By Ridge Mahoney, Senior Editor
Soccer America Magazine
With D.C. United defender Bobby Boswell probably having lost his spot to Argentine import Facundo Erpen, the only rookie college products starting regularly on the back line in MLS team are Michael Parkhurst (Revolution), Tim Ward (Metros), Ugo Ihemelu (Galaxy), and Hunter Freeman (Rapids).
For much of the season, Parkurst and the Revs' defense has been solid; now comes crunch time. The Revs announced last week that defender Tony Lochhead, a third-round pick out of UC Santa Barbara, has signed with MLS and that the New Zealander will be eligible to play once his visa paperwork is completed.
The only teams to win a title with a rookie starter (drafted out of college) on the backline are the Wizards and D.C. United.
Kansas City beat Chicago, 1-0, in MLS Cup 2000 with Nick Garcia. On the losing side for the Fire that day was Carlos Bocanegra, who narrowly beat out Garcia in voting for Rookie of the Year. D.C. United captured MLS Cup 1996 with Eddie Pope. (Clint Peay was not drafted out of college.)
C.J. Brown played for the champion Fire in the 1998 final after being drafted earlier that year but came to MLS by way of the A-League San Francisco Seals.