So, I've decided to throw my hat in the ring too and run for U21 manager.
I'll start off by saying I think Jelme has done a good job so far and would continue to do so if re-elected. I think he's been excellent with tactics and forecasting the tournaments overall and which games he needs to win to advance, etc, and I think he has a lot of the right ideas about expanding communication with managers and helping people train in a sustainable way. It's hard for me to blame him for one down season if I'm not willing to also give him credit for one amazing season. I have no problem supporting him if he's re-elected and helping with whatever might be needed, and if I were elected I would almost certainly lean heavily on him for advice and insight on just about everything if he's willing to help me out.
I'm running though because I would like to see the U21 team make sustainable player development for the NT it's absolute #1 priority. I believe that training (especially of non-guards) that maximizes our chances of winning U21 games is not compatible with either sustainable big man training for mid-division managers or producing the most valuable sort of NT players (unique players, players with very good secondaries, etc).
If elected, my intention would be to see the focus of U21 become: what sort of players will provide the most benefit to both the NT and their owners, and how do we develop those players. We would try to win U21 games with these players and I think there is room to create mismatches and do well, but winning U21 games would not be how we judge U21 success. An example would be:
-A 21yr old 50k center with 12/12/12 inside and 8-9's everywhere else, vs a 150-200k center with 16/16/16 and 4's everywhere else. The 50k center is probably more effective for his club team, especially when you consider the economic impact for D.III and lower teams who can't afford the massive salaries, and who don't actually need triple 16's to compete in their division anyway. This 50k player with good secondaries is healthier for his owner and also better for the NT once his primary skills catch up around 24yr. The 16/16/16 player is probably better for winning U21 games. I would choose the 50k player because I think there is more benefit in helping the manager and the NT long-term than there is in winning one season's worth of U21 games.
It may seem like this strategy makes the NT more important than the U21 team but that is not true; they are equally important but they now have explicitly different functions. The NT's function is to represent the US in the world and win games. The U21 functions are the same ones it already serves: developing young talent, stimulating community interest and enthusiasm, rewarding managers who train well; however it embraces player development and helping trainers build successful, sustainable clubs as the mechanism to achieve these functions. So, different but equally valuable roles for the US community.