Are college coaches truly that busy???

All coaches are different. Some coaches answer all their emails and at least look into the player , others dont even answer. When my son was going through this he was invited to a junior day, he was reccomended, it was a pac 10 school.The coach told them if they had any questions to email him. My son emailed and asked about his skill level. The coach was very classy and answered my sons emails and continued to answer when my son had questions about other schools that were recruiting him. he was very helpful and some are like that and some arent as friendly.
I will say this though if my son was a top recruit for pac 10 schools that one would of been on the top of the list because he seemed to really care about the welfare of the players and helping them find the right fit.
Coaches are no different than the normal people out there, some are outgoing and friendly and encouraging and some you could pass by in a walk way and they wouldnt even nod their head.Just the way it is. keep sending the emails and dont worry about the ones that dont answer, they just might not be interested in your player and have other guys they are trying to recruit. Dont take any of this personally, its just the way it is.
Also another thing we did was after a top D1 camp my son emailed the coach and asked what he thought of him. The coach said we do camps all year and he wished more players would ask them where they stand. He was very honest and helpful and told my son the skills he needed to work on to become the type of player they were looking for.The player has to be able to receive the info and work towards the goals.Good luck

1BDad, fanofgame has given you some very good advice.

My son had about 1/3 of the schools he emailed respond back regularly, 1/3 respond haphazardly, and 1/3 not respond at all. Regardless, he continued to email all of them with regular updates and his playing schedule. We were completely shocked when two schools emailed him back for the first time after complete silence for months. It showed us that they were reading his emails, but just weren't taking the time to respond back.

Pay close attention to the schools which are emailing you back. First, these schools may be more interested in your son and you will want to target them. Second, these types of coaches are probably ones your son would enjoy playing for.

The school my son ended up committing to emailed him back every single time he contacted them -- and I am talking about dozens and dozens of emails over a 2-year period. The coaches were not only consistent with their replies, but also faithful in following through on their promises to see him play at various tournaments, whereas coaches from other schools didn't always attend games they had assured our son they'd be at. That spoke volumes to our family about the integrity and character of the coaches, and our son was eager to commit to the school. All prospects/college players should be so fortunate.

quote:

some are outgoing and friendly and encouraging and some you could pass by in a walk way and they wouldnt even nod their head.Just the way it is. keep sending the emails and dont worry about the ones that dont answer, they just might not be interested in your player and have other guys they are trying to recruit. Dont take any of this personally, its just the way it is.

Look at it as buying and selling with both parties doing both. Bottom line talent is the controlling factor. Coaches are trying to buy certain players (the best players for their programs) while parents are trying to sell certain players (many times NOT the best players for those programs). Coaches and players should be prepared to face lots of "no sale" during the recruiting process.

Good post Infield08

Besides the fact it takes time to read and research every email they receive, the "realist" side of me thinks that if a coach, returns an email, the returnee will think that they now have an "email relationship" with a coach and will expect a reply to all future email. I remember that my son didn't have a reply to a majority of his emails but I will say that he received information from most schools on admittance. In my mind that was a reply from the coach. Also, make sure your emails are cc'd to the recruiting coordinator because that is his job. My last thought is be persistent to the schools that you are really interested in and understand the reality of your talents. Because your dream is to go to a elite D1 team, however, your abilities are mid-major, focus your efforts on those mid-majors, find your fit both athletically and academically. With 11.5 scholarships to pass around and each school having a barrel full of prospects, find the barrel you fit into.

.
While I understand and empathise...coaches are not uncaring, or unaware, or inhuman, but this is the nature of the "game" and the way that it is played...make no mistake it is a hard, and very competitive road and parents and players have to come to grips with the realities...

With all due respects...lets look at this equation from the other side....As a coach at a top school you have a few demands on your time...

- 35 current players...and 70 current possibly whiny parents to take care of 24/7...Parents who want to know why their precious little Johnny isn't getting enough playing time and isn't being represented properly to MLB,and why his scholarship $ isn't being raised....

- plus likley 100 identified HS upper class recruits to stay in close and semi-close contact with (3 deep at each position) for this year....all of whom DEMAND and expect daily stroking and are trying to negotiate, OR are emailing and calling wondering why you haven't kept in contact, threatning to sign elsewhere and wondering how it was that you were SOOOO busy that you didn't catch not at the last travel ball game in Podunk...

- and given the current NCAA rules, my competitors are recruting freshman and sophomores, and getting some of them to committ so I now am forced to spend time looking at frosh and sophs...

- Add to that travel to showcases and travel team events...contact with scouts regarding upperclass current players...academic planning, execution and putting out fires...planning for travel...changes in schedule...conditioning...assistant coaches to direct...field direction and issues...alumni to stay in touch with...fundraising...marketing...losing and interviewing new assistants (turnover is very high)...meetings with athletic departments...NCAA rules and regulations to keep up with...networking...planning, communicating, marketing, and directing camps, and follow up to all players and many parents...college summer ball contacts, schmoozing, placement...

- and that is all BEFORE anything baseball for THIS year(games, practice, workout's, player development) that will develop players, build my team and help me win this year...which is what my job depends upon.

In other words they are sorta busy.

Now...add to that...50 letters and a 100 emails each day from prospects...who are often mass mailed from a service...and frankly, to be brutally honest, are likley NOT to be program changers...

...and is it any wonder that they have time management issues?

Think I'm wrong? At least one Pac 10 school makes it virtually impossible to contact them, simply will not deal with unsolicited communication ...one exceptionally well thought of program uses secretarial answer emails and letters IN the coaches name...without the coach ever seeing the communication on the way in or the way out.

In my world, it's pretty amamzing to get ANYTHING personal back...given the realities.

Sorry to be a bit harsh, but it's the reality...

44

Ladies & Gents,

The coaching staff at school X is just like the general public in that some people take care of business (check their email 3 or 4 times per day) and others never check their email. The people that take care of business are the ones that move up the coaching ranks to become a head coach.

They also have 2 or 3 paid assistant coaches, maybe 2 volunteer coaches/assistants, SID's, academic advisors, a couple secretaries, etc.

The comment about parents was not a reality. Our parental group is very supportive, very open with each other, and be assured, their is NO whining about little Johnny and his PT. I would guess that is the norm across the Nation.

Coaches are involved in Fall workouts during the day.

Coaching at this level is not an 8-5 job, it is a LIFESTYLE.

If they are interested, they will contact you again.

quote:

Originally posted by 1BDad:
Do they not realize the work/courage it takes for a high school aged baseball player to compose and send them an email about themselves? To dial the numbers on that phone so they can speak with them?

I understand your frustration at the system, but thats where my sympathy ends.....composing emails and dialing the phone is work and takes courage?........they do that every day.......1000"s of time.....

19 year olds go to IRAQ every day, that is courage.......

Composing an email about themselves is just a basic requirement of life in the baseball world......

Just my .02...

quote:

19 year olds go to IRAQ every day, that is courage.......

Composing an email about themselves is just a basic requirement of life in the baseball world......

I agree. I wouldn't consider emailing a college coach takes great courage but rather a proactive step in wanting to play college ball.

I think O44 sums it up pretty well.
i am not sure how many BB programs have all those assistants and especially paid ones. I know some do like Miami who have a staff that intecepts recruiting emails etc.Several coaches I had to chase to get responses. One I chased for a month and a half. He made us an offer and had been lecturing all over the country on pitching. We had pleyed telephone tag and he would npt answer all my emails. Out of the blue he called and told me had been thinking about my son and made an offer. I thought he wasn't interested.
The school my son is at didn't respond to 2 questionairs that I filled out. After a couple weeks I called and tracked him down. I told him I was suprised that he hadn't responded to a BB player and a good student. He appologized and asked me to send the DVD I mentioned in an email. After viewing it he called and said we had to talk. The offer was on the table within a day.
Don't take lack of response personal as mentioned and stay after the colleges you are interested in. That was a big reason I did most of my son's leg work. I don't give up until I got a final answer.

I agree with BobbleheadDoll about not taking the lack of response personal and staying after the colleges you are interested in.

The school my son was extremely interested in because it enabled him to persue the academic field of study he wanted and a legimate chance to play baseball (it wasn't an out of reach school for his talent level) - was extremely slow on responding to emails.

We made an unofficial visit ourselves and finally got the coach to meet with us. To arrange that meeting (as we were traveling out of state), my husband finally copied the athletic director on the email and the coach responded. It also helped that my husband was an alumni and the school is smaller -probably wouldn't work to copy the athletic director at a large school.

That coach was later fired and my son is now in the second year of playing ball at this school. We love the new coach!

Moral of the story - Stay with emails and visits to the schools you are really interested in! If it is just a mass market email - do you blame the coaches for not responding? Think about all the junk emails and mail that we throw away daily!

I used action photos imbedded in the email to get attention as well. Every email had at great shot of a pitching equence that would hopefully get the coaches attention.

quote:

Think I'm wrong?

Yes, on every point.

Is it possible that coaches filter what they receive and some parents(videos etc) appear to overbearing?

Thanks for the comments. The amazing part is, the most communication we've gotten is from the DI we contacted because we "might" have a chance there. Just surprising to me. I assumed the biggest challenge of college athletics was recruiting and there would be a system in place to leave no stone unturned. I know they have a ton of kids to deal with and emails to return, but that's part of the job right?

We knew this would be a challenge, but my son is doing well with it and growing and maturing in the process. I didn't mean to ask for sympathy, just thought it might make a point of conversation.

It hasn't been mass email. Each has been personalized for each program that he's researched, and we've followed up with hard copy letters with bio, transcript and fall schedule. Some programs said they don't start recruiting until Sep/Oct.

PIAA Ump perhaps you started your day out wrong?? Are you serious? Did you mean to bring Iraq into a baseball conversation? I know what courage is. After 22 years of serving, I think I have a pretty good idea. And I've known 19 year olds that make the ultimate sacrifice, so I have first hand experience with courageous teenagers, but thanks for emphasizing the point.

Perhaps I misspoke about the email taking courage. If you don't think it takes courage for a High School athlete to call up a coach and talk with him about his future, then perhaps we have a different idea of what courage is. Perhaps you could take into account the context this conversation we're having? And since this kid is 17 not 19, maybe that'll make a difference? But thanks for your input anyway.

I think OB44 makes some great points and my only question pertains to this portion of his post

quote:

....As a coach at a top school you have a few demands on your time...

Do these "time management" issues affect coaches at every tier, or only the top? I think when we look at issues on this site we have to use a control group that is not at the top, or for that matter, the bottom of the food chain. Few HS kids go to the elite schools, most go to the "others". Sometimes we get mesmerized, and draw general conclusions by using the elite schools as our reference point. When analyzing data in any form, the top is the first group that gets thrown out of the sample, followed by the bottom group.

quote:

system in place to leave no stone unturned. I know they have a ton of kids to deal with and emails to return, but that's part of the job right?

Count the number of D1's in your area. Multiply by 10-15, an average of the number signed each year.

In Texas, about six schools, in the area, so maybe 100 kids are gonna sign D1.

They don't have to start with the entire 114,000 member class of graduating high school ball players.

They could just get a list of the top 100 in their area and recruit from that.

But, they don't even have to do that.

While they may sign 10-15, they are probably just looking for 3-5 players, depending on what their needs actually are.

They have an extensive network of pro scouts, other coaches in their conferences,(yes some of them trade information) former players, coaches, former players than are now coaches, current players, relationships with select summer teams, high school coaches, and even umpires.

When an email connects with something in that coaches network, then something, might start to happen.

For some kids it isn't as hard as it is for others. Courage might be a little strong for calling coaches etc but I am sure that most kids are nervous about doing these things.

rz1,
That's a good point. We sent out the whole range of letters, none to what I consdier "elite" schools. However, MIZZOU is approaching that status...

Our efforst are from JUCO, DIII, DII and a couple D-I. There seems to be no rhyme or reason to who has responded so I'm not sure it could be construed as only "top level" school.

But even in the normal everyday world, we see people who profess to be too busy for this or that. However, they never seem busy when we talk to them....

Since Mizzou has been ranked in the top BB programs I think it is an elite BB program if you have to put a label on it.

quote:

Originally posted by 1BDad:PIAA Ump perhaps you started your day out wrong?? Are you serious? Did you mean to bring Iraq into a baseball conversation? I know what courage is. After 22 years of serving, I think I have a pretty good idea. And I've known 19 year olds that make the ultimate sacrifice, so I have first hand experience with courageous teenagers, but thanks for emphasizing the point.

Perhaps I misspoke about the email taking courage. If you don't think it takes courage for a High School athlete to call up a coach and talk with him about his future, then perhaps we have a different idea of what courage is. Perhaps you could take into account the context this conversation we're having? And since this kid is 17 not 19, maybe that'll make a difference? But thanks for your input anyway.

I think you are correct that we have a differnet idea or definition of exactly what courage is .... what you describe as courage to me is simply drive, determination, initiative, spunk, ambition.....etc...and all to be expected of a young man who wishes to move to a higher level of baseball.....and dont get me wrong, I remember quite clearly what it was like when my own son was 17 and going through the recruiting process...

I did not bring IRAQ into a baseball conversation, I was bringing IRAQ into a courage conversation.....my 19 year old daughter serving there emphasizes that point to me every day.....

Forgive me if my initial post offended you....

.

quote:

Originally posted by FormerObserver:

quote:

Think I'm wrong?

Yes, on every point.

Ya know...after thinking about this I am wrong...and I apologize. I was being a tad over the top...let me restate this...the reality is that...

- Every college coach at every level has oodles of free time. They all have huge and increasing budgets and as a result they have large legions of paid assistants, and a cadres of volunteers...these along with an army of university support staff fully comitted to baseball first over all else...insure that every aspect of the program will be expertly and diligently executed to a level of expertise that is unmatched in any other industry.

- As per their Mission Statements...Every college coach has prioritized his world to fit my needs as he knows that ME and my needs need to be his first priority in all instances.

- As a result they will be happy to take the time to seriously consider every email, video and phone call they get...and with all the free time they have they will happily do it with a big smile in an exceptionally timely manner....they will be happy to attend every game of everyone who make the effot to contact them and will sit with me and my family and sing our son's praises and tell all my friends that yes, OUR son was offered 100% baseball money.

- Within the program, every player is on 100% scholarship. Every player gets equal playing time, as every players plays every inning. AS a result of the coach being so service oriented and worried about players self esteem, every player is considered and drafted by MLB in the top 5 rounds, they all sign for large amounts. For this reason fans, alumni, parents, adminstrators shower the programs with praise and gifts. The NCAA rules against tranferring and overecruting were actually a farce as non of this actually occurs, and for good reason as everybody is just so happy.

- By the way, every player graduates Magna Cum Lade gets a great job, gets endorsement contracts, marries a supermodel, has 2.3 expectional kids, wins the Nobel peace prize, lives to a ripe old age, and has books written about them.

The reason they do not respond immediately? **** postal service...if only it ran like College basball...

Kum-Bye-YA!

44


PS...1BDad...rz1 is right in my mind...many of us "non-Blue-Chip" families have been down this road, we sniffled when the well intentioned, and yes, brave efforts of our sons were trampled, rejected and ignored by the reality of a highly competitive situation. But beyond the shock the beauty of the thing is that there are great lessons there, bigger than baseball per se, life lessons in persistence, in how much competition there truely is out there, in self assessment, in adaption, in perseverence, in tenacity and passion. If your son wants to play college ball (or anything else) he will redouble his efforts, he will have to adjust (DI, DII, DII) and he will have to be be bigger than the issues and he will remember and he will hold himself today and in the future to a higher standard and in higher esteem than he has been held in. And if he does, He will win in the end. he will find a fit....and he will do so with some great lessons learned.

Good luck and keep up the good fight!
.

That would be nice !

No forgiveness necessary, no offense taken. I'm good, you're good, we're all good.

I just feel like facing the fear of calling a coach and putting it out there for him to say..."Sorry, but you don't have what we want." Takes a little courage.

But then again, I think it takes some courage for my 9 year old daughter to get up on stage in the school play as well.

And it sure as heck takes courage to raise your right hand and say..."I will support and defend the Constitution of the United States, against all enemies....." You get the point.

For me, courage comes in lots of shapes and forms.

Congrats to you for having a daughter willing to serve. My thoughts and prayers are with every service member and their families. They truely take on a job most are not willing to do. I'm proud of them ALL!!

No matter what anyone else says, you can rest assured she is part of the best trained and best equipped military force in the world.

O44...

You gotta love this place.......

Come on weekend!!!

quote:

I just feel like facing the fear of calling a coach and putting it out there for him to say..."Sorry, but you don't have what we want." Takes a little courage.

Yes, it does.

And, for the first time in their lives, ALL will face that.

quote:

Think I'm wrong?

Yes, on every point.

"You don't have what we want"

I think it is important that our son's are taught that it is not always about talent. Rejection is a part of life. Often we try to protact our son's from what they consider failure . Everytime my son goes to the mound failure is just 1 bad pitch away. It is the potential to fail that makes the game exciting.

quote:

"You don't have what we want"

quote:

"You don't have what we want need"

It can be either way.

Talented players often sign with a school that is not their first choice because that school has their position filled.

baseball above high school is a business.it's run like any business. some are good at it,some aren't. it gets nasty, at times frustrating. it's all part of the master plan.

things will work out,they always do.

Is it fair to say a school that responds to inquires is the exception to the rule? I'd have to agree that it can't be that difficult for the coaches to get someone to reply to their mail. Why post your e-mail address on the team website if you're not going to respond!!

I was surprised by some most of the schools that completely ignored my son's e-mails or phone calls. I suppose it only takes one to respond but it sure can be frustrating and make one feel unappreciated My son tried several times and methods for contacting a coach a celler dweller team that had a good engineering program and never heard a peep! Oh well, it was their loss.

Stanford was very good about replying to correspondance. I understand that not all schools have the admin help that Stanford baseball has, but it sure makes them look good, even if they aren't interested.

When I coached at a college in the mid 80's I had far fewer requests due the invention of this computer we're all looking at.
Still there are 3 basic categories:
1. A player I have seen first hand
2. A player referred by someone I know first hand
3. All other referrals.

Like it or not, category 3 gets a different amount of time and interest than categories 1 and 2.
And yes... good players do come from all 3 categories.

As a high school coach now I do sometimes get frustrated by response/lack of response but that is the game we all are engaged in.

quote:

I just feel like facing the fear of calling a coach and putting it out there for him to say..."Sorry, but you don't have what we want." Takes a little courage.

In my my mind I would like to replace the word "COURAGE" with "DESIRE". My way of thinking is that "courage" is facing your fears, and fear IMHO is a backward step, the first step toward failure. "Desire" on the other hand is passion, hunger, "no looking back", a no obstacles point of view.

If you make your best 110% effort in communicating with a coach, he will not look at it as courage, he will look at it as desire, regardless of his reply. Why shouldn't the player look at it the same way? If you get no reply or the reply is negative, you shut the book and say "boy did he lose out", and move on.

Maybe my persona of "Don't bring me problems, bring me solutions" has warped my mind a bit , but, that is my life lesson #1 as a parent. I know this may be a little off base but it made me a very proud Dad and I think it relates well to this issue. In August my twin 19 year old daughters drove up to the house in a 24 ft U-Haul truck to move back to college. I was very surprised to see that beast in the driveway and 110lb blonds at the wheel. I asked if they had any problems renting it or intimidated of the process. The more "vocal" twin said one company questioned their ability and she told them if they didn't want their business they'd go elsewhere....the business had a problem...they went elsewhere. They loaded 4 rooms of furniture and moved to downtown Milwaukee that day. Some might say that took courage, I say it took desire.


btw- It didn't take long for them to grasp the "this vehical makes wide turns" when I looked at my wifes flower bed at the end of the driveway when they drove away.

Courage is the ability to conquer fear. Desire is to hope or long for..a strong wish. (Merriam/Webster)

The ball player may desire to contact the coach via phone but to do so he will have to come up with the courage to do so first.

As some one who despises talking on the phone and making a cold call to someone, I'd have to agree that it takes a 17yr old kid courage to call and follow through with his desire to play college baseball.

quote:

Originally posted by redsox8191:
Courage is the ability to conquer fear. Desire is to hope or long for..a strong wish. (Merriam/Webster)
The part you missed from that DESIRE definition at that same source is.....
Desire stresses the strength of feeling and often implies strong intention or aim

The ball player may desire to contact the coach via phone but to do so he will have to come up with the courage to do so first.
I probably am off base but my thought is an athlete who has competed and suceeded at his trade should have no fear of promoting that excellence to an unfamiliar coach. The player is the product and he has not gotten to that level by not putting that talent on stage in front of many over the years. The initial contact may be unfomfortable because it is new, but, after the first ab, you know what to expect the next time to the plate. Maybe I give the student/athlete to much credit for their potential abilities.

quote:

I probably am off base but my thought is an athlete who has competed and suceeded at his trade should have no fear of promoting that excellence to an unfamiliar coach. The player is the product and he has not gotten to that level by not putting that talent on stage in front of many over the years. The initial contact may be unfomfortable because it is new, but, after the first ab, you know what to expect the next time to the plate. Maybe I give kids to much credit for their potential abilities.

This may be true of some players, but I know that my own son definitely does not fall into that category. He is humble and reserved and minimizes every great play he makes. When he hit his first HR of the season last April, I heard him comment to a group of girls, "That wasn't anything special. It was a joke home run." It was almost as if he regarded the HR as an accident, even though he went on to hit several more as the season progressed. For at least some players, it takes a LOT of courage/bravery/strength/(whatever you want to call it) to make calls to coaches who hold their future in their hands. They do not feel comfortable promoting themselves or their abilities. (A prime example in pro basketball is Tim Duncan with the Spurs.)

Call me naive. This is all very interesting. Now that the senior year has come and gone, and everyone is where they are at for this season, some parents are actually admitting that they did indeed talk directly to the coach - FIRST - before the player. And that the parents were the ones who negotiated the "deal". Seems like much of what I read on this board (although it is very helpful in other ways) is that the PLAYER is supposed to be the one who does - all- the contacting. Well, I guess my family missed the boat - because we had the player do the contacting and let him make the calls - which was hard for him. We thought that was just the way it was supposed to be. Yes, he got calls back, but not always from his first picks. (And yes, he probably wasn't athletically what those schools were looking at - so we don't have to bring that up.)

My point is that until now this forum has made a really big deal out of it that the player is supposed to do all the talking - and parents - should stay out of it. According to a lot of you, that's the way it is supposed to be done, but in reality, that's not how it happens. That is disappointing and misleading to those of us whe are not as experienced as others in this business. Even moreso when we have one son and one shot out of high school.

I should have let my husband make some of those calls like other dads did.

My player is now making more calls as a jc player - and his desire is just as strong if not stronger. I am proud of him and his accomplishments, and in the end, he'll be better off having gone through this first hand than having someone else do it for him.

Well, hmmmmmm....I haven't made any calls. I've helped with letters, proof read, added postage and kept track of them.

How many other parents out there made first contact with a college???

Okay, now that I have calmed down some, I would still like to know the answer to that question. After reviewing the recruiting questions forum, I see that just one or two have openly admitted to this.