2 questions

Welcome! There's a list of questions on the main page I believe. I'd provide the link but am running out the door but look around and you'll find it.

EDIT: Here you go!

62

It has been my experience that when a school is ready to make an offer they have no need to see the player again

Thanks for the responses.

TR,

That was my feeling. His exact words were" We are very close to offering you but we need to see you play one more time so that we do not low ball you"

That to me sounded like salesman.

62,

Ask him what they are hung up on...

*arm strength
*bat
*future position

By telling you they don't want to low ball you is correct....it's the same as saying "we want to make sure that we don't give you TOO much $"

It could be alot of things....If you feel your chain is being pulled then investigate or move on.

It could be many things.....

***coming up w/ a value (scholarship $)They just don't want to make a mistake either way.

***maybe your son matches up w/ another one of their recruits and it will be great way to compare you son against other(s)(MAYBE THEY WANT TO SEE YOUR SON AGAINST CERTAIN COMPETITION FOR COMPARISON)

***Or maybe he is lying through his teeth.

What you and your son think is most important. Well wait a little bit and hear them out. You might be pleasantly suprised.

Can't take official visits till your son attends his first class this fall anyway. And can't sign till Nov. Not that far away, but you still have some time......

You'll do the right thing.

Or...maybe, he is waiting for someone else's answer?

Don't try to analyze it, just go with your best instinct. We all know it's pretty hard to say yes, regardless of the scholarhsip amount, if you have never met the entire coaching staff, trainers,the academic advisors that will work with you, facilities, campus and your future teammates.

62tiger,
Understand the “method” of recruiting is left up to the individual schools and coaches as long as they stay within the NCAA guidelines. During my son’s recruitment we saw very different techniques from the different school. I might add that if you try to read between the lines you will become even more confused. Some of the recruiting talk coaches use during the recruiting “ride” has little substance. Only when coaches make the offer can you be sure of their intent. My son had two schools that were calling weekly and sending mailouts every two to three days. We knew the next call would be a scholarship offer and they suddenly stopped calling. Who knows why? Don’t focus on the unknowns but rather focus on the things you and your son can control.
LOW337 says:

quote:

It could be alot of things....If you feel your chain is being pulled then investigate or move on.

I suggest your son always be “moving on” until he decides to commit. This “moving on” is nothing more than having more options and options are good!
Fungo

And then you get the other side of the coin

The D-1 program calls in May , tells my son they have done their JUCO recruiting and they want to now bring in a frosh pitcher and frosh outfielder and then proceed to tell my son that he is the outfielder--- talk about about an ego booster--flies out the next week and calls me the first night of his visit and tells me.

"Dad this is it. Call coach and cut the deal !!"

Like I always say you never know

We have a young man with us this year who has had some SAT problems--he gets them to where they should be.I both call the two schools where he has offers on the table contingent on his SAT scores and the Clearinghouse---within 15 minutes of the coaches hearing the GOOD NEWS they both called him.

One never knows

I kind of have a problem sending sending my kid off somewhere without him actually visiting the school when it is in session. Most of the coaches he has spoken with, tell him the same thing. What is beginning to confuse the process, is all these out of state guys calling who saw my kid in GA a few weeks ago, and his season is basically done now. Any experience of there with this one?

nc42dad,

Your question confuses me a bit.

Are you saying that schools have called and they would like him to visit prior to their school starting?

No, only locals have asked him to come and we just told them he wanted to see the schools when there are students on campus. They seem OK with it. However, the boy is interested in some of these southern schools but are we wasting time talking with these guys if they aren't going to see him play anymore? You know, "Bird in the hand is worth 2 in the bush..." They are coming on the scene late compared to local schools.

I got ya.

I agree about the time to visit, if possible...

Well do these southern schools feel they NEED to see him play more? Have you asked them?
How strongly to they (southern schools) feel about your son visiting etc...?

Will your son play any fall baseball? That may be an opportunity for them to see him play, if possible.

Where does he want to go school as of now?
He may not know at all, huh?

62, I would suggest that at this point in the process that you view most coaches as "salespeople", for that is exactly the role that they are playing right now. They are trying to take their "company" to the next level, and want to bring aboard people who will help them improve their "bottom-line".

Approach the situation with the same mix of honesty and skepticism that you would approach car salespeople while shopping around. Eventually you will find 1 or (hopefully) 2 salespeople who are willing to go the extra mile to earn your business. They will do so by either offering the best deal or the best customer service, and your instincts will tell you what the right decision is. If you feel as if your chain is being pulled, it probably is, and follow that gut instinct until a deal is laid on the table. At the same time, if a dream deal is laid on the table, make sure you read the fine print to make sure you are not paying for any add-ons or services that you don't want. An educated consumer is the best consumer, and I'm sure your experiences on this site have put you head and shoulders above anybody else that is shopping for the same product.

If your son is being offered scholarship money or anything of that nature at this point in the recruiting season, in many ways you hold the same type of leverage that you would if you walk into a car dealership with an unblemished credit history and a little bit of money to spend. The dealerships will fight for your business, and you take the car that best fits your financial and personal needs.

If this school that you are speaking of is willing to spend some of its available scholarship money this early on your son after seeing him again, then you can bet they are serious about wanting your business. However, if they decide to stick with their original offer (which would mean after their initial offer they felt like they weren't low-balling you) it also means something about how they view your son's chances in their program. And you (your son) has every right to question the coach's reasons or motivations. The only way you get answers to your questions is by asking them in the first place, so fire away and feel good about making a decision either way based on the information that was given to you.

Thanks for that response. You echoed alot of the feelings I already had.

By the way, I am a Sales Manager at a Car store!!!!! Thats why I have questions!

Too funny!!!