College basketball players often give up their eligibility and go pro. College soccer players, on the other hand, almost always stay in school.
But not Brad Davis.
The NSCAA Second-Team All-American has given up his final two years of eligibility at Saint Louis University to pursue a professional soccer career.
Davis, a member of the U.S. Under-23 National Team, has signed with Project-40 of Major League Soccer (MLS). He will be available to be selected in February’s MLS Super Draft.
“Toward the end of the year, people from MLS started contacting me,” said Davis. “I started to look into it and felt comfortable with the contract we negotiated.”
Davis will most likely be drafted by one of the league’s 10 teams since he is protected by Project-40.
Created in 1997, Project-40 is a joint venture between MLS and U.S. Soccer. Its goal is to provide a few of America’s elite, young soccer players with the chance to play and train in a professional environment.
Davis said he plans to take advantage of the educational stipend that MLS offers; the stipend will help him get closer to completing his degree.
Under Project-40, Davis will also not take up an official roster spot for two years. Essentially, his two-year deal will allow him to get acclimated into a professional life, while not being a financial burden for his team.
“Someone will pick him up because he’s young, he’s talented, and he doesn’t count against the salary cap,” said SLU assistant coach Mike Sorber.
Davis could have come back to SLU for one or two more years, and then gone pro.
His goal of making the Olympics in 2004 and the World Cup in 2006, however, were the key factors in his decision.
“Basically, they don’t take anyone who is not playing professionally,” he said.
Davis’ Virginia-based agent started looking into getting a contract from MLS. Rather than tryout for teams in Europe, where the money is more lucrative, Davis noted that he wanted to stay in the states. For now.
“It was my decision to stay here and get used to professional life,” Davis said. “It (playing abroad) will always be there for me.”
While Davis would not comment on his salary, an informed source said it was between $40,000-45,000. Contracts in Europe can be in the hundreds of thousands. Davis said he’ll go wherever he gets picked, but he hopes Kansas City or Columbus are two teams that call his number on draft day. Recently he trained against the U.S. National Team in California.
Former SLU great Brian McBride, a current player for the National Team and the Columbus Crew, told Davis that the Crew needs a left midfielder. His left foot is considered one of the best in the game.
Davis’ father Harry said his son’s decision to turn pro was difficult, but one that Brad made himself.
“Brad wanted an opportunity to play with the Olympic team,” said Harry Davis. “He sat down with Dan (Donigan), and they both agreed that if soccer was going to be his future, he would have to be in a different type of environment.”
The son concurs.
“I had a great time at SLU, but it was time to move on,” Davis said.
