@Momball11 posted:Well I'm not sure I'm "deadset". I will say that in the whole scheme of things I view the primary objective of my son's college experience to come out with a degree that will propel him into a financially stable self-supporting career. I think we can all agree that the chances of being a professional baseball player is very low and one that is financially self-supporting is difficult to obtain. So I'm putting more value on his education. With that in mind, I want him to find a school that fits everything that he's looking for in a college education. If he just so happens to be able to play baseball too, that would be an extra bonus. Let's say he attends a school that meets all his expectations for what he's looking for in a college education and he lucks out with a roster spot playing baseball too. What would happen if he lost that roster spot? He'd have to decide whether to continue at the school or transfer. If one's putting priority in their education over baseball, then one would probably really hesitate leaving. This actually happened to my husband. He was a college athlete and his program was cut. He explored transferring, but he absolutely loved the school he was already at. He received several full-ride offers at well respected schools, but he ultimately decided to finish out his education at the same school. Just because the program no longer existed, it did not mean he had to stop playing his sport completely. He still competed, just not for his school. He found other avenues to compete.
So as my son is "school shopping". He's already said he's not going to just attend any school, just so he can play baseball. I do believe that there is a collegiate baseball program out there for everyone (it just might cost you an arm and a leg, or you may have to move very far from home). He understands that he's going to college for his education. He understands college is a financial investment, so he's investing in his education and not necessarily to play baseball.
To answer your other question. No, he does not have a specific school in mind. If he were asked to give up his slot, I'd support him either way just like I did my husband all those years ago.
I too passed opportunities to compete on a collegiate team. It was more important for me to go to a school that had what I was looking for. It was probably easier for me to make such a decision though because there was not even a smidgeon of a possibility of becoming a professional athlete post college.
Academics over athletics - great!
Or as we say here on HSBBW - the 40 year plan over the 4 year plan.