I doubt many current college coaches will read this so as a parent who you may think knows it all I am responding.
The recruiting process has to be approached for what it is, marketing a program. It's a way of courting a player for them to get to know each other. It can be a very frustrating experience if one doesn't understand that. Tons of letters, tons of phone calls (or lack of either), emails means nothing until that offer comes to the table. Unless the player is one of those "blue chip" guys often mentioned, the coach and his coaching staff is in complete control of the situation, because in the end after sending out hundreds of letters, making many phone calls, offering visits, meeting the teams needs, he most likely has less than 15 opportunities to give out in a year.
Posts: 10776 | Location: South Florida | Registered: July 28, 2003
I feel for all those parents and players at this time of year. You read that it is to be a fun and exciting time but I think for most it is a time full of anxiety and pressure. Good Luck to all those 07 waiting for the call from their dream school!
Posts: 152 | Location: Ohio | Registered: January 26, 2005
Say what? Surely you jest. Coaches shouldn't call unless they have an offer to make? There are too many factors that go into the offers when they are made, not including the negotiating that can go on after the initial offer.
Does the term 'sour grapes' apply here?
Mary Ann * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * "The Lord Himself goes before you and will be with you; He will never leave you nor forsake you. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged." Deuteronomy 31:8 [8/21/08]
Posts: 3937 | Location: Somewhere out there beneath the pale moonlight ... | Registered: January 02, 2003
FBM, Good point, and a coach doesn't call just to make an offer without knowing something about the player (besides seeing him play). Coach calls to talk to the player,maybe the parents, get to know him and where his head is at, it may take a week or may take months for him to decide if that player is right for his program. And works both ways, certainly wouldn't have wanted my son to accept an offer unless he got to know the coach or coaching staff. JMO
Posts: 10776 | Location: South Florida | Registered: July 28, 2003
I would hate for any parent to be so upset on Sept 4 about the offers that their child has and doesn't have, that they would feel bitter or upset. There is so much time left and the dream school the player has in mind, may just present itself at a later opportunity. If not, there's probably another one around the corner that just hasn't called yet!
However, like FBM says, when that dream school calls, they're expecting cooperation, interest, and a willingness to go through the recruiting process. A chip on anyone's shoulder... dad, mom, or player can end an opportunity real quick!
Good luck to our '07s and continue to have patience and grace during the LONG recruiting process.
Posts: 5357 | Location: Kentucky | Registered: December 30, 2004
That's a blanket statement that definately does not apply to all coaches. As a coach, I wonder why all the blame is always put on the coaching staff, and none on incoming players that went to a school that was above their competitive level. I did it when I went to college, and take full responsibility that I DID NOT DO my research and chose a school that I struggled at to play. Here's some numbers for you all. Last season I sent out over 300 recruiting letters, had conversations with about 200 kids, I had 48 visit, 30 apply, and 9 freshman. That means 3%, oh and I've been contact by 6 from last seasons recruiting class interested in transfering into my program because they are not happy. Of course, I give the standard answer, you must get a release etc... If any HS kids are reading this PLEASE do your RESEARCH on the program and the coach before going into their program.
Can you be more specific about what kind of research one would do to determine whether a kid is up to the competition? Up until your post, I was more worried about whether my kid could hack it academically at some of the schools we've been talking to. We hear differing opinions about D1 vs D2...that there is a fine line between the competitive nature of these programs. How would you know where to direct a kid? Then, at the JUCO level, we hear that these are really kids trying to get drafted or more interested in major league careers than college.
Posts: 449 | Location: San Francisco | Registered: October 14, 2005
Newcomer, you ask some good questions about research. Here are some things that our family has found helpful. Attend baseball games of colleges son is interested in (both home and away) to observe the players' talent (as well as the coach's style). Attend team scrimmages in the fall and team practices in the spring and compare your son's ability to theirs. Also, you can look up team rosters on the web and contact specific players to ask questions about their program. We have done this for several colleges and have received illuminating information that has helped us know which schools to target.
Posts: 2160 | Location: San Antonio, TX | Registered: April 11, 2006
Newcomer, First thing you could do, is take your son to watch a college game, if you have not aready done that. I know some people who have taken their sons to games played at different levels and conferences. Watching those games ended up determining where they went. I think that is one important aspect in the recruiting process we tend to forget about. JMO.
Posts: 10776 | Location: South Florida | Registered: July 28, 2003
Originally posted by Newcomer: Can you be more specific about what kind of research one would do to determine whether a kid is up to the competition? Up until your post, I was more worried about whether my kid could hack it academically at some of the schools we've been talking to. We hear differing opinions about D1 vs D2...that there is a fine line between the competitive nature of these programs. How would you know where to direct a kid? Then, at the JUCO level, we hear that these are really kids trying to get drafted or more interested in major league careers than college.
Newcomer: The best thing you could do is go and watch the college game. Checking the rosters and player profiles on line and seeing what type of players the college recruits. Some will recruit high visibility players, other will focus on JC transfers, and others will get late recruits that other schools did not recruit.
Choosing the type of schools is very important! If your son is going to have problems hacking it in class work, that will effect him on the field with the amount of baseball work they have to do all year long! Schools will look heavy at this!
You asked about D1 or D2, you might have heard that the D2 schools in California are some of the toughest in the country. Chico State took second this last year in the D2 College World Series and have have gone to the D2 World Series several times in the last eight years, but they came in 4th place this last year in their conference!
Posts: 999 | Location: CA | Registered: March 12, 2003
Newcomer - I would also advise to evaluate a program within it's division. There can be a HUGE difference between schools and conferences within each division of DI, II, III, NAIA, JUCO!
Posts: 5357 | Location: Kentucky | Registered: December 30, 2004
Further to the point of attending games --- speak to the parents of the players as much as possible for an additional perspective on the program, keeping in mind that the third string catcher's Dad probably has a radically different view of the team than the starting ss's Mom does.
Remember that, as parents, we often hear what we want to hear from the coaches. Remember also that coaches have to walk a fine line with their selection of words because parents hear what they, etc.
"They say a little knowledge is a dangerous thing, but it's not one half so bad as a lot of ignorance." --- Terry Pratchett
