@mjd-dad posted:reading this ... I smile ... as my personal journey as a non-preferred walk-on to the lowest division club rugby program was a lot less effort and yet still a great college experience for me (I'm now 30 yrs into my engineering career).
reading this ... I cringe ... having to decide when to make my 15 yr old 2024 read this ... Should my kid read this before or after Sep 1 of his Jr HS year - when the college baseball coaches will be allowed to call my kid direct with talk of all the trappings and promises?
I had a similar experience mjd-dad. I was a college walk-on to a .500 program that turned it around and began winning conference championships....there wasn't anything better! We spent 20 hours playing and practicing my sport in season and 5-7 hours per week in the offseason in the early 80s. I loved college sports, but todays college athlete (at all levels) is expected to do and give so much more than I ever thought possible for a student athlete.
I agree with pitchingfan that you better have him read and understand the committment now. At 14-15 (ten years ago), my son was being exposed to college recruiting through his travel organization. He was hearing recruiting things he didn't understand from travel teammates...this was all new to us. He was also being exposed to new things in the classroom that really excited him. My wife and I did everything we could possibly do to learn about what was possible for him....he had no idea at the time what those possibilities were. That would change quickly as the athletic part of the college recruiting equation got ahead of the academic part, and college coaches began recruiting him. You are his sherpa. Show him the way and he will choose the best path.
Good luck!