D1 offer and one week to decide?

You will get much better answers here than this but I offer this: When it all boils down to it,
Does the school have the academics your son wants?
Does he like the area?
Did he meet the team? Can he see himself with them day in and day out?
Just for a few minutes, pretend that he did go with this early school. Any buyers remorse?
At some point he's going to have to make the best decision he can with the most information he can. then, its no looking back - no coulda shoulda woulda.
If he's not ready then don't make the decision. If he is good and getting offers then wait. But are you sure of this level of interest from other schools?
Funny, we wait and wait and wait for an offer, then when we get one it's hard to know what to do with it!!! What a great problem to have!

PS - I have seen boys get offers and they have 24 hours to decide...

They will definitely move on. Regardless of what ACC team it is, take a very close look. These are special offers that don't come along all that often.

I have a friend here whose son postponed his meeting with a Pac 10 school for two weeks because of a conflict. The original meeting was scheduled without question to convey an offer. The day before the rescheduled meeting, the school called to cancel the meeting. They had moved on.

A month later, he received (and accepted) an offer from another Pac 10 school. I think he still wishes he had taken the first offer.

What I have described is not the case in every situation, but the more prominent the program, the more likely this is to be true. If, however, he is a top-five round draft pick-type player, you obviously have more latitude.

quote:

Anybody have experience with this type situation? Things we should consider, do or not do?, etc.

For starters, there is no way the message board can make this decision for you.

Lets assume for grins, this is Univeristy of Virginia (UVA) who is currently the top of the pack in the ACC. They were in Omaha last year and likely in Omaha again this year. They are also a top 20-25 academic institution. Lets also assume your son likes UVA - a lot. What more information and time do you need? When you find a fit, why do you need to be courted by other schools? These are rhetorical questions but think about it.

I agree with jemaz. If the coach says one week, then he means one week. If your son likes the school and the program then tell them yes. If not, then tell them no. The only problem I see in recruiting is not having an offer.

It is a great opportunity to have - it just came faster than we expected.

Its his decision and I am not sure if he is ready to make it. I know there is alot of experience here, so I figured there would be some good insight added.

If he is a 2011, this would just be a verbal, correct? so "technically" he wouldn't sign anything until July 1st?
I honestly don't know how this all works, so just some of my own questions.

quote:

Originally posted by Momof1B:
If he is a 2011, this would just be a verbal, correct? so "technically" he wouldn't sign anything until July 1st?
I honestly don't know how this all works, so just some of my own questions.

There is no signing anything until next November. Do not verbal anywhere unless you are sure to sign in November. It is not worth the hit to your reputation to verbal and then back out.

Thank you...

All contact from Coaches is via email. You are allowed to call them, they cannot call you. If you go to their campus, then anything can be discussed.

The coaches we have been contacted by have all been very clear about this and point out if they miss your call, that you should call again because they cannot call back.

Seems they all have blackberrys though. My son called one of the coaches last week and missed him, and he got an email 2 minutes later, telling him to please call back.

HOW was your son "offered"? Please refer to NCAA rules linked below.

First of all, colleges can't "offer" until July 1, provided he is a Junior this year. 3fingeredglove ought to have the NCAA rule book on this.They can "talk", but an offer is written.
Second, on or after July 1, when colleges CAN offer, your son has until the signing date in November. Now, as ClevelandDad pointed out, the offer may disappear 1 week after it is made, but YOU don't sign till Nov... And, Do Not verbal until July 1 or later!! These coaches talk & you don't want any missteps or misunderstandings! If coach is asking your son to sign, he's violating NCAA. If he's wanting son to verbal, then no thanks!! Your son needs to ask recruiter a few probing questions, get more info on exactly what recruiter is "offering"... See links for timeline on what colleges can do:
Page 21 http://www.ncaastudent.org/NCAA_Guide.pdf

http://www.ncaa.org/wps/wcm/co...872488edf81ad6fc8b25
https://web1.ncaa.org/LSDBi/ex...rch&queryCount=false


Personal experience: Son was very highly recruited with many offers on the table 7/1-7/7. He was very interested in a few of these, but one really stood out to him. Son wanted to wait until the end of summer ball before making a commitment, as he was feeling the pressure of the showcase season combined with baseball games, + these schools & appointments w/ recruiting coaches. He told this particular school he needed to wait till the end of season, that he was focused on playing his best for another few weeks...Long story short, school offered another player that evening & son felt kind of betrayed, since he was also a teammate...
But GOOD NEWS, word traveled fast & he was offered by an excellent school...where he is set to graduate next Saturday with a double major!
WHEW!!! Remember, Coaches talk!! Turned out, a blessing in disguise, as this school has really been there for my son, after his father died 2 years ago.

So, you just do your very best & follow your heart!
Remember, this will be your sons job for the next 4 years...Make sure it is a good fit...academically & athletically...And, don't forget, You are interviewing the school, too!!

very good scholarship offer & ACC school...my son would be ecstatic!
But I have to agree with baseball mom on...
So, you just do your very best & follow your heart!
Remember, this will be your sons job for the next 4 years...Make sure it is a good fit...academically & athletically...And, don't forget, You are interviewing the school, too!!

baseballmom - they are looking for a verbal commitment from my son based upon an offer they made while on a visit to campus. I know several others who have already given verbals to this school - one of which is a 2012 (believe it or not).
I know nothing is binding (other than his/their word) until the NLI is signed.

swampboy - we did not hop on a plane or spend the weekend in the car, so good call. You make some good points, though for my son to consider. He has to make sure its the right fit for him.

Thanks for everyone's input.

JJMJ,

What I would have your son do is, do all the research you can on that school and that program with an eye towards seeing if he is sold on that bargain within the next 7 days.

If he has doubts remaining, or if he wants to wait to see what else is out there, then he should -- very politely and deferentially -- express his continuing interest but note that due to the suddenness of the offer he simply needs more time to decide. You do have to understand that the offer may not be there next week, but then again, for a pitcher it probably will be (since everyone needs lots of pitchers every year).

The question of ACC vs. CAA is not so easy to answer as some might think. There is a lot of talent sitting the bench at a lot of ACC/SEC schools, talent that could be playing all the time in the CAA. Your son needs to ask himself how he feels about those prospects. Also, the academics must get heavy weight in the decision (though nearly every ACC school is ranked with the nation's top universities, so it'd be hard to go wrong there).

Some schools don't offer all the majors your son may be interested in. Make sure you've read up on that, too. You can't be an engineering major at Wake Forest, for example. But the business school is first rate!

I am all in favor of committing during junior year IF, but only if, your son is sure of his choice. If he's not, then take some more time. Given his talent level, it's highly unlikely his options will evaporate.

On the other hand, it's less than 5 months to NLI time, so there's no time to start collecting your thoughts and sorting out your preferences like the present. Time to get busy. While most teams won't really pull the rug out if you take until maybe mid-August, by Labor Day a lot of teams' budgets for this recruiting year will be spoken for.

P.S.

Offers can and are made orally with great frequency, so don't get sidetracked by concerns about the legality of the oral offer your son got. It's standard operating procedure, nothing wrong with it in the least.

""The question of ACC vs. CAA is not so easy to answer as some might think. There is a lot of talent sitting the bench at a lot of ACC/SEC schools, talent that could be playing all the time in the CAA. Your son needs to ask himself how he feels about those prospects. Also, the academics must get heavy weight in the decision (though nearly every ACC school is ranked with the nation's top universities, so it'd be hard to go wrong there).""


__________________


Midlo - this is the very point that the CAA school has made. They claim he needs to pitch and will offer every opportunity for him to do that immediatly. Also CAA offer is not time sensitive just yet, and it is the best offer you can get.
And next we have our nationally ranked Big East friends coming this week to watch him pitch. We met with them recently on campus, and told them we were in no rush. They just found out the situation so want to see him before they make an offer.

I appreciate all the suggestions/input in your post. My son has alot to think about.

quote:

Originally posted by baseballmom:
First of all, colleges can't "offer" until July 1, provided he is a Junior this year. 3fingeredglove ought to have the NCAA rule book on this.They can "talk", but an offer is written.

This is a common misconception. Colleges can begin sending written communications to a prospective student-athlete on Sept 1 of his junior year. At that point, written offers of financial aid may be made. (13.9.2.2) Of course, the player may not sign any agreement until the early NLI data.

The July 1 date (for D1) is the earliest that a coach may initiate a phone call to a player, but a phone call made by a player to a coach is legal anytime. This date has no rule-based relevance to offers.

Secondly, plenty of players do make a verbal committment before July 1. In fact, at this time, more than half of my son's 2011 travel team have already committed to a college. The landscape of college recruiting has changed!

JJMJ,
This is a business... So a school could have your sons verbal till aug or whenever, then politely "run out of money", or "kid didn't sign in draft", etc...so offered could be recinded on their timetable. Might not happen, but the ball is in their glove.So, where "might" that leave your son?
Most coaches wouldn't do the above, but it has/does happened...
Midlo is on the mark with guys sitting...
Look at rosters, pm members about coaches, learn all you can about coaches, programs, contact former players, etc.
Good luck & keep us posted on progress.

3fingered, thank you. If anyone knows the rules its you!

JJMJ - now that you are letting more information out, I can give you more "insight" on things.

Look, your guy is 6'4" and throwing high 80's/low 90's, he can probably pick almost any school in the country to be honest. I have a hunch you know that and I am not sure you have much of a problem or issue here.

Here is my opinion and I mean no disrespect to anyone out there reading this. I'll start by saying the obligatory, good players can be found at any college or region of the country. That said, college baseball is a southern/western sport imho. Those places where it is warm in the spring time. In general, the best players covet and play in those locations.

Boston College and Connecticut may be great academic schools but they are not great baseball opportunites imho - at least not at this early stage. If your guy is already receiving offers and he has the physical prowess you describe, it seems like it behooves him to see if something better comes along. Again, I am guessing you already know that.

CD

I think you need to do your homework---Connecticut is a Top 20 team this year and very solid--first in its conference and 41-11 overall


BC has , in my eyes at least, turned the corner and are improving steadily every year


AND both teams look at JUCO transferS as do many of the Northeast region schools now

Same thing happened to my son --- except it was the SEC (University of Tennessee) and it was discussed on the phone after a face to face. Once the offer was made to my son, with the stipulation he had 1 week to accept or it would be gone, I got involved in the conversation and told the recruiting coordinator he would have to pass simply because he had other colleges he wanted to visit. The recruiting coordinator told me that if my son planned on visiting other schools, Tennessee would move on and the scholarship would be gone ---- BUT ---he continued recruiting my son up until he signed at another SEC school.

TRHit,

You have a PM.

$100 says is BC, that's their MO, did it to our son saying they had one opening and one week to make a decision to consider school.

Went on visit the HC was great, but my son didn't like the school.

If they want your son that bad they will wait a bit.

Look at all opportunities, he will get great exposure at AC tryouts, if he makes the team, don't do a **** thing - the offers will be plenty.

I have no idea what schools are involved--BUT I do not like guns to players heads---if you are that good the situations will be therefor you---the coach with the gun plays that game with every player he is recruiting--not my type of game

A good coach wants his players comfortable when they come in--if he cannot wait until you make visits and compare then so be it---

Just my .02 cents, but this is a good problem to have. It's nice to know your guidance and his hard work is paying off. But, since this is only a verbal, (for us) it would have to be the absolute #1, top choice, dream school (+) offer. No offense, but it doesn't sound like this is that school for your son.

Good luck and enjoy the ride. After the A/C tryouts, it'll get even better. GED10DaD

Make a list of pros and cons with your son and then let him make the decision. If he's not ready, let him wait. Trust his instincts and have faith that everything will work out in the end.

If it's the right school academically with a real opportunity to get on the field it's the bird in the hand. If the gut feel causes hesitation it's not the right school.

If your son is good enough to get an offer from this ACC school he is good enough to get many other offers as time goes along. If they want him today why would they not want him 2 weeks from now? Because they are going to fill all their needs on the hill within the next week? They are going to find all the guys they need in the next week if your son does not verbal?

This is a play used to pressure your son into a decision. I do not like it and I never have. Do what you want to do but there is no way I would allow them to pressure my son into making a decision until he was ready to do so. If they move on then they move on. I would be more inclined to choose a school that took the approach "We really want you. And we are willing to give you the time needed to make a decision you are comfortable with."

How your son could be so valuable today but not valuable enough to give more than one week to make a decision is beyond me. It is a ploy used by some schools to pressure players into verbals. Good luck

Coach May - those are the exact thoughts I have had. It is a shame kids are put into this position, and actually my son said tonight..."XX might be the first of many schools I turn down, I am just not ready and I dont care who they are"

He spent time on the phone with a few coaches tonight. He will figure it out. I pointed him to this thread and he read it all.

Thanks to all for your input. Feel free to PM me if you want to discuss this further.

They might move on next week and spend their money. They might still like your son later and have no money to sign him. There is only so much money to go around. That said, if it's not the right school now, it probably won't be later.

quote:

"XX might be the first of many schools I turn down, I am just not ready and I dont care who they are"

Very key point IMO. Your son's life, let him have a lot to say about this!

CM all offers have a beginning and and end, It isn't a pressure tactic at all. It is just good business. They want to know so they can count on him or move on. Every offer has a time limit and a week should be more than enough time.
The NLIs have a time limit. Also coaches often will pull a verbal offer even before the time is up.

Well according to the many college coaches I talk to on a regular basis it is a tactic used to pressure a player into making a decision.

Now we are also talking about a pitcher here. A 2011 pitcher. This school is in a hurry to wrap up the 2011 recruiting class and they want to give a player a week to make a decision. They will move on after that time frame. So 8 days from now they will no longer be interested in this player. The offer will be off the table and they will move on to the next guy.

How good is the player? How valued is the player? Lets say he is a guy they believe they really need. A guy that will make an impact on the program. So they are going to give him one week to decide and then move on? Or are they going to leave the door open long enough for him to make a good decision?

Its good business for the school if it works. I guess. Its not good business for the player to rush into a decision when he simply does not have to.

Same thing with the same school happened with my son as with Fungo's.

Simply put they have a list and put players in an order. Call the first couple and give them a week. Call the next couple and give them a week till they fill the slots. Good players that have not signed at another school will still be recruited but they will not wait and count on them.

That is exactly what they hare hoping you will believe. If your the type of player that will have many options and your not ready to make a decision should you make a decision based on them telling you you have one week to make that decision?

Schools that recruit this way will end up with a lot of second and third choices. Schools that allow players to sort it out for a reasonable amount of time will have a better opportunity to get the guys they really want. And they will have players that are comfortable with their decisions.

When players make good decisions it is not only in the players best interest but the programs as well. When players are rushed into a decision by scare tactics I don't think this is good business.

There are several coaches I know that will not put this type of deadline on a player unless it has gotten down to the wire. And we are talking about a 2011 player who has a whole summer and senior year of hs baseball left. Just because they are in a panic does not mean you have to be.

Recruiting is a business these days and these coaches have to make decisions sooner rather than later. There are a lot of potential players out there to recruit and the top programs usually have the pick of the litter. Why would a top ACC team wait weeks if not months to hear from a pitcher when they might have a list of 5-10 pitchers who are similar? To these coaches they would rather lock up 1 or 2 that they like and move on and fill other positions. Scholarship money in college baseball is not rampant like football and basketball where everyone gets a full ride. Baseball coaches get 11.7 scholarships if they are fully funded and have to spend the money the best they can to sign 27 players and field a 35 man roster. Lets say there are 5 pitchers who all rate equally to a college coach and he only needs 1-2 of them. He only has a half scholarship to get both players. Factors like grades and a player's ability to take less scholarship money but can afford to attend based on family situation are all considered. It is not as easy as saying well if this coach likes him today why won't he like him again in 8 days or a month. The reason being he might have spent some of the available LIMITED scholarship money on other positions and won't have the entire amount offered to Player A in 8 days to a month. Happens all the time. Baseball players RARELY get full ride offers. If a coach has 5 pitchers in mind and he knows 2 of them can come from considerably less scholarship money and are comparable he might go that route after a week or two and take the remaining scholarship money and focus it on another need.

The advice to wait and if they like you know then why won't they like you later works in football and basketball but is not completely relevant to college baseball recruiting these days.

When I negotiated my son's scholarship and asked for more BB money we took the risk of a take it or leave it answer. Coach asked for 2 weeks to come up with more money. Guess where he got the money ? He got it from a guy who was too slow making a commitment. He withdrew his offer. Coaches look for a player who wants to commit to them.
If this guy wants to play the field he can simply thank the coach, ask for more time and live with the response.

Then let him do just that. If you are not ready to make a decision are you saying the player should make a decision based on the fact that that school may move on? We are talking about a 2011 pitcher who by all accounts will have more than this option to consider when its all said and done.

If your in a posistion where you feel this is the best offer your going to get and this is THE school you want to attend then fine. If your in a posistion where you feel you are not ready to make a decision and you are not sure you want to attend this school why should you make a decision based on a tactic like this?

I am well aware of how many programs recruit. I am also aware that many programs operate in different ways. I am also aware that some programs will not try to pressure players they truly want but will give them the time to make a decision they are comfortable with. As the time window lessons the urgency to make decisions will speed up both for the program and the player.

This parent asked for some advice. Is your advice to this parent to have him verbal within this time frame because they may move on? If so fine. My advice is there is plenty of time to make a good decision. And if your not ready to make a decision now dont let them pressure you into making one you are not comfortable with.

This is the same tactic car salesmen use. Would you buy a car because the deal expires next week?

And when you go back and the car is gone don't cry
about it.
I remember a couple I was trying to sell a house to. They loved it but wouldn't put an offer on it until their daughter saw it. She couldn't view it until the next day. I urged them several times to put an offer in now conditional on her viewing and approval. They of course wouldn't listen and I backed off. I had also informed them that another couple had viewed the house.
The next day their daughter loved the house and I had told the listing agent we were probably going to bring an offer after the viewing. Another offer came in conditional on the sale of a home. The incompetent listing agent got it accepted even though he knew we were bringing an offer in. I had called him during the viewing to let him know. He then informed me that they accepted the other conditional offer.
We wrote up the offer changing it to be conditional on being released from the previous offer. Of course the other people firmed up and left my guys totally devastated. The buyers became belligerent to me and threatened to go to the ethics committee.
You can lead a jackass to the water but you can't make them drink.
The Vendors lost 8 grand on that deal. I lost 20.
Some people need a used car sales man to do what they should do.

Original poster good luck to your son. I am sure you can read these posts and decide for yourself what is helpful and what is not.

Is there a chance this school may move on and not offer your son down the road? Yes. Is that possibility enough of a risk to force you into a decision you are not comfortable with? I hope not.

Good luck