I don't usually post on the board but I found this topic to be more important to high school aged players then most. I am a travel coach from NJ and after attending the PG underclass showcase in January I was approached by a recruiter who after seeing my son pitch informed me that he thought I had a "talented kid" He could see I was skeptical and told me to call any D1 college coach I know and ask about him.
He took my number and left. I have a police backgound so I made many calls to first see if this was a credible individual, when I got no negative reports, I began by e-mailing college coaches, the first to respond was coach k's of Virginia, he knew of my son and also of the recuiter, he reccomended him and said he would be good for us, I received calls from tournament directors, pitching instuctors, all with positive things to say. When he eventually called me I had an entirely different attitude about him, and we signed on. Because I had done so much investigation in to this guy I felt very confident in refering him to the players on my travel team, again we are from NJ and attend most of the major events, but I still didn't feel many of my players got a second look from college's outside our area. What he was able to do for us was to make sure we entered the right events, make sure that the right college recuiter was at the right game for the right kid (which is super important).He also made sure that the more visible kids were well informed of the various schools situations,
ie. some schools had a limited number of scholerships remaining because of signings, or they had transfers coming in, or the coaches maybe moving on. All things to be considered by a parent, but if this is your first time around, how do you get this information?. The other placement issue we had were grades, some of my players were not eligable for d1 programs, and they wanted to attend school, but I had no JR college information. He helped us place my JUCO kids as well, all in all, of the parents that chose to work with him, we have 2 Ivy league kids, 7D1's, 1D2, and 3 Juco's and we have 2 07's that are highly recruited. I will add we also have 1 kid still in the works. He placed all of my kids in schools, and I think he did a great job of placing the right kids at the right school. It does cost money, and I think that some coaches and parents have a problem with someone who charges money to work with kids, and there are some who take advantage,But just like showcases some are very good for your kids and some are a waste of money,PG, Eastcoast Pro,Aflac,Team One,College select, have been great for my kids, others are not as good in my opinion. I don't think parents should right off an avenue because it cost money, most all of the things I've done for my son, lessons, tournaments, showcases, have all cost money, and this is no different, the guy must spend 15 hours a day on the phone, without exxageration. He has become friendly with most of my players, and parents, and in all of the time I have spent with him, I have not once seen him tell a college coach something that is not true about a player, and as a result I believe he has built an excellent reputation with the college recruiters. If this guy recommends a player, I'm sure the coach is NOT throwing it away. I saw a post by Coach Merc about him earlier, and thought I should tell of my experience with him as well, this has become a much less stressful process for me as a result of our meeting. For what it is worth. Strike III.