College Recruiting Advisers - Good and Bad Experiences

Save your money.

If your son is serious about playing college baseball...then take it seriously and put in the work. All of the answers to the process are here. Spend the time reading through the recruiting threads, and make a plan that fits your son's academic, family financial,  and athletic profile. A recruiting service can not effectively do this for your family IMO. It IS a hell of a lot of work going through all of the college books and finding an academic and financial match, as well as athletic, and if you are not willing to put in the work then your son is not ready to play college ball as it is much harder than he can even imagine as a HS player. Being part of the process for your son will be an eye opening experience and bring you closer as a family and help you make a good choice, because even the ones who start playing in college will drop it by the time they are Sr's, and more than 50% will transfer.   

Read Peah's, Prepter's and RJM's posts carefully. 

Looking back on it the only thing I would have changed is to get my son into the weight room sooner in HS. Get bigger stronger faster to help him stand out and also focus on skill development. Once there is something that might be of interest to a college find programs that match his skills and let them know of his interest in their program. 

Make a plan,  and work the plan. If you and your son are not willing to put in the upfront work then he is not ready to take the huge commitment of playing at the next level.  

JMO. 

In evaluating colleges parents and students must 1st consider the educational and financial fit before they even think about baseball. My son went to Santa Clara University to play baseball but after a shoulder injury he decided to give up baseball and concentrate on his studies. He said in High School I was the smartest kid in every class, here at Santa Clara everyone is really smart and I’ve got to study hard to keep up. His injury was going to require surgery and missing at least a year or more of baseball. He opted to apply his energy to his studies and graduated with honors from SCU and has a fantastic career today. The moral of the story is that while baseball is important getting a good education and a useful degree is even more important.

Instead of spending money on advisors and travel teams, my kid spent his time on learning to throw/hit 90.

Once that happens, they find you.  See how this works?

Caveat: if your kid is a draft prospect, get help/advisors to improve his draft number.

My oldest is a 2020 RHP. He plays for a good travel organization and a coach with a lot of contacts. Between that, reading this board, and doing our research we wouldn't go with an advisor. All funds are put into SAT test prep and training.

I've never used one but see the benefits.  It is an adviser just like the info you get on here.  If they are doing their job right, they will provide you email templates, video suggestions, contacts, lists of emails for coaches that fit your abilities, and counsel you on what teams, tournaments and other things to help you get recruited.  Rather than scour through thousands of forum messages and having to figure out what to do from all these different opinions, you pay someone to give you this information.  I know several that it has worked for and others that it has not.  Just like all things.  I don't see a problem with them if you would rather pay than put in the work.  For the people who do not know, they are a great resource that you pay for just like what we are getting and providing on here.

We did a 60 day free trial run for one of the more popular recruiting sites. Every message we received was either a camp invite or a showcase of some type run by the school. The money makers. Not a single personal message, all bulk junk. 

We did not purchase the service but when being recruited by a D1 8 months later, coach asked if we had all his contact info. 2019 asked if it was the same info listed on __________. (Recruiting Site)

Coach replied "What's that?"

2019CUBDAD..  I don't know if this thread helped or hurt but opinions definitely are there.  To be clear, from my experience Recruiting websites and "advisers" who do not have broad college coaching relationships are not worth the money.  I agree with several posters above.  However, the recruiting coordinator that i was referring to has relationships with college coaches across the country and has been a valuable resource for my son and many of his teammates.  Dismissing them all as a waste of money I think is a mistake.  Hiring a Coordinator does not mean your son doesn't have to work hard, train, learn how to throw 90, get his SAT scores up, etc.   All that is part of the process.  If its one vs the other, than yeah.. the more training your son does, the better the player he will be and that is money well spent.  No one is disputing that.  But once he is there, what is going to separate him from all the other players that do the same things that your son does?  that sends video and has his travel coach calling on his behalf?  that throws 90 and hits 90?  Recruiting coordinators do ease the communicating with coaches via mailings and video etc.. but that's easy to replicate as many have said above.  Good travel coaches have relationships with many college coaches, but not all.  They do well with college coaches in their area and very likely have a track record placing kids at the area schools.  So if your son wants to play locally, then maybe an RC isn't worth the money.  I will try to give examples of the advantages that teammates of my son received... 2 MIFs went to a local P5 College camp this past winter with a phone call from their travel coach.  SS#1 is the undisputed better player but SS#2, also a good player, is using the RC that i am referring to and SS#1 is not.  The RC called the college coach on behalf of SS#2.  SS#2 got a school tour, attention at camp, meeting with HC and has been in contact with coaches via phone since.  SS#1 nothing at or after the camp.  Fast forward to the summer at 16U WWBA, SS#1 has attracted the attention of local mid-major schools in his area without a RC and received 2 offers.  He's a good player.  But ironically a B12 school that the RC got to a game to watch SS#2 and another client on the team OF#1, offered SS#1 and he accepted after a visit.  SS#2 has several offers but yet to commit.  OF#1 committed to IVY school but also had a P5 offer.  The other top OF on the team received little attention.  Top of the order hitter with power, speed, and a solid defender.  Travel coach reached out to several schools.  Ended up committing to a D3 local school.  Having seen what the RC did for the other OF, i think he could have helped.  Another example is a '19 RHP 88 MPH played on 2 top travel teams.  No scholarship offers until RC got an offer from a Southern Conf mid-major that his travel coach didn't have a relationship with.  He's pumped.  If left to his travel coaches, he would have likely re-classified.  Travel coaches influence the process but their contacts are limited no matter how good a travel team they coach. I am talking about top 25 PG ranked travel teams.   All those players worked hard, had the support of their travel coaches, etc. but the RC definitely helped. He even helped the kid he wasn't representing SS#1.  I would agree that each one of those kids would have received an offer at a school but the RC helped elevate their status and stand out.  BTW The organization i am referring to has recently placed dozens of kids at the top P5 schools.  name them but also are strong with mid-majors and D2, D3 schools.  They also represent several of the top PG ranked players including the top 2020 ranked player in the country.  They are credible and receive requests for players from College coaches all over the country.  He has dozens of requests for players that he is having trouble filling right now.  They don't agree to represent every player either.  The parents and player's goals must match their talent level.  I am not saying that an RC will work for everyone, and all RC are not equal.  but from my experience, the right RC has helped elevate the status of every player that he has represented.  

If the RC in the post above got a 2019 RHP throwing 88 into a southern mid-major he did a heck of a job.  You don't mention the size....if the kid is 6'4, 200 that's a different story altogether....I could have gotten him into a lot of mid-majors and I'm not a recruiter.  "Projection" means a lot

Some of the info in this thread motivated me to take a closer look.  I am gathering that NSR is the big boy on the block.  I took a closer look at their services and structure.  It is nationwide.  Scouts and area directors are assigned territories.  They cover a wide range of sports, mens and womens.  I think, if you happen to hit the "perfect storm" combination where you reside in a territory where the NSR scout happens to be a baseball guy, has great connections, is dedicated and very good at what he does, you may find some of the benefits that GLOFISHER so eloquently describes (he happens to live in one of those territories).  Unfortunately, in most regions of the country, that is not going to be the case.  In many instances, there is a golf guy or a soccer girl covering the territory.  Sorry, but there will be significant limitations there in many ways.  There may still be benefits but I can't imagine those benefits outweighing the use of best local/regional connections within baseball.  NSR has been in business a while, has national reach and they still have gaping holes in coverage with qualified individuals for any given sport.  Tough model, IMO.  What they claim to be able to provide would be impossible to do with any degree of consistency across territories.  And the model is set up for their reps/scouts to try to do so anyway.  So, you may very well have a person with a background in girls soccer trying to advance your baseball recruiting efforts.  Nope.  Granted, this is just a glance from a distance.

NSR states on their site that only college coaches and those immersed into the current recruiting environment can provide accurate guidance.  The implication is that those who may have been involved ten years ago might have good intentions but things are different now.  There is some truth to that.  But there are shortcomings within the scope of those college coaches and NSR reps as well.  I think the best approach is to tap into as many credible resources as possible and extract what applies to your specific situation and needs.  In what I think would be rare instances, a recruiting service might provide just what is needed.  Most often, there are probably better avenues to take.

I think they can work.  I've talked to one service here in AZ, and my concern is that he gets a lot of success by using his network NATIONALLY, to get kids in front of coaches.  I am not sure this guy sees my son at any of the schools he hopes to attend (that's the feeling I get), so I'm not going to pay for his services, even if they are good.  If my kid had a wider list of schools he'd like to attend, then it could well be worth the money.

The way I would measure effectiveness is to look at the list of kids they have represented (service in AZ shows their current "clients"), and see if there are kids whose commitments seem to exceed their measurables and stats.  That would tell me that the service might do something more for the kid than he could have done himself.  I will say that the service in AZ has placed several kids in D1 programs that really, really surprised me.  How much "placing" the service did is unknown, but they have surprised me with at least 5 commitments in the past year.

The amount of people with their hands out (showcases, travel coaches, college camps, etc.) to help your kid "be seen" can be overwhelming at times.

To follow up on a comment by Buckeye, I think it's important to differentiate between ADVISERS (who are usually associated with highly-talented players who have a strong chance to be drafted) and RECRUITING SERVICES.  In fact, it wouldn't surprise me that some of these "Advisers" are simply calling themselves that because they don't want to be seen as the recruiting service that they really are.  

True Advisers (in my opinion) are guys that already act as agents for current MLB or minor league players who have signed a contract of some sort with a pro team.  They can "advise" high school players on many aspects of baseball (possibly including recruiting), but their ultimate goal is to help a player get a shot at pro baseball.  

That same Adviser then becomes classified as an Agent for a particular player if he is representing the player in draft and/or contract negotiations with MLB teams.  

On an added note for those who might have a potential draft choice in their family, keep in mind that the NCAA made a change last January in their rules that now permits HS prospects to have Agents represent them in contract negotiations with MLB teams.  There are conditions associated with how the athlete and family interact with an agent in this situation, AND if the athlete chooses not to sign, but instead heads off to college, the agreement that the athlete and family have with the agent or attorney must be terminated before the athlete begins attending college as a full-time student.  

Sorry everyone on vacation. Try to answer some of the questions/comments:

1. Yes, there are many individuals/organizations that work with high school kids to help place them with colleges. Most charge a fee upfront just to begin the process. Play To Win is an example (http://ptwsports.com/). Gary Cohn has showcases for his clients and brings in college coaches. Another showcase is called "Dude Day" in So Cal run by another popular college adviser who has successfully placed kids based off his recommendations.

2. Regulation of the practice.  What is meant by this is pretty simple. Just like anyone can't be an agent without MLB licenses, certification and now passing an exam, the same should be in place (in some capacity) for people serving in these roles helping high school players. There is a large amount of cash transactions that are taking place and people are getting screwed. If this is going to happen (and it is) then oversight and rules should be put in place.

3. MLB is simply starting starting with the Top 80 showcase. If anyone doesn't think that this is just the start and they don't want a piece of the Perfect Game action, you are nuts. Take a look at their strategic plan for 10 and 20 years. They want to expand to youth baseball to drive butts to seats for the big leagues.

4. College Coaches use certain trusted advisers more than you think. I know several mid-west and east coaches that use an adviser on the west coast exclusively to determine if they will budget for recruiting travel to the west. There are advisers that are linked to the higher end travel programs to avoid conflict of interest with the club owners who may have an affiliation with MLB or the NCAA.

5. The legitimate advisers with showcases help assistant coaches with additional income opportunities. This is where the networks are made. It's real life and it's also the reality of a low income college baseball coach.  By making this more of a legitimate business and eliminating the illegitimate players in the game, it helps everyone. 

2019cubdad posted:

Sorry everyone on vacation. Try to answer some of the questions/comments:

2. Regulation of the practice.  What is meant by this is pretty simple. Just like anyone can't be an agent without MLB licenses, certification and now passing an exam, the same should be in place (in some capacity) for people serving in these roles helping high school players. There is a large amount of cash transactions that are taking place and people are getting screwed. If this is going to happen (and it is) then oversight and rules should be put in place.

3. MLB is simply starting starting with the Top 80 showcase. If anyone doesn't think that this is just the start and they don't want a piece of the Perfect Game action, you are nuts. Take a look at their strategic plan for 10 and 20 years. They want to expand to youth baseball to drive butts to seats for the big leagues.

4. College Coaches use certain trusted advisers more than you think. I know several mid-west and east coaches that use an adviser on the west coast exclusively to determine if they will budget for recruiting travel to the west. There are advisers that are linked to the higher end travel programs to avoid conflict of interest with the club owners who may have an affiliation with MLB or the NCAA.

2). Do you really want the NCAA to regulate something else? As if they don't already have enough control over the players. MLB has that rule in place as they need to be able to negotiate MLB contracts and contact MLB ball clubs. I don't believe for a second that advisors are negotiating D2 offers. People aren't getting screwed, there is no guarantee they will be placed. 

3). The top 80 isn't taking away from PG. They will make more money in 2019 and 2020 than they ever have. 

4). I don't know how many, if any, advisors are linked to top travel programs. The players on these teams are some of the best in the country. They don't need advisors to get them college offers. Part of being a top program is having established connections. I don't believe Team Elite, Canes, East Cobb are paying advisors to get kids throwing 95 into SEC schools. I'm sure they have a network of guys that help them out, but I don't buy for a second that they have scouts on retainer charging placing fees. 

If you want to say that recruiting services are a sham to some degree I can get behind that. But none of this seems to fit with the original point. 

Agree, the comment about "advisors" being linked to top level travel organizations makes no sense to me.  My son played 17U for the "B-team" of a very good organization here in Ohio....they played the same events as the "A-team"....and every kid on his team that wanted to play D1 baseball ended up on a D1 team.  Even as the "B-team" we regularly had 20-25 coaches/RC's from all over the country at our games.  We played in highly scouted events....the Midwest Prospect League, Cincy Flames, Music City Classic, etc.   The name on the front of the jersey drew coaches/RC's/Scouts....we didn't need any advisors.  I would assume the other top level orgs don't need them either. 

PG may make more money in 2019, but there is no way that the Top 80 is not taking away from PG. The top 80 2020s in the U.S. very likely will not be at the WWBA at LakePoint -- they can go to IMG for three weeks with all expenses paid, and play in front of pro scouts against the top talent in the country. And the top talent for the next draft means the pro scouts will be there en masse. How does that not take some of the luster off the WWBA at LakePoint?

Next step is for USA Baseball to create a National Top 80 Identification Series (NT8IS) at the same time for the following classes . . .

Buckeye 2015 posted:

Agree, the comment about "advisors" being linked to top level travel organizations makes no sense to me.  My son played 17U for the "B-team" of a very good organization here in Ohio....they played the same events as the "A-team"....and every kid on his team that wanted to play D1 baseball ended up on a D1 team.  Even as the "B-team" we regularly had 20-25 coaches/RC's from all over the country at our games.  We played in highly scouted events....the Midwest Prospect League, Cincy Flames, Music City Classic, etc.   The name on the front of the jersey drew coaches/RC's/Scouts....we didn't need any advisors.  I would assume the other top level orgs don't need them either. 

Agreed. Why would anyone need an advisor when the head coach is a former D1 player and an assistant coach is a former D1 coach and an associate pro scout? They’re calling college coaches to come look at certain players they believe fit their program. 

Son’s friend played on a travel team with the same set up geared towards D3. When the travel head coach received a D3 job offer he took a few of his travel players with him. 

Buckeye 2015 posted:

Agree, the comment about "advisors" being linked to top level travel organizations makes no sense to me.  My son played 17U for the "B-team" of a very good organization here in Ohio....they played the same events as the "A-team"....and every kid on his team that wanted to play D1 baseball ended up on a D1 team.  Even as the "B-team" we regularly had 20-25 coaches/RC's from all over the country at our games.  We played in highly scouted events....the Midwest Prospect League, Cincy Flames, Music City Classic, etc.   The name on the front of the jersey drew coaches/RC's/Scouts....we didn't need any advisors.  I would assume the other top level orgs don't need them either. 

Hey, was that the "Tri-State (Somethings)"? Son was on a good 18U team a couple of years playing down in Indianapolis and ran into them, seemed to be the best team down there. Pitching was insane. They all threw in the 90's, with good control and movement. Think they won Jupiter the year before.

57special posted:

Buckeye 2015 posted:

Agree, the comment about "advisors" being linked to top level travel organizations makes no sense to me.  My son played 17U for the "B-team" of a very good organization here in Ohio....they played the same events as the "A-team"....and every kid on his team that wanted to play D1 baseball ended up on a D1 team.  Even as the "B-team" we regularly had 20-25 coaches/RC's from all over the country at our games.  We played in highly scouted events....the Midwest Prospect League, Cincy Flames, Music City Classic, etc.   The name on the front of the jersey drew coaches/RC's/Scouts....we didn't need any advisors.  I would assume the other top level orgs don't need them either. 

Hey, was that the "Tri-State (Somethings)"? Son was on a good 18U team a couple of years playing down in Indianapolis and ran into them, seemed to be the best team down there. Pitching was insane. They all threw in the 90's, with good control and movement. Think they won Jupiter the year before.

I assume you're thinking Tri State Arsenal from NJ.  They played in Indianapolis quite a bit when my son was down there.  My son played for Ohio Elite at 17U

Buckeye 2015 posted:

57special posted:

Buckeye 2015 posted:

Agree, the comment about "advisors" being linked to top level travel organizations makes no sense to me.  My son played 17U for the "B-team" of a very good organization here in Ohio....they played the same events as the "A-team"....and every kid on his team that wanted to play D1 baseball ended up on a D1 team.  Even as the "B-team" we regularly had 20-25 coaches/RC's from all over the country at our games.  We played in highly scouted events....the Midwest Prospect League, Cincy Flames, Music City Classic, etc.   The name on the front of the jersey drew coaches/RC's/Scouts....we didn't need any advisors.  I would assume the other top level orgs don't need them either. 

Hey, was that the "Tri-State (Somethings)"? Son was on a good 18U team a couple of years playing down in Indianapolis and ran into them, seemed to be the best team down there. Pitching was insane. They all threw in the 90's, with good control and movement. Think they won Jupiter the year before.

I assume you're thinking Tri State Arsenal from NJ.  They played in Indianapolis quite a bit when my son was down there.  My son played for Ohio Elite at 17U

Ya know, I think it wasn't called Tri-State, but was told that the players draw on three states...IND, OH, and ? Maybe it was Ohio Elite...like I said, a very good team, built like football players. 

Certainly wasn't a NJ team.

57special posted:

Buckeye 2015 posted:

57special posted:

Buckeye 2015 posted:

Agree, the comment about "advisors" being linked to top level travel organizations makes no sense to me.  My son played 17U for the "B-team" of a very good organization here in Ohio....they played the same events as the "A-team"....and every kid on his team that wanted to play D1 baseball ended up on a D1 team.  Even as the "B-team" we regularly had 20-25 coaches/RC's from all over the country at our games.  We played in highly scouted events....the Midwest Prospect League, Cincy Flames, Music City Classic, etc.   The name on the front of the jersey drew coaches/RC's/Scouts....we didn't need any advisors.  I would assume the other top level orgs don't need them either. 

Hey, was that the "Tri-State (Somethings)"? Son was on a good 18U team a couple of years playing down in Indianapolis and ran into them, seemed to be the best team down there. Pitching was insane. They all threw in the 90's, with good control and movement. Think they won Jupiter the year before.

I assume you're thinking Tri State Arsenal from NJ.  They played in Indianapolis quite a bit when my son was down there.  My son played for Ohio Elite at 17U

Ya know, I think it wasn't called Tri-State, but was told that the players draw on three states...IND, OH, and ? Maybe it was Ohio Elite...like I said, a very good team, built like football players. 

Certainly wasn't a NJ team.

Triple Crown Royals maybe?   Columbus Area....some of the staff/coaches used to be with Ohio Elite.  A lot of good teams play in the big events in Grand Park.  By far the best facility in the Midwest....and Indy has a lot to do during down time between games.