"Nothing great was ever achieved without enthusiasm" is the famous Ralph Waldo Emerson quote, but it also could be the life credo for 'the Head Ball Coach', Steve Spurrier.
Spurrier's success on the college football field speaks for itself, and is second only to Bear Bryant in SEC victories.

The expansion Montreal Impact used their first pick in franchise history to select the versatile Andrew Wenger with the top pick in the 2012 MLS SuperDraft on Thursday afternoon in Kansas City.

Wenger, considered to be the most talented and complete player in the draft, enjoyed a successful career at Duke University.

Arsene Wenger might consider his namesake Andrew Wenger in his search for a full back. Wenger, a Duke University standout shows why he is the top pick in this year's MLS SuperDraft. He is listed as a defender/forward and you can see why. He has impressive ball skills, attacks down the flanks with speed, and finishes impressively.

The day has finally arrived. Coaches, General Managers, Owners, and PR battalions all across Major League Soccer have descended upon Kansas City in hopes of landing the next big name in American soccer. This year's draft has a particularly heightened importance and buzz around New England, given the Revolution's #3 overall pick in this afternoon's draft, and with several holes to fill, it's clear that the 2012 MLS Super Draft has huge implications on the birth of the new Revs regime.

Photo courtesy of Duke University

Pennsylvania native Andrew Wenger won the Hermann Trophy Friday as the best player in men's college soccer. The former Reading United and Duke University star is expected to be a top-3 pick in this month's MLS college draft. Stanford's Teresa Noyola won the women's award.

I had the chance to visit with a high school basketball team yesterday, and in their pre-practice meeting, they were referring to an article that I had also once written about a couple of years back. The article had to do with toughness, which ESPN's Jay Bilas has a pretty good reference point about.

It's always a good sign about the your club's future when three players, well three and a potential fourth future Dynamo star, get called in to a US Men's National Team U-23 training camp. Danny Cruz, Kofi Sarkodie and Will Bruin head to Florida starting next week for a week long camp with new U-23 head coach Caleb Porter.

I had the honor of working with Robbie Church for four years at Duke University, and not only is he one of the top coaches in the women's game, but is also one of the true gentlemen in the sport.
Although his Duke Blue Devils fell short in the national title game to Paul Ratcliffe and Stanford, it was clear that Church has firmly placed his Duke side among the nation's elite.

Stanford and Duke advanced to Sunday's national championship game of the NCAA Women's College Cup with three-goal victories in both semifinals on Friday night. Stanford defeated Florida State 3-0 in the first match, and Duke ran out 4-1 victors over Wake Forest. This year's College Cup was located at Kennesaw State University's new soccer-specific stadium, about 30 minutes northwest of downtown Atlanta.

Congratulations to Jay Heaps, who appears to be the new Head Coach of the New England Revolution.
The former Duke University and New England Revolution standout would succeeds Steve Nicol, as reported in the Boston Globe.
Last Wednesday, Revs president Brian Bilello revealed to MLSsoccer.

The annual NSCAA convention just got a lot more fun with the announcement that two MISL teams, The Comets and Wings, will play a match during the weekend long soccer convention taking place this year in Kansas City, MS.
The MISL put out the following press release regarding the NSCAA match:
The MISL's Missouri Comets will play their annual "Retro Game" honoring the area's rich indoor soccer history against the Wichita Wings at Sprint Center on January 14, 2012, during the National Soccer Coaches Association of America (NSCAA) Annual Convention in Kansas City.

The annual NSCAA convention just got a lot more fun with the announcement that two MISL teams, The Comets and Wings, will play a match during the weekend long soccer convention taking place this year in Kansas City, MS.
The MISL put out the following press release regarding the NSCAA match:
The MISL's Missouri Comets will play their annual "Retro Game" honoring the area's rich indoor soccer history against the Wichita Wings at Sprint Center on January 14, 2012, during the National Soccer Coaches Association of America (NSCAA) Annual Convention in Kansas City.

From the Evansville Courier Press, September 11, 2011
Why Evansville?
That was the question I was asked by some friends at a Purple Aces Club gathering, and I think my answer pleasantly surprised those I was sitting with.
Having been born and raised in the New York metropolitan area and despite growing up with a sports orientation through professional sports teams like the Cosmos, Yankees and Knickerbockers, I was always a college soccer fan.

Graham Hays of ESPN writes of the great rivalry in women's soccer between Duke University and the University of North Carolina, which is led by two of the finest coaches in the United States in Anson Dorrance of UNC and Robbie Church at Duke.
If you don't know what you're looking for, the soccer practice field is easy to miss as you drive along the far edge of Duke's campus.

"Where do I send Denilson?"

The only piece of business done so far is Gael Clichy and the only signing yet is Carl Jenkinson. The Arsenal transfer rumours are driven by a couple of different subtexts.

The club has not won silverware for six years: The fact that our winning tradition died quite some time ago leads to lots of angst.

Box-to-box midfielders who are the targets of top colleges and the US National Team are rare. The Seattle Sounders had one of those players in their U-18 Academy up until a couple months ago. He put up two goals in 12 appearances (10 starts) on a team that is dominating its league. Then college spring soccer started, and Nick Palodichuck enrolled early at Duke University.

Photo by ISIphotos.com

Thomas Rongen has selected the 20 players for the United States Under-20 World Cup qualifying campaign that gets underway later this month.

Eight MLS players and 16 professionals in total highlight the roster, which includes the likes of Sebastian Lletget, Joseph Gyau, Conor Doyle and Omar Salgado but does not include Bayern Munich youth product Fabian Huerzeler.

Photo by ISIphotos.com

The Chicago Fire's makeover continues.

The team agreed to deals with trialists Michael Videira and Orr Barouch on Thursday, adding two more names to the fold in a season full of acquisitions. The Fire now has 25 players on its senior roster.

At some point today, we'll have a complete list of Seattle Sounders Academy players who signed National Letters of Intent, but we can confirm at least three players who did, as well as one who has not yet signed. Defender DeAndre Yedlin has officially committed to the University of Akron; defender Nick Palodichuk has already enrolled at Duke University; and goalkeeper Ryan Herman has committed to Santa Clara University.

DURHAM, N.C.-Former Duke University men's soccer head coach John Rennie will be honored for his success in and service to the game of soccer when he is inducted into the North Carolina Hall of Fame on Jan. 22. The longtime coach led Duke to the school's first NCAA title in any sport when the Blue Devils captured the 1986 NCAA Championship.

American striker Mike Grella has joined Scottish club Motherwell on loan, the club announced on Thursday.

Grella joins Motherwell from English side Leeds United, where he has struggled for playing time. Grella most recently went on loan to Carlisle United, where he scored three goals in 11 appearances.