Great posts Prepster and Swampboy. All of this is true with non athetic scholarship D1 conferences (Patriot & Ivy) as well. There may be a little bit more open-mindedness from the coaches for Fall tryouts and potential walk-ons but it is mostly the same tenuous situation.
If you like drama and uncertainty being a recruited D1 walk-on (anywhere) is the place for you.
Fenway - I know you've walked us through this once or twice before... give or take a hundred times... but as the OP noted, it's good to have everything in one thread (again). So given that Ivy and Patriot leagues operate somewhat like D3s in terms of recruitment, how does a "recruited walk on" differ from a "guaranteed roster spot"... And are these even the designations used? How are rostered players designated season to season... As new recruits show up, is every returning player's roster spot technically open to competition from walk-ons and new recruits? I know this doesn't happen a lot, so just wondering what keeps it from happening... What keeps Ivy/Patriot HCs from over recruiting the way some other D1 programs do each Fall... And the same way that more than a few D3s do every year, knowing they can keep as many guys as they want.