Despite the bevy of flaws, college soccer can still be fixed.While I remain convinced that America’s future soccer stars will increasingly choose to eschew college soccer and develop under the auspices of youth development programs in clubs abroad and in MLS, I don’t believe college soccer has to be resigned to its current fate of inevitable irrelevance. Correcting just a few of the flaws described above will do wonders for the collegiate game.

The first fix is to cut down on unlimited substitutions. College soccer players are phenomenal athletes, and many, if not all, have the stamina to play 90 minutes. Because college soccer should encourage as much participation as possible, I do think the NCAA would be wise to increase the number of substitutions from the traditional three of professional soccer to five or six. This would deter coaches from resorting to long-ball tactics and possibly allow the introduction of a more free-flowing style of play. Eliminating extra time during the regular season and moving to traditional timekeeping would do wonders, as well.

More importantly however, the NCAA needs to return to its intended purpose of providing opportunities for its student-athletes.

Twice this season, Harvard has had to play three games in eight days. Splitting the season into two halves, fall and spring, would allow more time for coaches to train players. It would also allow players to devote more attention to their studies, spending more time in the classroom during the week than travelling to games. Cross country and track allow for it; soccer should as well.

Despite my grievances, genuine changes do appear to be on the horizon. ESPN recently reported that the NCAA is considering a proposal to allow schools to recruit athletes who have played with professional athletes but maintained their amateur status by not receiving a salary.

If passed, this would allow college soccer players (and prospective youth players) the opportunity to fully participate in professional player academies like the ones being developed across several Major League Soccer clubs.

Despite the NCAA’s increased communication with professional leagues like the NBA and NFL, the interaction with MLS has been abhorrent (probably because the NCAA doesn’t stand to gain the millions it does through football and basketball).

I’m not arguing that college soccer should be viewed as a means towards developing professional athletes.I explicitly rejected that in my previous column on this topic. I do find it peculiar however, that Division I soccer coaches are afforded less than 10 scholarships for squads typically comprised of 25 or more players, when D-1 football coaches receive scholarships for nearly 85% of their players.

The Ivy League, of course, does not offer any athletic scholarships but generous financial aid grants allow players to attend anyway.

Offering more scholarships and providing more training time for players (and competitive play through the aforementioned rule changes) will allow teams to field better teams, even if, as expected, the absolute best youth talent forego college altogether to start professional careers in MLS or abroad.

Unlike nearly everywhere else in the world, young soccer players in this country have the incredible opportunity to simultaneously pursue their athletic and academic dreams.

Young players from Latin America and Europe often have to sacrifice academic endeavors to compete for the chance at a professional contract. The majority of collegiate soccer players, as the NCAA likes to remind us in its adverts, will turn “pro” in something other than soccer. Unfortunately, those soccer players who do have the talent to turn pro are getting short changed by NCAA’s inept conception of soccer. Similarly, those players who play the sport knowing full well that their future lies not on the pitch but in the workforce have to sacrifice immensely during the season to participate in games that are sparsely attended and rarely entertaining.

I’m certainly not the first to voice these complaints, but I sincerely hope that I am one of the last. One can only hope that the NCAA realizes the errors of its ways and commits to bettering collegiate soccer; simple rule changes and increased communication with MLS can ensure that.

Better referees wouldn’t hurt either. But I digress.

—Staff writer Mauricio A. Cruz can be reached at cruz2@fas.harvard.edu.