chaka daley
Selemani: the Peppers of other football [via MGoBlue]
[Ed-Seth: Michigan's soccer program has been climbing the sport's ranks in fits and starts. Last year was a bit of a fit, but this season could well be the start of something big after the Wolverines brought in a monster recruiting class, highlighted by the nation's 3rd best prospect whom most expected to be going pro. MGoSoccer correspondent Andy Schreur, who has covered the USMNT for Yanks-Abroad, met with Michigan's head coach to discuss the class and upcoming season].
Coach Chaka Daley begins his third year in charge of the Michigan Men’s Soccer Program with arguably the strongest recruiting class in the program’s 14 year history. The class, featuring seven freshmen and one transfer is ranked 2nd in the country by TopDrawerSoccer.com.
| Michigan Soccer 2014 Schedule | ||
|---|---|---|
| Date | Venue | Opponent (Bold=B1G) |
| Aug 29 | Home | FIU (L, 0-1) |
| Aug 31 | Home | SMU |
| Sep 6 | @ | Columbia |
| Sep 12 | Home | Maryland |
| Sep 16 | Home | Bowling Green |
| Sep 21 | @ | Northwestern |
| Sep 28 | Home | Penn State |
| Oct 1 | Home | Western Michigan |
| Oct 4 | @ | Wisconsin |
| Oct 7 | Home | Notre Dame |
| Oct 11 | @ | Rutgers |
| Oct 14 | @ | Akron |
| Oct 21 | Home | Detroit |
| Oct 26 | Home | Indiana |
| Oct 29 | Home | Oakland |
| Nov 2 | @ | Michigan State |
| Nov 5 | Home | Ohio State |
| Big Ten Tourney | Nov 8, 9, 14, 16 | |
| NCAA Tourney | Nov 20, 23, 29, Dec 5 | |
| College Cup | Dec 12, 14 | |
Michigan finished last season with a 8-7-3 record and lost in the Big Ten Tournament to Indiana 2-1 in extra time.
Recruits: Michigan didn’t have to go far to find perhaps their most exciting incoming freshman in Ann Arbor Pioneer’s Ahinga Selemani, who is a powerful center forward and expected to contribute right away. Selemani is on the U-18 National Team currently and was also in the U-17 Residency program and is ranked at the #3 player in the country by collegesoccernews.com and plays with the Columbus Crew Academy.
Coach Daley on Selemani:
He’s a center forward, he’s powerful, athletic, goal-scorer and one of the young, exciting talents in the country. He’s had kind of a whirlwind tour going around with the National Team and the Residency down in Bradenton and being all over the world at such a young age, he’s come back and realized, I think what some people don’t when they leave Ann Arbor. Ann Arbor’s a great city and you don’t realize what you have until you leave it. He was really invested in coming to Michigan.
Included in the incoming class are New York Red Bull Academy players Billy Stevens and Evan Louro, two of the top prospects in the country. Louro, a 6’3 goalkeeper, is expected to challenge Redshirt Senior Adam Grinwis for the starting job. Stevens is a central defender who has played on the U-14 and U-15 US National Team’s and could also see significant playing time as a true freshman. Daley:
Evan Louro is the New York Red Bull #1 and in (National Team) Residency with Ahinga as well. He’s arguably the best goalkeeper of his class coming out. His potential, I think, is limitless. He’s got a really high ceiling and he will complete with Adam Grinwis who is an outstanding goalkeeper as is a fifth year senior. I think Evan will come in and compete with him early in his college career, and that makes it exciting right away to have that kind of competition from a freshman and a fifth year guy.
Stevens, a captain in the New York Red Bull Academy, is a central defender who will likely have an immediate impact of Michigan’s projected 4-3-3 formation. Daley:
Billy Stevens is a central defender and captain of the U-16 Red Bull’s National Academy Champions. He was one of the captains of the U-18 Red Bull team, who was ranked #1 for much of the season this year. We’re excited to have his leadership, personality, grit and soccer IQ joining our team. We think he’s certainly a foundational player for the future.
[After the jump: raiding Ohio, season preview.]
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