In late March, just before the season opener against the LA Galaxy, I did what any respectable sportswriter does ahead of any season and self-indulgently made five predictions for the 2010 campaign. While these types of pieces can be endlessly entertaining to read, most writers do them simply in an attempt to prove their own intelligence and knowledge of the sport. Most of the time, all they end up proving is that even people who watch sports for a living can’t predict the future.

Now that we’re one-third of the way into the 2010 season – you didn’t think about that, did you? – I wanted to take a look back at my five predictions and give myself a bit of a progress report. Basically just see how I’m doing.

So, do I know what I’m talking about, or am I just another hack who can’t predict the future?

Well …

1. Steve Nicol will become the third head coach in MLS history to earn 100 career regular-season victories. (Side prediction: Nicol will reach the 100-win plateau by the end of April. That gives him road games against LA, D.C. and San Jose and home dates with Toronto and Colorado to pick up the necessary victories.)

PROGRESS REPORT: Nicol earned his 100th career victory on April 10, leading the Revs to a 4-1 victory over Toronto FC.

ANALYSIS: I would pat myself on the back for getting both the full prediction and the side prediction correct here, but I’m not sure you would’ve found anyone willing to bet Nicol wouldn’t pick up two victories in the first five games of the season. I’ll fully admit that I played this one as a “gimme” to ensure that I got at least one of these predictions correct.

Of course, not many would’ve predicted after that 100th win that the Revs would go winless in their next seven games (0-5-2), but that’s exactly what’s happened as Nicol remains stuck on the century mark.

With that being the case, I’m going to go out on a limb and make another prediction here: Nicol will finally rack up that 101st career victory this weekend against the New York Red Bulls. Shalrie Joseph’s back. The Red Bulls have cooled off a bit, suffering three straight losses after starting the season 5-1-0. The Revs have owned the Red Bulls in recent years (7-0-6 in the last 13 regular-season meetings, 9-0-3 in the last 12 regular-season meetings at Gillette Stadium). And, the Revs are just flat out due for a win.

Call me an eternal optimist (I most certainly am, but also prefer to think of myself as realistic when necessary). “I’d rather be an optimist and a fool than a pessimist and right.”

2. The Revolution’s rookie class will be one of the best in Major League Soccer this season.

PROGRESS REPORT: Zack Schilawski (four goals), Zak Boggs (two goals) and Seth Sinovic (nine starts) have all made an instant impact.

ANALYSIS: I’m going to go ahead and say that 10 games into the season, this one’s looking pretty good. Granted, it’s an undoubtedly subjective prediction to judge, but I don’t think anyone around the league would put up much of an argument on this one.

One-third of the way into the season, Schilawski is the Revolution’s leading scorer with four goals, not to mention the leading rookie scorer in Major League Soccer. That automatically places him into the Rookie of the Year conversation. Yes, three of his goals came in an 11-minute span against Toronto FC, but do you take away his goal-scoring total because he happened to score them in quick succession? I don’t. Besides, people solely looking at his scoring total aren’t paying attention to what else he brings to the team – a whole heck of a lot of hustle, which can be extremely frustrating to defend.

All Boggs did in his first professional start was score two goals. Against two-time defending Supporters’ Shield champion Columbus. In Columbus. Not bad. In recent weeks, he’s parlayed that instant success into a starting role on the left wing and he’s shown no signs of giving that spot up with a string of workmanlike performances. Oh yeah, he’s also got that whole Mr. Versatility thing going on, playing right midfield and right back when called upon.

Perhaps largely overlooked because of the goal-scoring prowess of his fellow rookies, Sinovic started the first nine games of the season (eight at left back, one at right back) before missing his first action this past weekend in Toronto. While Sinovic freely admits that there are aspects of his game which need work (what rookie doesn’t need improvement?), he’s been trusted with shutting down the likes of Landon Donovan and Dwayne De Rosario – and he’s done a pretty good job of it. While the other two will likely get the fanfare if they continue to score goals, Sinovic might have the biggest impact of the trio.

3. The Revolution will score more than 33 goals this season.

PROGRESS REPORT: The Revs have scored 10 goals through 10 games, putting them on pace for 30 goals this season.

ANALYSIS: Based on the math (which assumes the Revolution will continue on the same pace for the rest of the season), this prediction’s looking a little shaky right now. However, I stand by it.

You’re probably wondering why I would do that, especially considering that four of the goals came in one game (meaning the Revs have scored just six goals in their other nine matches). Well, I have three reasons.

First, I’m stubborn. I made the prediction and I’m sticking by it until it’s proven incorrect.

Second, there’s that whole optimist thing.

Third (and this is the key reason), this team has yet to be at full strength. I know, I know – people hate to hear this and I’m the first one to stomp down on injury excuses. There’s a reason the team is 24 players deep, etc. But that ignores the fact that there is perhaps no one in this league who is more important to his team than Shalrie Joseph, who has played just two games this season (in which the Revs have scored a total of four goals). With Joseph back in the fold, everyone on this team instantly gets better, and it’s going to lead to an increase in production in the attacking third of the field.

Perhaps the most important factor to watch is the chemistry between Joseph and Marko Perovic. The Serbian midfielder has shown flashes of incredible skill, and Joseph will only help to accentuate those qualities.

Oh yeah, the Revs also have a guy on the road to recovery who knows a thing or two about scoring goals. Which leads me to …

4. Taylor Twellman will play again this year for the Revolution.

PROGRESS REPORT: Twellman has yet to make his return for the Revs, but he is significantly further along in his recovery than he was in preseason.

ANALSYIS: I don’t think anyone really expected Twellman to be back by now, so the fact that he hasn’t yet made his return doesn’t come as much of a surprise. The Revolution’s all-time leading scorer is making progress, however, and he has been taking part in most team activities during recent training sessions. He’s gradually progressed from jogging, to sprinting, to passing drills, to possession games, to shooting drills.

A few weeks ago, I conducted a sit-down interview with Twellman (you can watch it here) and he discussed in detail the recovery process he’s going through. It’s long. It’s frustrating. But it’s moving along and the hope is that he’s going to be on the field in a Revolution jersey this season.

5. The Revs will reach the MLS Cup Playoffs for the ninth straight season. (Side prediction: The Revs will finally play someone other than the Chicago Fire in the 2010 postseason.)

PROGRESS REPORT: At 2-6-2 (8 pts.), the Revs are tied for fifth place in the Eastern Conference and tied for 13th overall in the league. They are currently out of a playoff spot.

ANALYSIS: This is the prediction that a few people disagreed with prior to the season, and I’m sure a few more disagree now considering the Revolution’s early-season struggles.

I’m sure you’re not surprised, but I’m sticking by this prediction. For the two reasons listed in prediction No. 3 (I’m a stubborn optimist), and because I refuse to believe that a Steve Nicol-coached team will miss the playoffs until I see it happen.

Entering this week’s round of games, the Revs sit seven points out of second place (and an automatic playoff spot) in the Eastern Conference. Ignoring the fact that it’s WAY too early to be talking about the postseason right now anyway, that’s far from an insurmountable gap. The fact is, there’s only one team in the East right now (Columbus) not hovering either below or right around the .500 mark. Translation: it’s wide open. With a win over the Red Bulls this weekend, the Revs would pull to within four points of New York, a club which everyone was touting as an MLS Cup contender when it was 5-1-0 one month ago. Fortunes quickly change in MLS – it’s just the nature of the league.

With that said, the turnaround has to begin at some point. With the rival Red Bulls in town – and Shalrie Joseph back on the field – it might as well happen on Saturday night.

CONCLUSION: So there you have it. Some of you may think that I’ve been decent with my predictions, while I’m sure others think I’ve been way off. The fact is, we won’t know exactly how these will shake out until the end of the season.

Of course, that doesn’t mean it isn’t fun to do these progress reports. I’ll check back up on myself at the midway point of the season (after the LA Galaxy match on July 10) and two-thirds into the season (after the Kansas City match on Aug. 21). Maybe we’ll have a little better idea at that point.