Early Commits/Ivy, Patriot, NESCAC

True, I think certain Ivys and high academics have a short list of their top guys right now.By no means do they have their list of 7-9 guys complete. Also, from now to end of May things can change. Those top guys on their wish list may not make the grades, they may get offers from stronger baseball programs and they may not want to wait out the IVY process etc. From what I have seen quite a few kids from an Ivy recruiting class are seen in the summer after Junior year. Now is the time to let the coaches know who you are and that you are interested in them ,contact them, share video,provide them with as much info as possible and enagage them in a dialouge. The tough part as stated above is what to do if you have offers on the table but are hoping to go Ivy or high academic. That is a good problem to have,

Kevkev29,

My two cents....I see your question as two parts.   First, Coaches will always tell you best case scenario.  That is what they do, and it helps to keep that always in mind IMHO.  As a 2015, I would think you are still finding your way in this process.   There is a lot of shopping on both sides and some kicking of tires.  But you should have a decent idea of what your son's baseball level is based upon the what the demand is and who is seeking him out.  If he is receiving offers right now, he's a D1 blue-chipper.  If not, he may be the next wave of recruits.  D1 baseball is stratified.   You can break up the 32 D1 conferences by RPI in thirds to give you a pretty good idea. 

Second, it is very early for Ivy/Patriot/D3 coaches to be seeking verbal commitment for 2015s right now unless your son is an outlier.  At this point in time your son may be on several recruiting lists as a top recruit for Ivy/Patriot and for more aggressive D3, but I seriously doubt it.  They'll want to see him play a few times.   Most of their recruiting efforts will take place this spring and summer.   Ivy coaches are notorious for building mailing lists and casting a wide net of kids because they know very few will qualify.   They will consider thousands of kids for 6-10 roster spots every year, and they don't always get every recruit they want due to Admissions requirements.  At this point, I would expect your son to be on a mailing list with possibly a little casual interest if they have seen him play.  Your son's goal is to turn that casual interest into sincere interest if an Ivy/Patriot is interested. Reach out to them for introductions along with academic and baseball accomplishments, baseball schedule, videos, etc...

At this point in time 5 years ago, my son (college senior) wasn't even considering Ivy/Patriot/D3 schools as a high school junior.   Truth is we knew very little about these school's baseball programs until June/July, and we saw them previously as a safety net should we not find what we were looking for in D1 schools.  Prior to July 1, he received communication from the D1 coaches through his travel coach.  Now, I know things have moved up slightly with the D1 recruiting timetable but it really hasn't moved up as much with Ivy/Patriot/D3 in terms of baseball.  You've got some time if considering those schools.  JMO.

Please let me know if you have questions.

This might be the most important post in this thread so far.  

The take away?  

Relax.  Have fun.  Proactively communicate.  Play hard.  Keep grades up.  Visit as many of those schools as possible (very different vibe at Williams vs Harvard, for example).  

Most of the movement for 2015's at these schools won't happen until late summer or fall next year.

Rich

www.PlayInSchool.com

Great question and answers.  Thanks for asking.

I think my son's experience was the opposite of FenwaySouth's.

My son was focused like a laser on one school very early on (starting freshman year in HS). It was so early, in fact, that I was uncomfortable with the number of eggs he was putting in that basket and tried my best to get him to broaden his potential opportunities. He ignored me, like a lot of teenagers do with their dads. He was seen at a Headfirst showcase the summer between his sophomore and junior years in HS and started a dialog with a couple of coaches, including the coach of the school he was focused on. That October he attended the school's camp and further solidified his desire to attend that school (and the coaches' interest in him). Through the fall and winter of his junior year he visited a bunch of schools where there was a least some mutual interest. He took his SATs and they were good enough to maintain interest from a couple of Ivy's and a couple of high academic DI schools (as well as a host of DIII schools, which he had little interest in).

To make a long story short, the coaches of his target school came to see him several times during his junior year HS season and he had "the talk" with the coach in June and shook hands on campus within a week. And it being an Ivy school, his admission was not guaranteed (regardless of the "Likely Letter") until he got his accceptance letter in December (early decision) of his senior year.

I do not recommend my son's strategy and I was really relieved that it worked out the way he wanted. In fact during the process, Fenway was very generous with advice and firmly but graciously advised that my son should keep his options wide open. I tried to convey that to my son, but no dice. But it remains very, very good advice!

Slotty - Great contrasting story for those following this.  Yes, my son was recruited a little later in the process after casting a very wide net.   Your son earlier in the process with a narrower focus.  Both of our kids were a little stubborn , but knew what they wanted academically.  The advantage that I see in your son's case is the proximity to the current school and the influence the school has on your community.  The coaches are part of the community, and it is convenient for them to recruit someone who is seriously interested in the school, and has the academic & athletic horsepower.

For many Ivy/Patriot/NESCAC recruits the initial interest generally starts at a national level because of all the admission requirements.  Your son's initial interest started there (HeadFirst) as well and quickly moved to a local relationship with the coaches.   There is a significant West Coast influence on most of these Ivy/Patriot/NESCAC rosters, and unfortunetly these coaches can't easily drop by to see a recruits high school game.  

There is a poster here who lives in CA, who's son was just accepted Friday to Amherst (great, great school!) to play baseball.  I'm extremely happy for him and his son.   His son had to jump through a lot of hoops, and it was never convenient for all the East coast schools he was considering.   Your son smartly used his proximity and local relationship to his advantage because he could.  Kudos to him for leveraging that advantage in a very competitive situation.  JMO. 

I agree your son's strategy wouldn't be the recommended strategy for most, but it worked out great for him.  See you in a few months!