early commit

My 2018 tells me about a new underclass kid who commits each week. They all talk on Twitter or IG and everyone knows who the top players are.  For him to commit early it would have to be one of the top five on his list ( they are all private schools so my pockets will be empty) but he and I dont harbor any illusions about the process.

His school helps out a lot with this process. Many kids get recruited and tell the underclassmen what to expect. 

the early signee has to walk a tight rope IMO and there are so many things that can go off schedule . I just would be very uneasy about having the school he will spend 4 or 5 years attending picked while he is still not legally able to drive. He is going to change so much by graduation......Well, odds are against it happening to most of our boys.

This subject has been bounced around several times during the 2 years I've been on this board. The concerns you raise are valid, but there seems to be no end to the trend. The good new is that unless your 2018 kid is a truly elite player, there's nothing to worry about.  But if he is a truly elite player, you'll have your offer(s) very soon.

As with any big choice I would make a pro's and con's list for the schools.  I would also sit back and have an open talk with your kid about what his dreams are outside of baseball.  If he doesn't know yet if he wants to be a Doctor, Teacher, Vet, or Cop....well then how do you know which school is best for him and what he wants to do AFTER baseball.  Many have said on here that baseball may be the ticket into a good college but you have to have a plan for AFTER baseball.  If he isn't ready to form a plan for the rest of his life (and what kid is at 14/15), then I would personally hold off.

If he is THAT kid that has said since he was 7 what he wanted to do when he grew up and which college he wanted to go to, and that is the college offering, and they are offering for 4 years, then I don't see why you wouldn't take an early commit.  It would give the kid less pressure and allow him to be a student first knowing he has his baseball future locked up. 

We had a 9th grader locally who was throwing 90+ and although coaches couldn't contact the kid directly according to the rules, you would still have been amazed how many peoples mother's, cousins, brothers, girlfriends, former players, current players contacted this poor kid...he couldn't even go to the movies without being ambushed!  He couldn't focus on school, he was getting afraid to leave the house for fear of who would ambush him.  He committed the summer between his 9th and 10th grade year and then he was finally able to breath again.  For that kind of situation it is a no-brainer...if the recruiting process is making your kids life miserable I would commit sooner rather than later.

What high school freshman knows what college is his dream school?  Has he visited 10 or 20 to get any context at all regarding what the school is like, if he likes that part of the country, or if he can see himself as part of the student body?  Has he considered how his preferences match up to his intended major and academic fit at a particular school?  I seriously doubt most high school freshman have done any of this, so to say an offer is from a "dream school" is nonsense, isn't it?  If it's a good offer to play baseball and he likes what he sees from the coaching staff, that's great.  But let's call it what it is, a baseball decision.

oh, I don't know about a kid not knowing his dream school at that age. My 27 year old knew his dream school from 7, 8 years old. Basically because he liked the football and basketball team and the excitement they raised. He probably didn't even know it was a school at that age though. But he ALWAYS knew he wanted to go there and certainly by his freshman year in HS he knew. He had been on campus enough time going to sporting events that he knew. Now none of that had to do with baseball , and in fact, he did not play or was even considered to play in college. But he knew he wanted to go to that school and he did.

A friend of my family. Their entire family had went to the same college for generations. It was a small college. It was ingrained into their heads. They were avid supporters in all things that college. Their son went to that college and is playing baseball there. I would guess he knew from early on.

In the cases above for example, I guess that is where a Dream school might fall in place at a young age and baseball there happened to match is dream as well and he matched the talents

Agree with  this.  What about a kid whose parents and siblings all went to State U and grew up with a State U banner hanging in his room?  

Where we are there are a whole lot of kids who consider either Stanford and Cal as their dream school, and a whole lot of parents who would jump at an offer, any offer that gets the kid in the door, from either.

I would say that any kid that picks a school based on what football team is cool, where his parents went or what banners are hanging in his room would be living someone else's dream, not his own.  I get that these things get kids excited and could very well be the start of a process that leads to a thoughtful decision, but a kid really should do their homework and see what's out there, and as high school freshman most haven't done this.

Heck, I hadn't even done it as a HS senior.  I ended up going to a big PAC 10 school sight unseen because of the weather.  I was gone in a year back to the Big 10.  I had no clue and no guidance (other than a guidance councilor who said don't apply to U of I - what a schmuck). Anyone committing early is taking a big risk imo. 

Smitty, I figured that what's you meant. I just disagree. Certainly a HS freshman is unformed in many ways. So is a college freshman.  But a lot of that has to do with finding direction.  I think a 15-16yo who has a dream (IE a direction) is a lucky kid and should be encouraged.

I agree 100% with this!

Plus one!

My son has 3 other siblings who played college sports. None of which are baseball. When the others went to look at schools he went along because he was too young to stay behind. He got to tour more than a few schools in different states. When we met AD he was there. When we visited the dorms he did also.When we traveled to watch his siblings play at away games he got to see even more schools.

He began talking about what area in the country he did not want to go to school in at an early age. He has been talking and researching schools for years now. So , yes, he does have a few dream schools already. He is unusual for a freshman, but it does happen when you have more than one college athlete in your household.

Exactly the same situation as JCG described: Me and my wife both graduated from that same private school, and on the more personal front we met there and married after we graduated. Each summer our family visited that school(6hr drive) as it has special meaning for us. As you can guess, that school becomes my 2018 son favorite school, and now he has a chance to play baseball for that school! We just visited the campus, and the head coach gave us a very comprehensive campus tour and Q/A session, for the total of 4 hrs! The offer doesn't come yet, as the coach wants us to soak in what we've seen, and then get back to him later if this is THE school my son wants to go. This is great experience for us and we like the school  a lot! But at the same time, my son is 2018 HS freshman, and his travel coach said he will have more options from other schools if we can wait.. My son this summer drew a lots of interests from other schools from some showcase and tournaments, per his travel coach, but only this private school that we like the most, made the most realistic contact with us (certainly through the travel coach) and very sincere! I guess at this point if the offer does come and is right, we'll commit to this school. 

Tao, that's awesome! You guys must be very proud.  Sounds like your kid will have great opportunities.

But just to be clear, a 2018 is now a sophomore, not a freshman, and around here fall of sophomore year seems to be when all the top guys get their verbal offers.

If UCLA is your dream school, and you are a truly elite player, you should probably have that figured out by your freshman or sophomore year, apparently.  They say:

1. You have to be one of the top student-athletes in your state or country and recognized as such through local, regional and national awards. You should be competing on outside teams away from your high school and have the ability to compete in your sport at the highest level. UCLA is #1 in NCAA titles and has top programs in every sport due in large part to finding the best student-athletes as early as possible in their high school athletic careers to recruit.

 

2. We prefer athletes in their freshmen or sophomore years of high school or no later than in their junior season of high school to apply via the biography form. Unless you are a late rising junior it is probably too late to apply for an athletic scholarship in your senior year in virtually all of our 25 sports. 

Don't commit early, the school holds all the cards in that situation. UNLESS the offer is from dream school or absolutely sure it is the place he wants to be hands down. 

But what freshman or sophomore kid in HS with serious baseball ambitions and skills and his parents is really going to have the fortitude to say no, if,  say, a UCLA comes calling?   I would guess not many.

Good point, i guess if UCLA comes early...it's a great opportunity and can be looked at in two ways: UCLA is awesome and they want me and IF UCLA wants me then others will too and that must mean something... why rush into this?

Once you commit, your baseball contact is over unless you are a flat out top level stud and/or have some creative RCs who use DMs to surreptitiously communicate with committed kids.

Cause delay will cause me an awesome opportunity and I'm not willing to pay the opportunity costs.

The hottest member of the appropriate gender you can think of propositions you -- saying take me and have at me right here, right now.   Do you think,  "well, if x wants me, surely somebody else will too."  Or do you say,  "okay, I'm in."  

I probably say "hold on, I have to check with the wife."

As for the other thing, she's a UCLA grad, so all in.

To each his own. If my son had committed early to his dream school, it would have never worked out. 

True athletic and academic fit is incredibly difficult and somewhat fickle in my personal experience. During our 24 month college baseball recruiting odessey, my son had no less than 4 "dream schools" (his definition at the time) along the way.  Each one offered something tremendous and unique for him at the time.  I think he would have been happy at all of them.  However, when a student is paying what they are these days for high education and is fortunate enough to play college baseball he wanted to be beyond happy.  He finally found the school..... and after all It is mostly his money paying for his education...so he gets a vote.

It wasn't until we saw everything available in that marketplace that we were truly able to zero in on one.   Given our situation and my son's goals there is no way we could have committed early, but I understand there are unique situations where it can make sense.

Let's not kid ourselves, choosing a college is a very emotional undertaking.  It is a life decision with a lot of financial baggage.  For those that choose the early commit path, I would try to take the emotions out of the decision and see how things look objectively.  Good luck to those who choose that path.  Again, just my opinions and experience.

When you are trying to help your son decide whether or not to verbally commit at a very young age, keep this in mind: Elite D1's WAY OVERCOMMIT!

I looked at four of the top schools back in February ... and found this (link to that post: http://community.hsbaseballweb...ools-over-committing

So what would you attribute it to? Someone is being misled. The numbers don't lie about that.

Teams overcommit. Lots of good reasons -- it's just something parents and players need to be aware of.

I have posted before "there is always room for another good pitcher", so I understand the waiting and not committing early for some.

However, position players need to be diligent.  If 'dream-school-for-everyone-else' picks up a stellar player after PG Jr Nationals in son's position, does your son really want to go there and play behind this player for 4 years (and the ones that come in after him)?

Factor in: how many players in his position are already at the school(s) and their playing time, roster turnover, location, COA, parent's pocketbook, academics, area of study, where the girlfriend is going, coaching staff (that may or may-not be there when your son gets there in a few years), and the list of schools can be quite narrow (er, short).  

It takes a lot of research, following on this board, reading the newspaper, chatting with other parents, etc. during the recruiting process to help your child make an informed decision.  

If you wait, open slots in your son's position may fill up and choices could be more limited.  

I think pitchers have a easier time to 'find the best fit'.  Position players sometimes 'make it fit'.

Do I think you need to take the first offer that comes along?  Well, It may be the only good offer that comes.

Spouting some opinions from a non-pitcher parent.

 Especially right, if it's the catcher.

Completely agree with this. 

One caveat: HIT -- especially for power, and teams will find a place for position players in the lineup.

Agree.  But I take it for granted that if you don't pitch...you better be able to hit to play baseball !  

keewart has an excellent point.  My perspective is from a pitcher's father and keewarts is from a position players parent.  Half a college baseball team is pitchers so there is some margin there.  Understanding your son's talent level is essential to knowing what that margin level is whether it is pitcher or position player.

But I think the overiding principles are the same.  Take emotion out of the decision and insert; overall future value, finances, academic and athletic experience.  It is alot easier said than done...nothing easy here.  I'll be the first to raise my hand that I was wrapped around the axle at my son's first offer from his first dream school. I was on cloud 9.   The school is right in our backyard and he has always wanted to go there since he was 5 years old.  Difficult choice for a 16 or 17 year old kid to make especially if he has to pass on the offer.   He used his parents as a sounding board and made the tough call to not accept the offer.  I learned alot about my son in this process....he knew what he wanted and he wasn't afraid to say "no".  Again, I'm not against the early commit if it meets the recruits criteria.  At the end of the day, each recruit has to come up with their own criteria.  As always, JMO.

An 80% frosh offer off the 60k tuition/RB at a private seems an inflated over-assumption. A package of 50% or thereabouts for an impact position player seems realistic, after his frosh year to really know his "impact." Maybe Tao's '18 is throwing 92 as a HS soph.

In going back over this thread, started to wonder if the expensive schools have a harder time "adjusting" scholarship levels year to year.  It would seem that if a player/family could barely swing a 50% scholarship at one of these schools (lets say they stretch), what happens if the coach wants to cut it down to 25% the next year?  At $60k/yr, that $15k for the next couple of years (assuming he keeps the 25%).  I assume there are instances where a player has to go elsewhere simply because they can no longer afford their net cost.  

Do 80% scholarships at D1/D2 get handed out?  The coach would have to absolutely love a guy to tie up that much in a single player.  I suspect that most 80% offers would go unclaimed via the draft.  

^^^  Some schools will adjust a scholarship to 100% to keep a hs player OUT of the draft! (banking that some of his juniors get drafted to free up money).

But, as a parent, you need to be realistic on what you can contribute financially.  If your son trips on a curb and breaks his ankle in 3 spots and is not able to play again, will he keep attending the school without the athletic scholarship?

Short answer - yes.  My son received a very nice offer from a D2.  The scholarship worked out to be 73% of the tuition (not based on total cost of attendance).  If you factor in the additional grant he received it was closer to 85%.  Also consider this was an out-of-state school for him and he was transferring after 2 years at JuCo.

But the proposition isn't take me right here, right now. The proposition is "Promise me you will be true to me until we can get together in a couple of years." In which case I say "You're really cute now, lets talk closer to the actual date."

But there is a chance I am not too good at this whole recruit deal, However I did marry way above my grade.