The open tryouts today are not really open tryouts. My oldest son had D3, D2, NAIA offers out of high school but decided he was going to local D1 Midmajor. The coaching staff was recruiting his younger brother and had seen him play a lot. His best friend was on the team. They asked him if he wanted to walk-on, I think as much to build more relationship with younger brother. We had to have all kinds of forms filled out and take a physical and even had to have some blood test done that was required. After we did all this, they told him when he arrived the day of the tryouts that they were not taking any walkons that year.
Didn't bid well for them in getting other son. It was even funnier when my son got the job of HC at the middle school and guess whose son was trying out, the HC. He told a mutual friend, I reckon I screwed my son because this should be ultimate payback. My son kept his son and they became good friends. We actually coached 2 of his sons and built a good relationship. His junior year after growing and lifting he had increased his ability to hit and throw the coach offered him a preferred walk-on position. But also told my son if coaching was what he wanted to do he should stay where he was. My son decided to stick with coaching.