@TPM posted:Just remember your player DOES NOT have to attend any D1program to get a great education and play the game they love. Where you start is not always where you will end up. And yes, not all programs are created equal.
Do your homework folks!
I just want to add that you CAN do all your homework and it can STILL backfire on you.
We talked to the coach. We talked to travel ball coaches and administrators familiar with the program and the coach. He talked to players currently in the program at the time of the offer. I talked to parents of players currently in the program.
The reality is that people are very careful about what they say and often FOS because they don't want something said to come back and jeopardize their standing with the program and relationship with the coach. It's no different than a job interview/offer. People who do business with that company or who currently work there or have family members working there are not going to say something bad, even if it's true.
The best thing you can do is find someone who had a bad experience there and hear their story. But, even then, it's hard because few are willing to say something while they are still in it somewhere else because of how they might be perceived...and how that might hurt them in the future.
The thing I am trying to say here is that there's only so much homework that you can do and a good portion of it can be misleading. Therefore, when you find yourself in the bad situation, don't beat yourself up and second guess yourself. Instead, focus on your next step and try and learn from the experience.
If you land in that bad situation, sometimes there's just things at work against you that were too well hidden and you just don't know until you know.