Baseball scholarships

your advice to your son is solid---a few questions for you

is this the school he wants to be at?

does he expect other offers---he still has plenty of time
as for what he should say to this coach it is simple---just be straight up---your son will know when the time is right

Honestly I don't know what he expects offerwise. Of course, he hears of other kids getting this and that. I think it is a school he hadn't thought of because it isn't in the same state as we are but it is only 2 1/2 hours from our home. I offered yesterday for us to just go to it and watch a basketball game so he could get a feel and he didn't want to other than we did have other things to do too. I'm going to send you a PM too.

mombaseball555,

You've come to the right place to get multiple perspectives. TRhit has already asked the two questions that first popped into my mind. Others will chime in as well. My suggestion would be to have a serious sit down with your son to discuss his long term goals (what does he want to do or plan to do after college), as well as your family situaion. This is one of the hardest decisions young people face at this point in their life, and I think it needs alot of consideration and serious thought. There are a lot of factors other than scholarship money offered.

Example....My son was offered an initial scholarship from what he thought was his dream school less than 30 minutes away. It is a great school with a great reputation. The recruiting coach told us to take our time, and think things through. We would regroup a few weeks later to negotiate the offer, and discuss further. We'd done a number of unofficial visits at the school, liked the coaches, knew other players in the program, and thought it was a good fit for him athleticially. The only problem was that they didn't have his major. That was a big problem for us. We continued to look for a school with his major and baseball. We found it, and he couldn't be happier. Your requirements may be different, but going through the exercise of defining the requirements was very worth the time as todays colleges & universities are between $20K - $56K per year.

Good luck!

quote:

Originally posted by mombaseball555:
Honestly I don't know what he expects offerwise. Of course, he hears of other kids getting this and that. I think it is a school he hadn't thought of because it isn't in the same state as we are but it is only 2 1/2 hours from our home. I offered yesterday for us to just go to it and watch a basketball game so he could get a feel and he didn't want to other than we did have other things to do too. I'm going to send you a PM too.

Is this a school you have visited at all yet? If not, I think your plan is very good - 2013s are doing college visits now as students, whether or not they are potential student-athletes. If you have not already done so, 2 1/2 hours is a very easy trip for a campus tour that can be set up through Admissions so your son can get the whole picture. Also use that time to meet with the coaches again, if they would happen to be available.

And congrats to you and your son!

We did a visit to the school; it was with one of the assistant coaches. He showed us everything other than the inside of the dorms, which we can access on-line through a virtual tour. I thought by him going down to watch a basketball game he could see the school spirit. I truly believe that he is interested. When a coach says to take their time, I am not sure how long that is usually for and how often we should check in with them (and what it should he say).

Hey, fenwaysouth, I sent you a PM. Thanks for the info.

If it was me I would steer my son to the college where he could get the most money in scholarships (baseball and academic).

The goal is the piece of paper (diploma) with as little of debt as possible in the end. Trust me when I say that after 10 years in the workforce no one gives a rat's behind where you graduated from. It's the experience on the resume that will count.

Let's face it. There is no guarantee you son will see any playing time and the chance of turning pro is remote for most.

quote:

Originally posted by tradosaurus:
If it was me I would steer my son to the college where he could get the most money in scholarships (baseball and academic).

I am not sure that I agree with that 100%. Baseball at most programs takes up lots of the players time, if you are not happy, you are not going to be happy.

mom,
Keep the process going, my opinion is that if this was the right place for him, he would have said yes regardless of what was offered. Don't choose a program alone based on scholarship. If it is about the money, and the only thing holding him back, ask for more. Very important that he attend a baseball game.
There are many, many players that turn down larger offers, mostly because it just didn't feel right.

Good luck.

We are not gonna start this thread about quality of school v. cost again are we? I respectfully disagree with tradasaurus, as the name of the school on the degree does matter. I do think it is important to take debt/cost into account, but you balance that with advantage of having degree from a better school. A person can balance that one way or the other, but it should not be ignored.

in crtain fields of endeavor the college where you got your degree does indeed matter

quote:

Originally posted by Aleebaba:
We are not gonna start this thread about quality of school v. cost again are we? I respectfully disagree with tradasaurus, as the name of the school on the degree does matter. I do think it is important to take debt/cost into account, but you balance that with advantage of having degree from a better school. A person can balance that one way or the other, but it should not be ignored.

Hope not, but if you are going to make a choice based upon more importance about the baseball program and your degree is secondary, make sure it's going to be one that you will be happy with, not just because someone gave you more $$ to attend.

More is not always better.

If you can afford it, scholarship dollars are the least important part of the equation in my mind. Think school....which offers the best fit for your son, the best education, the best opportunity for baseball if he hopes to play beyond college. I am not made of money but I never expected my son at 18 to earn a scholarship to pay his way. I am glad for whatever help we get but more importantly to me is that he is satisfied and happy with his college experience. Remember, most of us join the work force after college so it is the last gift we are able to contribute to for our kids and I for one want it to be the absolutely best fit possible without regards to money. (My son can not attend a 50k a year school without aid but there are many that fit at a price I can stomach and expected to pay.)

There are three things to consider. They may be ranked differently based on pro prospect status and family financial situation.

1) Potential baseball experience
2) Quality of education/degree
3) Affordability

In terms of the original poster, this early in the process I wouldn't commit to a college program that's not the top choice. The player can always maintain contact by asking a question regarding the program and the college. The coach may not have time for phone calls depending on the time of year. There are also NCAA blackout periods. Phone calls could get your son on the receiving end of a question he can't answer without time to think.

College Debt Crisis

quote:

TRHit said.....in crtain fields of endeavor the college where you got your degree does indeed matter

No truer words have been written.

This is the good ol' USA. You get to choose what is most important to you....academics, athletics or financial. Pick'em and put'em in order of importance to you.

Very true. I always tried to make sure they felt the fit was the best for them. I think I had varying degrees of success with the three kids. Only one was baseball driven. The oldest was driven by academics, study abroad opportunities, and then the full tuition and fees scholly was the icing on the cake for him. It was a situation that felt right from the first time on campus, and proved to be a good fit. The next two, including the baseball son, I think were mixed results. With him, baseball was primary, degree programs considered, but they all had a marketing program. The daughter opted for close to home, as well as degree program. Both encountered situations which we did not anticipate going in. That happens sometimes. All in all, survived the process, but kids are different. Public vs. private, academic vs. athletic, close vs. far, weather, roommates, large vs. small. It is a journey that requires rerouting at times.

To the original poster -

1. You are lucky to have the coach telling you to take your time with the offer - that is not always the case.

2. Our travel organization advises not to accept an offer before close to the end of your junior year unless it is your dream school or pretty close with everything else falling in line (money - academics - location).

3. When being recruited by a great school for baseball and academics early in the process my son was asked by the coach how his final decision would be made. My son replied that because there were multiple options that would be good fits academically and for baseball - he would decide based upon what "felt right". You are right to encourage a continued dialog - and if you have a relationship with more than one coach at the school call each of them from time to time. As far as what to talk about - it can be anything - but it is good to have a plan before you call. "Hey coach, I have been thinking about your program and I had a question about X" or "Coach - just wanted to give you a call - I had a great game last night and wanted to tell you about it". As long as you have an opening topic the coach will guide from there. These calls should help in determining what feels right.

4. Attending a basketball game - and finding other reasons to be on campus - are good plans. Some schools will work with you to plan an "unofficial official visit". By that I mean that son can go spend time on campus - in dorms - class - and eating facilites - with a player. This is okay as long as the school does not pay for anything.

5. If you are early in the process - spending time at other schools is also an important part of the process in deciding if the offering school is the right one.

Good Luck!!!

quote:

Originally posted by tradosaurus:
College Debt Crisis

What may be a mountain of debt for one family may be pocket change for another. One size doesnt fit all. From the birth of each child I had a monthly payment plan where I saved 100K for each kid entering college. When my kids entered high school without sports in mind I told my kids I would not pay more than our state university unless they got accepted to a far more prestigious university. The state university is a Big Ten school (Don't look at my location. I moved when the youngest headed for college). Where they were born it would have been the UC system. The cost of the state university fit into the mold of my savings. It turned out my daughter went though college on a 75% ride. My son is on a 50% ride. They made a 70/30 decision. It was 70% academic, 30% athletic. I could have paid full cost for either of their schools.

quote:

And I've learned it's best to appear poor on paper to get the maximum scholarships and grants.

How do you 'appear poor on paper'?

quote:

Originally posted by Hawk19:

quote:

And I've learned it's best to appear poor on paper to get the maximum scholarships and grants.

How do you 'appear poor on paper'?

Legally you can't. Assets (portfolios and trusts) are part of the equation too. You can only lie on paper.

quote:

Originally posted by Hawk19:
How do you 'appear poor on paper'?

quote:

Originally posted by RJM:

quote:

Originally posted by Hawk19:

quote:

And I've learned it's best to appear poor on paper to get the maximum scholarships and grants.

How do you 'appear poor on paper'?

Legally you can't. Assets (portfolios and trusts) are part of the equation too. You can only lie on paper.

Actually if you don't have much assets and no trusts then it is easy to appear poor on paper especially if you have a few dependents and a mortgage and only one income.

quote:

Originally posted by RJM:

quote:

Originally posted by Hawk19:

quote:

And I've learned it's best to appear poor on paper to get the maximum scholarships and grants.

How do you 'appear poor on paper'?

Legally you can't. Assets (portfolios and trusts) are part of the equation too. You can only lie on paper.

you withdraw money from your accounts and put the cash in a bank box.

quote:

you withdraw money from your accounts and put the cash in a bank box.

That's just lying....

quote:

Actually if you don't have much assets and no trusts then it is easy to appear poor on paper

You're not 'appearing poor'...you are poor...

quote:

Originally posted by Hawk19:
[QUOTE]you withdraw money from your accounts and put the cash in a bank box.

That's just lying....

quote:

Actually if you don't have much assets and no trusts then it is easy to appear poor on paper

You're not 'appearing poor'...you are poor...[/QUOTE]

No. I'm just not as wealthy as most. Compared to third world countries I'm extremely wealthy.

This thread is not going to get back on track, is it?

Here you go Sultan

mombaseball555- I believe the advice from those who said not to sign unless it's your son's absolute dream school and you're sure it's a fit in all ways is good advice. Son's scout ball coach told us that in his many years of coaching, he's never had a kid regret NOT signing early, while he's had many kids regret doing so. We are right in the middle of the process too so can totally empathize with the unsettled feeling. Best of luck!

As the parent of a senior who over the last few weeks has had several offers, it's really hard to know what's best.

We have spent the better part of two years wondering if he would get to play in college at the D1 level, overcoming hurdle after hurdle and watching his club teammates not performing as well as him get offers last summer and fall and waiting....

Well, now that he has what wanted, two, maybe three very good choices we fret over which is the best fit.

Mom, my son has changed and grown and a very different person then he was even a year ago. If your son has an offer so early he is likely to get more as the time nears. That said, we have a friend who committed summer prior to his junior year and has been worry free just working out and improving while the rest of us fret. And, we still don't know what to do! Point is, only your son will know what feels right and there isn't a right answer anyone else can provide. I am not sure when making such a big decision the answer is clear cut for everyone.

quote:

Originally posted by calisportsfan:
As the parent of a senior who over the last few weeks has had several offers, it's really hard to know what's best.

We have spent the better part of two years wondering if he would get to play in college at the D1 level, overcoming hurdle after hurdle and watching his club teammates not performing as well as him get offers last summer and fall and waiting....

Well, now that he has what wanted, two, maybe three very good choices we fret over which is the best fit.

Mom, my son has changed and grown and a very different person then he was even a year ago. If your son has an offer so early he is likely to get more as the time nears. That said, we have a friend who committed summer prior to his junior year and has been worry free just working out and improving while the rest of us fret. And, we still don't know what to do! Point is, only your son will know what feels right and there isn't a right answer anyone else can provide. I am not sure when making such a big decision the answer is clear cut for everyone.

funny but you are right...the kid knows where he will be comfortable..we got an offer from a school 3 minutes after stepping off the mound,,I didnt even have my fasfa filled out or pricing from other schools..we told the school we would not be making any early decisions and they never followed up.I wouldnt let my son make a hasty decision without weighing all his options..and since the school quit pursuing him I felt my son "and" I made the right choice to wait.