Tim Oswald and Rutgers-Camden 

Come Oh-So-Close

Other News & Thoughts Around The Soccer World

UEFA Champions League this week!  Matchups and game times here.  All on FoxSports or the FoxSoccer2Go app.

NCAA men's final four this weekend at PPL...hope they get the field shoveled off.  New Mexico, UVA, Maryland and Notre Dame all face off.  Only one cold-weather school in that bunch..

National Champs crowned all over the place last weekend:
NCAA Division I Women.....UCLA (first ever title)
NCAA Division III Women....William Smith

On the fella's side:
NCAA Division III Men....Messiah (10 for 10 in NCAA Finals) second place to local institution Rutgers-Camden.  Given Messiah's tendency to sub like it's hockey, one has to wonder if Rutgers-Camden might have had a different result if the NCAA/NSCAA and college coaches got their acts together and gave the final four teams more than 18 hours rest between the semis and the final.

Loras used 23 players (35 substitutions) in the semi to Rutgers-Camden's 16 (14 subs...double their total in the final, but with virtually no rest between games the staff has to balance between weakening the squad or being too tired to play the next day for a title!); Messiah used 18 players (17 substitutions) to Rutgers-Camden's 15 (6 substitutions) in the final.  Messiah used 19 subs against Williams in their semi-final, but that was a walk-away 4-0 blowout.

Loras and Messiah combined for 57 substitutions in the semi-finals in 2012, something I griped about just this past October.

Hey, it's within the rules, but it's not in the spirit of the game, and that should be changed.

Lastly, here's a great graphic of from whence goals come.  3 years of goals from the EPL (some 1100 in total) generates this image, courtesy of arcticicehockey.  The image is of the 18 yard area, dark red is more activity, blue is very little activity.  Clearly, virtually no goals are scored from outside 8 or 9 yards from goal:

Check It Out

The Rundown

Farewell To An Extraordinary Man...

OK...going to keep it short 'cause there's a lot going on!

• The USA is swimming in deep water!  Germany, Portugal and Ghana stand stoutly between the Nats and a berth in the round of 16.  The geeks at ESPN offer this assessment of the USA's chances (39% chance of advancing)...but they're cowards who hide behind their slide rules.  Klinnsmann will select the guys who actually know something about the game, and the real components that factor into a winning team.  (remember, the nerds who compile these stats have never played in anything resembling a World Cup!)
• RIP Madiba.  FIFA offers this remembrance.  On behalf of my family, my South African brother-in-law and my two nieces who will be raised as dual citizens...Mandela did many great things, but he also did small things, like make my sister's happiness possible.  Here's hoping we see more leaders of his ilk around the world.
• MLS Cup Final is Saturday (4pm EST, ESPN); stats preview here from whoscored.com, the MLS preview here.
• The NCAA championships conclude this weekend for the women's teams; see the bracket here.  Watch the games via ESPNU or the WatchESPN app/website.  UVA, Florida State, UCLA and Virginia Tech face off starting tonight at 5pm.
• Men's NCAA tournament rolls on this weekend as well.  Click here for the bracket; click on a given matchup to find a web-based video feed to watch.  Michigan State/Notre Dame and Maryland/Cal are both offering video - the other two matches may need a little more investigation.  The Terps v. Cal matchup is the one people have been praying for this year!
• For those who are planning on watching the men's final four next weekend at PPL park, some nice notes from the Union media gurus here.
• Premier League matches this weekend here...Jozy plays Spurs (did you know Gareth Bale and Clint Dempsey accounted for 40% of Tottenham's goals last year?) and both US goalkeepers, Guzan and Howard play Sunday.  Arsenal v. Everton is probably the game I'm looking forward to most...
• Keep track of all (most) of the Americans playing overseas - and who are all hoping for a call-up from Klinnsmann for June! - here, here, here, here, and here.  Pretty interesting reading, and usually some good video of players playing well!
• Here's a good story on Christie Mewis, former BC standout, current pro and USWNT player.  I coached against here at Colgate, and she is the real deal. 

PHEW...Have fun!

Mix and Aron

Who's Going To Brazil?

This Ball, For Starters:

The just-released Addidas "Brazuca," no doubt the most sinister sphere ever developed.
Every World Cup sees the GKs in particular lament the erratic and unpredictable flight of the new ball!

The US MNT is dormant until the winter camp in Jan/Feb when they'll have one last look at the player pool for Brazil.  Many, many players have been used since Klinnsmann took over the program, and guesses are flying as to who will be handed a ticket, and who'll be home watching like the rest of us!  Follow ESPN's "hot list" for some useful information on the topic.

Remember the FIFA 2014 World Cup Brazil draw is THIS FRIDAY, ON ESPN2.  Find out if the US can avoid a/the "group of death!"

And here's a couple persuasive arguments for being selected to the roster:

Aron Johannsson does it again:
http://espnfc.com/video/espnfc/video/_/id/1627536?cc=5901

Mix Diskerud is warming up...can he keep it up and get on the roster for Brazil?
http://espnfc.com/video/espnfc/video/_/id/1627175?cc=5901

Jermaine Jones is a virtual lock for selection, but he isn't letting up...check out his latest Bundesliga effort: