#1 assistant coach knocked it out of the park w/ this post. In my opinion, based on my personal experience , The fundamental problem with recruiting is that parents and kids do not know how to gauge REAL interest .
The simple answer to #1 assistant coaches question regarding being a RECRUIT is ' you gotta be on the ink board '
Each baseball department has a white ink board and on it our their recruits and commits for 2017 thru 2019 maybe 2020 if it's a powerhouse program (it's worth noting that these powerhouse top 25 Vandy, UCLA etc Were done with 2017 recruiting class two years ago) All the commits , Recruited ( offered ) & prospects names are listed and categorized and organized on the board by position, Class ( graduation year ) , and ranking on the board. In other words under ' LHP' their might be 6 names . 2 commits and 4 prospects. These 'prospects' are ranked 1-4 . One being THEIR 1st choice and 4th being THEIR last.
There are 5 stages to the recruiting cycle :
1) Follow
2) high follow
3) Prospect
4) Recruit
5) Commit
Here is a breakdown of what that looks like:
FOLLOW : In programs data base. Possibly by way of info submitted by player. There may or may not be any notes on the player. Follows are on the email list to receive program updates, camp invites. etc. the FOLLOW data base is HUGE. A lot of names. Being in the FOLLOW data base does NOT define interest by the program.
HIGH FOLLOW : A player in the follow data base that they have seen play. They have notes on. A HIGH FOLLOW is basically the same as a FOLLOW but they've actually seen the player play.
PROSPECT : A player the college has seen play and is seriously considering OFFERING . The Recruiting coordinator has seen the player play, met the player, spoken with him,Requested transcripts / Standardized test scores ( ACT/ SAT ) and possibly spoken to HS coach or travel ball coach. There is discussion about a campus visit.
*The easiest way to tell if you are a PROSPECT and not a FOLLOW is the telephone. NCAA Recruiting coordinators CALL / TEXT prospects. They DO NOT call follows .
RECRUIT: A player that has visited the school and been OFFERED a guaranteed roster spot thru the spring of his freshman year. These offers usually involve baseball scholarship money.....but not always. Coastal Carolina won the NCAA college world series w/ 6 guys on the roster that were 'academic money' guys. It's important for parents and players to understand that most schools are NOT fully funded. The NCAA allows for 11.5 baseball scholarships maximum per Division 1 school. But out of 300 programs last year, only 50 were fully funded. Most schools are at 8.5 some at 5 or maybe 6.5
A recruit has an offer from the school he is considering and may be in negotiation w/ that school on the terms . These negotiations can last several months. With an offer being given and the player not satisfied. The player generally says 'Thank you I'm flattered but I'm not quite ready to commit yet' and the school re-approaching the player a few months later with a better offer,
COMMIT: A player that has agreed to an offer. If baseball money is involved , the player will sign a binding letter of intent outlining contractually his commitment to the school. NLI's are fedex'd to recruits the 1st week in November before the players senior year.
The biggest hang up I've seen w/players and mostly parents is they can not differentiate between HIGH FOLLOW and PROSPECT. They assume because a program has not said NO that it indicates that they may still have interest. That is a fatal mistake. They never say no unless you ask. These coaches will tell you the truth if you ask. The problem is that 17 year old boys don't want to ask. And the parents should NEVER ask.
I tell guys to call the RC and ask this question: ' Where am I at on the 2017 board?' If the player does that, they'll get the truth.
Having watched my son go thru this process, I can firmly say that when a school wants your son to play for them they make their intention crystal CLEAR. There is absolutely no ambiguity whatsoever .
It is threads like this that demonstrate how great this board is. I don't know where else this type of information could be found.
Follow up questions for StrainedOblique and the other posters on this thread, specific to the bolded text above. Scenario is: player has sent an email and some videos to some schools that will be at or near events that player will play in over the summer. A couple of the RCs have arranged for the player to call them (through travel coach) and have had initial phone conversations with player (and in one case seemed to know an awful lot about the player). And they or their head coach will see him play this summer. So two questions:
(1) Really, that seems more like a high follow than a prospect, at least until they see him play . . . or would video be enough to put a kid into the "prospect" category?
(2) How many "prospects" will a D1 program have? 100? 200? 500? What is the reasonable range?
First off, it sounds like your 2019 is getting interest. The next step is to learn how to gauge the interest.
The arranged phone calls are definitely a good start. There are NCAA contact rules and if RC's are reaching out to make contact with your son , you have to view that as a positive .
There is a beginning, middle and end in the recruiting cycle. You are in the beginning.
They have to see your son play . In my opinion video does not count. Once they've seen him play , you will either hear back from the RC or you will not. Generally , silence means they are not ready to offer. Silence needs to be treated as a 'no' or not interested . That is IMO the most effective way to keep track of everything .
The first thing a RC asks a player he likes is " How are your grades/ test scores?" . When an NCAA school likes a player they do not dilly dally . They make their intentions clear right away. You will KNOW if your are a legit prospect . Trust me.
My son was offered by a D1 summer before his Junior year. He was not ready to commit . During his Jr year he had the initial offer from 1 school and was a legit prospect at 6 other schools. He was a prospect at an IVY and the RC texted or phoned him once a week like clockwork. Another school on the West Coast invited him on campus for a official visit . He did the visit and liked the school. During the visit the HC and his entire staff brought him into the athletic dept building and offered him.
Once again, there is no ambiguity whatsoever. If your son is a prospect at a school. You'll know!
The trick to this whole thing is to not waste time or energy worrying about schools that show initial interest then go silent. Always treat silence as a NO.
Also, CAST A WIDE NET : don't get caught up in D1, D2 or D3 . There are really great programs at the D3 level and really crappy programs at the D1 level. Have an open mind . Some of the best learning institutions in the country are at the D3 level. I have a friend who's son is a Sophomore at a D1 mid major in the mid-west . He's seen 12 AB's in 2 seasons. And he's ready to hang 'em up. Another friend who's son plays at a top D3 on the west coast. His son plays regularly and is currently very excited because this D3 school is on it's way to Appleton, Wisconsin for the D3 college world series.
This whole thing is about finding the 'right fit'
As far as your question about the actual number of prospects a school may have , as backstop22 said it is going to vary by school. High academic schools cast a HUGE net. And unless your son projects for the 2019 MLB Draft don't waste your energy on the top 25-30 D1 powerhouse schools. Plus, their 2019 class is almost complete anyways.
Always remember the recruiting pecking order : Pitchers go first. Go look at a D1 roster. 1/2 the names are pitchers . They recruit the same way. 1/2 of the incoming class are pitchers. And for position players foot speed is golden. Position player has to break a 7 with his 60 time. A 6.8 , 6.9 will do if the bat plays. And the bat has to mash. They only recruit guys that hit the ball HARD
The best advice my son got about recruiting was "Don't commit to the school that likes you...commit to the school that Loves you" . He ended up committing to a mid-major High academic D1 school in the South that loved him.
That advise served him well
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