Podcast: Fairfield’s Dave Barrett provides player advice for the recruiting process

Fairfield University women's head coach Dave Barrett joined 'The Goal' podcast. (Fairfield Athletics)

The latest guest on New England Soccer Journal’s “The Goal” podcast is Fairfield University women’s soccer head coach Dave Barrett.

Barrett took over the Fairfield program in 2018 and has led the Stags to a winning record in every campaign but one (not including the COVID-shortened 2020 season). His record over that stretch is 53-35-14, good for a winning percentage of .588.

A former goalkeeper at Wesleyan, Barrett came to Fairfield after 17 years as the head coach at Illinois Wesleyan University, where he achieved significant postseason success, while recording an overall winning percentage of .712.

Barrett joined host Matt Langone to discuss how he goes about recruiting, and to provide advice to players going through the recruiting process. His Fairfield program was also discussed.

The full podcast can be accessed below and is available on all major platforms. If you enjoy it, please leave a rating and a review.

Here are some highlights from our discussion with Barrett:

On his general recruiting philosophy:

Barrett: “We’re a mid-major, playing in the MAAC. We’re competitive, but we’re not a Power Five. We’re not BC. We’re not Rutgers. We’re not, obviously, Carolina, Stanford, et cetera. So we have to sort of shop in the aisles that make the most sense. At the same time, my strategy has always been one of we need to step up to the plate and take some good cuts, because we’re going to get a few of those (players), and you would never get them if you don’t try. It’s sort of a tricky needle to thread, because we’re looking for the things I just mentioned — someone who’s technical and athletic, smart, really good character kid. That’s something that’s really important for us. As we built our program here and in my previous job, too, that’s become more and more important in today’s environment — what kind of person they are, what kind of family do they come from, how are their parents?”

On having a mentality to avoid hurt feelings during the recruiting process:

Barrett: “We’re doing the same thing that the players are doing, just kind of attacking it from opposite directions. But we both want to get to the same point of finding the right fit for each other. Hopefully it aligns with the people, for us and for them. But if it doesn’t, it’s okay. There’s going to be plenty of other choices out there. Yeah, there’s moments where I’m disappointed, but then I move on. So, thick skin takes a while.”

On best communication practices for players during the recruitment process:

Barrett: “For players to be aggressive with schools that they think they’re realistic about. What does disappoint me is if I call about a player, I get multiple contacts and we’ve seen ‘Susie’ play, we really like her and I call her club coach and hear she’s really wide open and she’s got, like, 20 schools that she’s interested in. Well, that’s fine. Are we realistic for her – what is the deal? I think the line doesn’t get crossed for me until we reach a point where it’s like okay, we’re really not of a high interest to you and you’re really hoping that whoever calls you instead. That’s fine, I’m cool with that. I think transparency from the recruits perspective is really healthy. Tell us the truth.”

On the role of social media in recruiting:

Barrett: “It’s good in some senses. It’s confusing in others. I get it, though. That’s kind of the way things are going these days. I don’t think it’s harmful — get your message out there. I don’t think you need to post literally every game highlight — that seems a bit much to me.”