College camps

Very interesting. Agree 100% on scenario 1 and 2. However, there might be a scenario 3 or I may be stretching the meaning of scenario 1 beyond its intended meaning.

When my son started his junior year, I didn't know where he belonged except I knew he was good enough to play in college somewhere. His school almost won the D1 state championship in Ohio last year so he was lucky and got some excellent exposure. We heard from many D3's, some D2's and and 4 D1's during the playoffs. When I say heard from the D1's, I mean coaches approaching his hs coach and inquiring about him. In the summer he had the same type inquiries from two more D1's. I did Internet research and we picked the best one of the lot that had showed some previous interest. That is the camp we chose - we were not invited to attend. He did not get recruited by them until after he had attended their camp for the second time and performed his but-t off for them. I guess what I am saying is, without him going to their camp, he would have never been recruited by them. However, he did not show up there completely cold in that at least one of their assistant coaches had expressed some interest previously.

I am not going to disagree with Fungo on this topic. He is right on. But another scenario could be added to his list.

Scenario #3 - Player attends camp and is never recruited.

My son experienced Scenario #3 at his 1st big time college camp. But the optimists reading this forum need to know that Scenario #2 can happen. This also happened with my son.

My son attended a big time college camp on the west coast. He had never been seen by these coaches before. He impressed the big time college coaches during the week and earned an in-person conversation with the head coach at camp, and a handful of phone calls from the recruiting coach in which the school expressed their interest in our player. (very exciting times, looking back). We even did the pre-read on financial aid.

Ultimately, the big time college program had more pressing needs than the skills my son offered, and their interest waned. Another well known school, though not a big time baseball college, saw my son at the same camp and successfully recruited him onto their team & into the school they represent. And as is often said around these forums, it turned out to be the best fit for my son.

IMO, the bottom line on college camps is 'Caveat emptor'. Understand the risk/reward factor of showing up as an unknown. Hustle, play well, leave a good impression, and enjoy the experience.

ClevelanDad's mention that his son had "performed his bu-tt off" caused a recollection for me:

When attending UNC's camp during his high school years, my son would frequently ask other campers where they wanted to play college ball. Invariably, a large percentage would reply, "UNC."

Amazingly, many of them would spend the week as if they were trying to show the coaches how little enthusiasm they had for the game. They'd always walk nonchalantly between stations, lazily throw the ball to first when taking infield, throw their bats after striking out...you get the picture.

For heavens sake, if you're a player who attends camp because you really want to play there, be intent upon demonstrating that you love and respect the game. I quarantee you that the coaches do, and they want to surround themselves with players who do, as well.

College camps exist for 4 reasons

(1) To make money for the school and baseball program
(2) To make money for assistant coaches who in most cases don't get paid very much to do their job.
(3) To provide youth athletes with a venue to increase their skills, get out of the house, and have some fun.
(4) To give coaches access to players that may be interested in attending the school and playing for the program.



Most players that attend camps and then don't get recruited by the school can unfortunately blame themselves in most cases.

The reality is two-fold....

(1) They attended a camp at a school that was/is too talented for their current skill-level and no amount of camp exposure is going to get a coach to recruit you if you simply cannot play at that level. You are more than welcome to go to the Ohio State, Michigan, and Notre Dame camp, but if you can't physically compete at those schools, all you will be doing is going to camp for a week and then going home. That's the reality. This is a simple concept lost on many families and these are usually the people who say, "ya, it's a waste of time and money, don't do it, you won't get recruited."

(2) They didn't communicate with the coach prior to the camp to either (A) determine if their might be a potential match or more interest or (B) determine if the coach was actively recruiting for that position. Most coaches have specific needs they are trying to fill and may only be recruiting 6 or 7 players a year. You have to factor in their normal recruiting habits and the fact that there may be a few hundred campers at the camp as well. Even if the coach needed players, he simply cannot recruit every camper in attendance even if they all have the skills to play there.

Most players who benefit from camp exposure have done the following long before they show up at camp.

(1) Determined that their skills might be a good match for the program
(2) Communicated to the coach (in any way they can) their skills through resume's, video, coaches recommendations, spoken to the coach and expressed interest in the program, asked the coach what his recruiting needs are, and gotten some feedback from the coach.

Showing up at a camp with 200 other kids and expecting the coach to know you are interested in that paticular school and expecting him to pick you out of 199 other kids is simply a long shot.

If you match up your abilities and interests with a school and communicate with the coach, you have a far better chance at making the camp circuit work better for your recruiting process.

One of the things we try to stresss is that many summer camps have coaches from other schools that are working the camp (usually schools that don't compete for players). It obviously helps to know what coaches might be in attendance and I have met many players who have attended one camp and been recruited by the coach of another school that was working the camp.

I will say as I have in the past, Not many College Coaches are going to offer you a spot on their team unless they have had an opportunity to see you perform in person (period).

No blind dates are allowed, IMO.

CV

What ghouse said.......the best camp to go to would be one which has additional staff from other colleges and from the various divisional levels; in essence, a sort of instructional-showcase sort of camp.

Of course, 'pure' showcases are the alternative - little on the instructional side, but you may have much better exposure for wider recruitment.

Prepster,

You are so right on the money. This is also the story of life as well IMHO - regardless of the endeavor.

Our house has done this college recruiting thing twice, older son having signed 3 years ago and younger son is now a junior and "getting mail". The Camp thing is more prevalent now than it was 3 years ago based upon the mail we see. Almost every letter from every school mentions their camp, and frequently, you get something like this:

"We at Big Bucks University are limited as to where we an get to see potential players, so if you are seriously considering Big Bucks, you need to consider attending our camp, and give us an opportunity to see you play, blah blah blah..."

Oddly enough, the message seems strongest from some of the biggger name D-1 programs, namely, You need to come to our camp!

Lots of good advice above-you do need for them to see you in person, and, as Prepster notes so accurately, for crying out loud work your fannie off when you get there if you go...and get some sleep.(The smartest thing my 06 did at Best In Virginia last summer was get to bed early each night, and rest at every opportunity off the field)

Fungo and others: Do you think personal calls and emails from coaches asking a player to attend a camp or tryout has any more meaning than the 'standard' form letter? My son has gotten two of these in the past two days from different schools and at this point in time, with all the form letters that have come, he is unsure if he should make these a priority. He is interested in both programs.

itsagreatgame,
I think I would treat these differently. The more personal a coach gets, the more interested he is in a player, at least most would assume that. If your son has a desire to attend that college and play there and you feel he has a legitimate chance to play there, then I would suggest he attend. The real downside to college camps is the limited exposure you get for the price you pay. For the price of one or two college camps you could attend a good showcase where MANY scouts and coaches could evaluate your son. But in this particular case it seems as if the coach is recruiting your son...having both his email address and his phone number.???
Fungo

We never experienced it, but a friend's son had a couple schools do that-call and see if he was coming to their camp; it was taken as a sign of extreme interest on the part of the school, which turned out to truly be the case. As usual methinks Fungo is right on.

Many college coaches use their "camps" as an opportunity to see a kid they have a special interest in once again--it also gets the player an unofficial visit to campus if he has not yet had one

Fungo - Son is already scheduled to attend two major showcases this summer and the dilemma is that he will be working at a baseball school the remainder of the time - during the period that these two coaches are holding their camps / tryout. The school is already letting him off for one of the showcases, which is usually against their policy.
I know for a fact one of the coaches has seen him at a camp last fall. The other called and opened the conversation with "has your son signed yet?" (He is just completing his junior year.)
I would guess a sincere letter to both stating why he can't attend along with his schedule for the summer would be in order. He is just stressed that they may lose interest. Any further thoughts?

Coaches are highly familiar with the packed schedules that players have these days during the summer; so, the majority of them would understand that unavoidable conflicts occur.

A handwritten note covering a copy of your son's summer schedule would serve in most cases to communicate his interest in the program and keep them interested, as well.

Prepster: Thanks - I'll pass that along to my son.