Maybe this is Satan disguised as a baseball coach. Was there really a newspaper mention of his "cut" blunders? This guy sounds like the most hated coach in the world.
With so many enemies surely he must be a big winner or he would of been fired by now.
+1
No that's TR....... Lol!
i had a college coach tell me point blank once because he liked me.."my job is to recruit your son" and " the minute we sign him my next job is to replace your son with someone better then next year" Thats how they roll..does the word over commit mean anything..I would feel much safer at a smaller school than a big one unless i knew i was one of the top talents on the team
whits23, I am not sure what might be misleading about that coaches comment.
College baseball is all about competition and getting better. Could it be that coach paid your son a tremendous compliment by saying I am recruiting him because he is really good and next year he will be even better because he will respond to the competition and make himself better.
Parents cannot shield players from the competition which exists in college, in my view.
Parents who try and shield their son's from the fierce efforts which are required to get better every day that player steps on a college field will probably be really disappointed.I just don't think it works and don't think highly competitive and driven players want or need to be shielded.
It is the pay for play mentality rampant in this country. Many times highschool is the first time the kids have to really compete for playing time. I use the term compete lightly because they are usually one of the studs so their place is all but secure. Whne they play travel ball if the parents or the kids don't like the situation the just exercise their capitalist right and pay for another opportunity all the time thinking they are the best thing since slice bread. It works for the parents because in their world that is how they get things done by buying their way into a situation or by geting to know the right person to open the door. You heard the saying it is not what you know but who you know or who you can buy. Well shock finally sets in when they can't buy the scholarship for their kid because the guy on the other end has to win to save his a**, or the kid does get to play college ball and they can't buy the kid playing time.
My son is a freshman playng D1 ball at a school in Texas and guess what he is sitting the bench and oh and he was all this and that coming out of highschool. My take has always been to make him earn his way. I am so glad that I kept my mouth shut and did not intefere with the coach but let my son handle his business with my guidance along the way. He hates not being in the game and having to sit the bench but he can handle it because he knows he has to earn his way and be better than the senior in front of him which he obvious is not better. Hopefully, his day will come in the futue but for now it is all about paying your dues and finding ways to get better so that next year he is on the field and not sanding the pine. It is life and I am happy he is learning these lessons now.
Bonnie -
I am sorry for what happened to your son. My advice to him would be to go a place he can play, have fun, get innings, get his classes etc. I hope he continues playing as this is a really tough way to end your career. Just because he has one bump on the road doesn't mean the road dead ends.
In regards to college coaches - the majority are snake oil salesmen. A pro scout won't blow smoke to a kid, sign him, and then sees to it that he rides the pine. If a pro club signs a kid, he's gonna get a shot to play in 95% of scenarios. But the high majority of college coaches have absolutely no beef over-recruiting, cutting scholarships, and saying anything to get a player to commit. This doesn't even address the competence issue that a majority of kids in college don't improve as players, and most coaching staffs only teach what someone tells them at ABCA convention lectures or can only teach teach what they are capable of seeing.
I'll give a personal example. During high school, I was recruited by several Division 1 schools. When I visited a school or spoke to them, I had a set of questions I asked each coaching staff. I was a catcher, so I asked who they had coming back, and what other catchers they were recruiting etc. So the school I ended up committing too tells me it's me, and a junior currently on the roster. The recruiting coordinator says we will split time as I will be a frosh and he will be in his 4th year etc. He also says they have an emergency catcher who was an infielder or something So, 2 catchers + emergency guy for the upcoming season. He must have said 10 times they aren't recruiting other catchers So I show up on campus, and first day out, there is 5 catchers. All recruited. And to top it off, I find out the head coach was an absolute narcissistic lunatic, I transferred out.
I then get to professional baseball. After the draft, scout X calls me and says "your going to Y location, and you will be playing on Q, W, E, days, and T will be your off day" When I show up, get a physical, manager calls me in the office, and says almost word for word what the scout tells me. Things went fine for me. Now, how hard is it to be honest?
Just a bit of a personal experience. I hope your son rebounds - others have been there, and its all manageable.
Take Care
infield..nothing misleading at all..he was just pointing out that his job was to get good players then improve on that the next year...IE never expect anything other than a uniform..i 1yr scholarship unless in writing.
I'm sure some college coaches are misleading during the recruiting process. I doubt many are misleading recruits on purpose. We all change our minds over time. I can see a player I really like in the fall and find out I like someone better in the spring. Do I need to stay with the first guy or should I go with the guy I now think is the best? Same goes for the player. He commits, signs, goes to college and it isn't what he thought. Should he be allowed to change his mind? I do think the NCAA rules favor the college over the player when it comes to changing minds.
I read lots of concerns regarding this kind of stuff... Over recruiting, misrepresentation, etc. We never hear much from the thousands of players who don't feel that they were cheated or lied to. When ever there are only so many spots, there will be some/many that end up being disappointed. And there are many who end up happy. If you show up and you are one of the best there, you are most likely going to be happy. It is your responsibility to figure out how things might turn out. You need to know the risk involved before you commit. If they aren't knocking your door down, there is some risk involved.
Keep one thing in mind... Things change! People change their mind. What you think today might be different tomorrow. Unless you have a signed legal contract, you have nothing more than a possibility.
All that said... All college coaches are not the same... There are some bad apples! You just need to figure things out ahead of time.
This is harsh but several things go on during the recruiting process. Many parents hear what they want to hear. Coach says " you will get a chance to start" , parents/player hears " you will be starting".
Bottom line: your son has to work his butt off to be successful in fall ball to earn a chance to start. Also if you hit, you 'll play. Coaches want to win and will put the best team on the field. Also if the coaches take the time to place your player on a summerball team the player needs to make that commitment too.
I remember the conversation as if it was yesterday between me and my son after he met the coaches. We agreed that they sounded alright but to lower his expectations because if history is any indication of the future the coach and for that matter everybody will dissapoint you at somepoint. It comes down to expectations and for the most part most of us have unrealistic expectations about most of the people we deal with, thus the dissapointment. People which include coaches yes they are people are not perfect. At best you hope they are honest, consistent, knowledgable and fair to your son. Everybody's definition of these terms will vary. Teach your son to focus on what they can control, recognize what they can not control and let their creator handled those issues. Your son can control his attitude and work ethic. Unfortunately, this probably is not enough to get a chance to play or do well when you are in the games but it can't hurt. Just my two cents.