Not to over simplify the decision tree, my kid was fortunate to have interest from travel teams and he met with the coaches or org heads. He ended up picking a team that only promised him an opportunity to start and would advocate for him if he could demonstrate the skills to play at the appropriate collegiate level. He appreciated their honesty and I appreciated they told him he was accountable for his recruitment. The costs are somewhat high but I do not have time to sell raffles or other fund raising tchotchkes. I really did not want my kid to go the mercenary route to save me a few sheckles but it did weigh in on my mind more than 10 times.