While many MLS fans are caught up in the excitement of the playoffs, there are plenty of fans who have seen their teams already eliminated and who are already thinking toward the future.
High on the lists of things to think about is the 2012 MLS Draft, which is about ten weeks away. MLS scouts are already scouring the nation, trying to get a sense of which players to target at the January draft, and which players they will want to pay extra attention to at the MLS Combine.
The 2012 MLS Draft class is shaping up to be a good one, with a good crop of attacking players expected to be available. There won't be as many high-level long-term prospects as the 2011 MLS Draft, which was heavy young elite, young talent, but the 2012 class could have even more players who can step in and contribute right away.
To help you keep track of just who are the top MLS prospects in the nation, I will be running an MLS Draft Big Board on Fox Soccer for the next two months. With it, I will provide you with a look at the players who scouts and coaches are raving about, and most interested in, as we draw closer to the 2012 MLS Draft.
Here is the first edition of my Fox Soccer 2012 MLS Draft Big Board, a list that includes the top 25 prospects in the nation. It is a list that will be adjusted periodically for the next two months.
Something that should be noted about the Big Board is that it does not include players who are tied to MLS teams via Homegrown Player designations. Players like Duke's Sebastian Ibeagha (Houston), Akron's Scott Caldwell (New England), and Cal-State Bakersfield's Gyasi Zardis (LA Galaxy). There are some players on the Big Board who have Homegrown Player tags, but those players have tags that are either considered highly unlikely to be accepted by MLS, or are being disputed.
If you are already itching to see an MLS Mock Draft, you might not have to wait too long. I will look to do a Mock Draft of the first ten picks of the 2012 draft on SBI later today, so stay tuned.
What do you think of the Big Board? What players on it are you hoping your team can land? Who didn't make the list that you thought would?
Share your thoughts below.