I've coached a youth soccer team for four seasons, and the kids who play multiple sports always seem more coordinated and less burned out than the ones who specialize early. College recruiters might love a kid who has done nothing but soccer since age eight, but I suspect those players end up with more injuries and less pure love for the game by the time they turn eighteen. That makes me wonder whether early specialization is actually doing more harm than good, even if it produces a few elite athletes who make it big. Would we be better off telling parents that variety beats intensity until high school?