Zip_ME87

Jonathan Lewis Called Up to US U20 Squad January 15, 2017 12:50PM EST Jonathan Lewis has been called up to represent his country for the U.S. U20 Men's National Team. ... The U20 MNT head coach Tab Ramos named 24 players to his January Camp roster, including NYCFC's newest acquisition, MLS Combine MVP Jonathan Lewis. Lewis will travel to Carson, California for the training camp which will take place from Jan. 15 - 23 at the U.S. Soccer National Training Center where the team will prepare for the U20 World Cup qualifying tournament. ... Actually, I don't think he has to travel anywhere since the draft was in LA. Perhaps he has to change hotels.

Two trades into the top of the draft underscored the value of being in Friday's top four. http://www.fourfourtwo.com/us/features/2017-mls-superdraft-notes#8CrQu6DBmdcSuq7x.99 ...Portland Timbers coach Caleb Porter, who saw his team trade from pick 10 to four in the first round, put it best: “In getting into the [top] four, we felt like we could not go wrong with any of the picks. We liked the options in the top four, and after that, we weren’t sure.” ... NYCFC traded a significant amount of allocation money -- $250,000, just $50,000 less than what the Chicago Fire received for the rights to Didier Drogba – to trade up and get Akron’s Jonathan Lewis. The playmaking midfielder was impressive for Akron and at the MLS combine and could end up being the best pro to come out of the draft. It’s intriguing to put another younger, quicker player in the New York midfielder. ...

Congratulations to Danilo.

MLS Draft 2017: Timbers, NYCFC trade big assets to move up and snag top forwards NYCFC acquired the third pick from the Chicago Fire for $250,000 in allocation money — the first-ever trade we’ve been given official word on the allocation money value thanks to a new MLS rule put in effect on Friday — to acquire Lewis. The former Akron striker opened a lot of eyes at the recent draft combine, and plays with a slick style up top coupled with smart, heads-up play not often seen from a forward of his age. I hated losing Jonathan so soon, but if he can perform in the pros with the University of Akron name forever tied to him, so be it. With the World Cup coming up next year, our President and Athletics Department need to get their heads out of their collective butts and take advantage of the popularity rise of soccer in the USA and our former Zips from coast to coast, in Europe, and on Team USA. Zips Mens Soccer, Ohio's Collegiate soccer powerhouse. Come to Akron to see tomorrow's professional soccer players. ...

NYCFC select 2017 Combine MVP from the University of Akron....

TimbersFC at CrewSC early this season, March 25th. Road Trip!

Jonathan Lewis starting in the final Combine match...

Ten collegians who'll shape MLS Class of 2017 6. JONATHAN LEWIS (Akron).

I guess that I may need to be prepared for this...(a slip to #10 would work for me) Parchman: MLS SuperDraft 2017 Predictions A Generation adidas player will slip to the second round This isn’t quite as unprecedented as it may sound. As recently as 2015, NC State defender Conor Donovan slid to the first pick of the second round, where Orlando City poached him. If teams either don’t value or don’t have enough information on a Generation adidas player, the roster benefit is more or less perceived as moot. And while most Generation adidas players have been well-scouted, this is a particularly interesting class when it comes to unknowns. A few Generation adidas players are more or less locks to go high. Miles Robinson, Abu Danladi, Jackson Yueill and Shamit Shome all look to be top 10 picks in most any circumstance. Even if one slips beyond the threshold most expect - we’re talking top five or six here - it’s extremely unlikely they fall much farther. That said, there are two who don’t quite have the same profile. Adonijah Reid, a Canadian Generation adidas signee alongside Shome, is a 17-year-old forward who more or less got his first major exposure during the MLS Combine this week. And Akron attacker Jonathan Lewis was a late Generation adidas signee with arguably less buzz than anyone else here. Both are quality players, but on such short notice, don’t be surprised to see one slide out of the first round in favor of more heavily scouted players.

Danilo was not mentioned by the announcers yesterday, to my knowledge. However, for what I saw, I thought he had a great match vs Team Tango. I don't think teams but huge stock in these matches, but they definitely watch. On the video yesterday, I saw many MLS coaching staffs in the stands at the Stub Hub Center (in the loges, of course)...DC United, SoundersFC, Dynamo, NE Revolution,..., CrewSC (Berhalter & Co.), and Timbers FC (including Pablo Moreira, Cameron Knowles, and I think Caleb was sitting in front of Pablo but the view of him was obscured by a handrail). Danilo going in the 2nd round would be excellent.

Jonathan Lewis was mentioned a number of times yesterday during the MLS Combine match between Team Control & Team Tango. Some comments that his stock has improved...maybe in top 3. I would love to see TimbersFC get him but would also be happy if he goes to CrewSC so that we can see him in Columbus with Wil Trapp. I doubt that he falls to 10 for the Timbers, and I think they need defenders. CrewSC at 5 is possible, but may be a stretch. He is looking good. He could be another who rises quickly like DeAndre Yedlin. By the way, they also commented that Jonathan was trialing in Europe while working out the GA deal. Good for him. Obviously, no takers yet, at least not any that he would have wanted, but who knows where he might be headed after a few good years in MLS. I hate losing Jonathan from the Zips, but if he can rise like DeAndre, I'd be extremely happy. He's already on the U20's as were DeAndre and Wil. I'd love to see Jonathan get called in with full USMNT in a year or so. I think Pulisic, Nagbe, and Lewis could be quite dynamic together. I'd love to add Trapp to that mix, too.

Jonathan Lewis scores at 89:57 to tie the match. Final Team Control 2 Team Tango 2. Announcer ... "What a surprise, an Akron winger making a difference here..."

Sigi Schmid: The changes I would make to college soccer http://www.mlssoccer.com/post/2017/01/09/sigi-schmid-changes-i-would-make-college-soccer

I'm unsure how narrow the field @ Buffalo is. Like high schools that play soccer on their gridiron football field, they have additional (wider) markings for soccer. The crown on the field, however, is something not germane to association football.

I agree that I would very much like to see the competition improve in the MAC, and fknbuflobo's comment is a good one, however it was meant. Buffalo is the only MAC soccer team that plays on a gridiron football field. Akron, BGSU, WMU, and WVU all have soccer stadiums. NIU plays soccer on the field in the center of their track, but it is not crowned like a gridiron field. (AF could be American Football or Association Football...hence, my not using that acronym.) Respect and purpose of any sport starts at home.

http://www.mlssoccer.com/superdraft/2017/combine/copa-tango-jan-8 Lewis - 2 goals (Team Tango); Cicerone - 0 goals (Team Copa) 1st goal was a pk he earned. 2nd goal was a put back of Danladi's long strike. Edit: These matches really don't mean much, but it still pleases me to see Jonathan outscore Russell Cicerone.

The Combine is certainly off to a great start for this former Zip!

$4M (split with MAC?) for playing in the Cotton Bowl. Plus: In addition to the payouts detailed below, each team participating in a playoff semifinal (Peach and Fiesta Bowls) or the Cotton Bowl receives $2.16 million for travel expenses. http://www.forbes.com/sites/kristidosh/2016/12/31/college-football-playoff-payouts-by-conference-for-2016-17/2/#6478ea2b24a4 Some of that nothing, please!

For those interested, the Combine competitions kickoff at 4:15 pm ET today (with additional matches on Tuesday and Thursday). All are being streamed live. Danilo Radjen is on Team Control. I cannot find Jonathan Lewis on any of the team rosters. Not sure if he's not playing, or if they just haven't added the late additions to the public roster listings. http://www.mlssoccer.com/post/2017/01/03/mls-player-combine

Jonathan Lewis is indeed turning pro. He posted the following to his Instagram account late yesterday. jon_lewis7 Extremely honored to be part of the 2017 Generation Adidas Class and be part of the MLS Draft. Very excited to see what 2017 brings me and I'm very thankful for all the support I have gotten along the road. Shoutout to Akron for a great semester and for taking me into the family. #Adidas #mlsdraft2017

Not unexpected, but darn. I really wanted to see Jonathan with the Zips for at least 1 more season. Nevertheless, if this is the case, I wish him the best. Another Zip in the Pros is awesome.

Some additional information on Morgan Hackworth's pedigree... http://www.cuse.com/roster.aspx?rp_id=12899&path=msoccer Personal: Morgan Christopher Hackworth … Born in January 1997 … Son of John and Tricia Hackworth … Two brothers … Father, John, played soccer at Wake Forest and is the head coach of the U.S. U-15 Boys’ National Team. John has actually moved up to the U-17 National Team coach... http://www.ussoccer.com/stories/2016/11/29/18/45/161129-u17mnt-hackworth-names-20-player-roster-for-2016-nike-international-friendlies