College Bound Tour Continues

The College Bound Tour is moving into their third day.  They will be touring College of Charleston and Georgia Southern with a training session at Georgia Southern.  The Tour yesterday had the players touring Furman, USC Spartanburg, and USC Columbia.  They were scheduled to play a game against South Carolina United.  Stay turned for more updates -

The College Bound tour will return home later this afternoon and I know we are all excited to hear about their experiences over the last few days.  The following report was received from the boys -

    Upon our arrival at Furman University, we were immediately drawn to the rustic and isolated feel of the campus. The fields were very well kept and they left us with the impression that the soccer programs are more prioritized than other sports in stark contrast to many schools in America (especially in the south). We saw dorms that had up to three beds crammed into a tiny room, which resembled a jail cell. The campus, academics, and tuition all are similar to the atmosphere of an Ivy League School. Through its scenic ambience, and history of professional players (Clint Dempsey and more), this school is a good fit for someone who is looking for a top notch liberal arts education at a midsized university.

     Our next stop was at USC Upstate (Spartanburg). Our tour of the campus was at mid-day and water was a big necessity. The campus was well renovated and had a contemporary feel. Like Furman, soccer was the school’s main sport. One of the benefits of Upstate is that Nike allows players to test cleats for future production. The coach was very nice and really took his time to show us the campus. The athletics facility was very impressive in that the school really wanted to make sure that the sports and other recreations were interesting to the student athletes.

     Since USC was our last stop, most of us were pretty tired after surviving the atrocities, which resembled one of Dante's seven stages of hell; only to find out that Columbia was a real live human broiler. We had a quick tour of their $14 million facility which focused on aiding student athletes with tutoring and nutrition. After talking with the assistant coach, we learned that becoming a student athlete means you are willing to dedicate your time in eating, playing, studying, and breathing soccer with your teammates while focusing on your studies. It is a huge commitment for someone who really wants to go above and beyond then just playing at a college level, but to move forward to a possible professional career afterwards.

     We were invited by South Carolina United, a high level club team, to one of their practices to close our day. It was an incredible opportunity for us to stretch out our legs and get some exercise after being in the car all day. It was a great experience for all involved, and at the end of the session, even though time would not permit; we all wanted to continue playing.