A majority of the players from the U.S. U-17 national team that finished fourth in the world in 1999 elected to go to college rather than turn pro.

Even before the U.S. under-17s took fourth place at the youth World Championship last summer, they were a hot commodity.

This was a team that had run up a 20-game unbeaten streak against international competition and had bested its counterparts from world soccer powers like England, Argentina and France, as well as two-time U-17 world champion Ghana.

Star Landon Donovan, who had scored 32 goals in 35 internationals entering the tournament in New Zealand and won the Golden Ball as its most valuable player, had already signed a multi-year pro contract with Bundesliga club Bayer Leverkusen.

Silver Ball winner DaMarcus Beasley was also off the market, having signed with MLS, while midfielder Raul Palomares was already in his second year, albeit on an amateur contract, with Bundesliga club Kaiserslautern.

Others would soon follow into the pro ranks.

Midfielders Bobby Convey, Seth Trembly and Kyle Beckerman have all since joined Beasley in MLS.

The pros werenÆt alone in keeping a close watch on the U-17s. College coaches also hoped to entice what made up the brightest collection of young soccer players this country has ever produced.

Of the 15 high school seniors on the team, 10 had signed letters of intent to go to college before heading Down Under. Nine followed through on their commitments, and one senior who hadnÆt signed joined them soon thereafter.

The big winners were UCLA, which picked up goalkeeper D.J. Countess, defenders Nelson Akwari and Alexander Yi and midfielder Adolfo Gregorio, and Clemson, which ended up with midfielder Kenny Cutler and defender Oguchi Onyewu. The other U-17s headed to college this fall are strikers Jordan Cila (Duke) and Abe Thompson (Maryland) and defenders Kellen Kalso (Indiana) and Greg Martin (Notre Dame).


Testing college waters

For UCLAÆs Akwari, who didnÆt commit until after he came back from New Zealand, going to college was not an easy decision.

MLS had also come knocking on AkwariÆs door. After consulting with his parents and some friends in the pros, he decided to go to school ù for now.

ôI felt like I could go to college for at least a year, to kind of test it out and see how it was,ö Akwari says. ôI want to get a good education. [MLS] talked to me and gave me an offer. Everyone I talked to said go [pro] when you think youÆre ready, that there was no pressure to go early.ö

UCLA coach Todd Saldana considers himself lucky to have hit the jackpot in landing three starters from the U-17 defense.

ôThey played well enough to step into the pro game if thatÆs what they wanted to do,ö Saldana said. ôThe first person we committed was D.J Countess. We were in touch with a few of the others, but when we got [Countess], the others realized the potential. I think they felt there was a formula there. TheyÆve had a lot of success playing together.ö

Akwari is realistic. He wants to continue to climb the international ladder and knows the pros will have an advantage. He is now on the U.S. under-20 national team that will try to qualify this winter for next JuneÆs World Youth Championship in Argentina.

ôI think that the guys who have gone pro have an advantage,ö he says. ôTheir environment is more demanding. TheyÆre definitely going to progress faster than I am, so that is something I worry about.ö

Saldana is aware that he may only have these U-17 veterans for a season or two, but he approaches the situation with pragmatism.

ôThe only understanding we have is that they would be very open and honest about the possibilities, and that they communicate with us,ö Saldana said.

Even in a worst-case scenario, where all four U-17s leave school next year, Saldana is prepared to soften the impact on his program.

ôWeÆll probably have a little broader recruiting class,ö Saldana said. ôThe timing is what is going to make it easier or harder for us. WeÆve brought in a big class this year, which hopefully will protect us a little bit. We have 11 new players in the program this year, so we could survive if it were to happen late.ö


A chance to mature

At Clemson, Cutler and Onyewu share a two-bedroom apartment on campus with two others.

Unlike Akwari, Cutler did not have a hard time making his decision. ôI thought I needed a few more years to mature as a player and get physically stronger,ö said Cutler, who was pushed by his parents to continue his education. ôI think college is a great way to do that, especially here at Clemson where we have so many resources with a weight room and good coaching.ö

Making the choice more palatable for Cutler was the fact that Onyewu, whose parents also put high value on education, had already signed on with the Tigers.

A third U-17, Bryan Jackson, opted out of his letter of intent to attend Clemson and went to Italy, where he has been training with Serie B Genoa.

Clemson coach Trevor Adair thinks college soccer gets a bad rap when it comes to developing players.

ôWhen I look at Wolde Harris, Matt Jordan and Jeff Bilyk, who have been through our program and stayed in school for four years, it hasnÆt hurt them,ö Adair said. ôTheyÆre all pretty close to getting their degrees, and a guy like Harris has been one of the top players in MLS for four years.ö

But pro ball, especially European soccer, is a mighty big carrot being dangled in front of the noses of the U-17s.

The players often discussed their options while living in Bradenton, Fla., where they prepared for the U-17 World Cup.

ôIt really dominated our conversation,ö Cutler said. ôWe were always talking about it. Europe is kind of a dream for most of the players. We pretty much all want to go there at some point in our careers and play with the best.ö

ThatÆs all in the future for Akwari, whoÆs thinking of playing against Cutler and Onyewu in postseason action.

ôWe always talked about how we are all going to be together at the final four,ö Akwari said. ôIt would be very interesting if we were to play against [Clemson] there.ö

by Soccer America associate editor Poul Swain