying is travel wise. We could play only Texas Schools for our non-conference so that would help but conference play would be brutal cost wise. It just kills us that we would have to fly out every other weekend during conference play. Not to mention that schools aren't going to pay to fly out to Louisiana to play one game. They may have done it if we had another school close by that they could play two games in a weekend, but for one team they aren't going to pay all that money to fly for one game.

Maybe one day, but not today sadly and this coming from a guy who coaches high school soccer for a living in this state.

[ManAboutTown]

I don’t understand why y’all keep saying it isn’t feasible.. it’s almost the identical footprint as the conference now, add Florida and Kentucky. It’s not a 30 game travel schedule. It would be easy to have travel partners like basketball schedules.

Amazing how the cascades of CANT always drown out the CAN around here.

[Turbine]

I don’t understand why y’all keep saying it isn’t feasible.. it’s almost the identical footprint as the conference now, add Florida and Kentucky. It’s not a 30 game travel schedule. It would be easy to have travel partners like basketball schedules.

Amazing how the cascades of CANT always drown out the CAN around here.

I agree

[Cajunrunner]

I don’t understand why y’all keep saying it isn’t feasible.. it’s almost the identical footprint as the conference now, add Florida and Kentucky. It’s not a 30 game travel schedule. It would be easy to have travel partners like basketball schedules.

Amazing how the cascades of CANT always drown out the CAN around here.

No one is saying it CAN’T be done. We’re questioning (and I’m saying no) SHOULD it be done.

I want our limited resources concentrated on sports that are relevant nationally and regionally, which we already know is football and baseball.

And I say that as a former Cajuns Olympic sport athlete. If we’re going to try to keep up our progress in football, we can’t run around chasing resources to dump in men’s soccer plus another women’s sport that would have to be added.

[RedTails]

I know this was brought up in the last soccer thread, but could we drop Olympic sports in favor of adding a soccer program + (beach volleyball or women golf)? Does the Sun Belt Conference require Olympic sports? Do the different events in Olympic Sports allow us to tally up to certain required number of sports programs?

If there are no barriers or reasons why we need to sponsor Olympic sports, would it be wise to replace them with a sport with potential to generate revenue way years down the road is soccer ever overtakes football/basketball/diamond sports in popularity (realizing this is a timeframe in decades)?

[JMV JustMyView]

No one is saying it CAN’T be done. We’re questioning (and I’m saying no) SHOULD it be done.

I want our limited resources concentrated on sports that are relevant nationally and regionally, which we already know is football and baseball.

And I say that as a former Cajuns Olympic sport athlete. If we’re going to try to keep up our progress in football, we can’t run around chasing resources to dump in men’s soccer plus another women’s sport that would have to be added.

Drop mens basketball.

[Million$Mullet]

Mens basketball will NEVER get dropped. Fun to think about though

[Turbine]

The prudent thing to do would be to form an exploritory committee.

Who knows a philanthropic desperate soccer fan might live right here in Acadiana.

[Boomer]

The prudent thing to do would be to form an exploitory committee.

Who knows a philanthropic desperate soccer fan might live right here in Acadiana.

….So what are the general dates for the Soccer season start to finish, where are the locker rooms located, what is their time in the weight room? Ask a HS Coach of how it is hurting all the other school sports!

[RedTails]

….So what are the general dates for the Soccer season start to finish, where are the locker rooms located, what is their time in the weight room? Ask a HS Coach of how it is hurting all the other school sports!

You're a Jesuit guy, so I'm assuming you're hearing from Jesuit football coaches that they don't like the soccer program because they have to share the weight room? Kinda crazy if so, Jesuit soccer is always among the top in the state.

[lcitsh]

I don't understand why you people don't realize that Dr. Maggard has been and is working on this. Sheesh.

[ZoomZoom]

I don't understand why you people don't realize that Dr. Maggard has been and is working on this. Sheesh.

Just hard to imagine or justify starting two programs (Title IX) when we can’t get a stadium renovated.