College soccer quality and alternative pathways?

I've been watching a number of ranked mens teams over the last few weeks, mostly Big10 and ACC. I have to say I'm not impressed with the quality of soccer. Too much direct play versus build out, missed touches, bad passes, bad corners/crosses, just kicking ball away, I could go on.
I'm guessing this is a result of watered down talent based on number of scholarships per school. You get a hand full of the top kids with full rides, after that you've got some mix of partial scholarships with...

College soccer quality and alternative pathways?