HEAD FIRST? Richmond This week.

Have HaverSon look for a very athletic, hardnosed, 5'11" shortstop from NY who visited Haverford a few weeks ago (in town for an event at 'Nova) HaverSon was on the road and couldn't see him that day but they exchanged data and knew they would cross paths at HeadFirst. Big week for the Academic ballplayers.

I just wish this event really were in Richmond. It's actually in Ruther Glen, about 40 minutes north of town. Otherwise, I'd drop in!

leftyss

Although we didn't attend back in the day, many of Haverford's best players came in via Headfirst, especially from the DC area.
Its a VERY competitive scene.

Are you going along?
Based on the weather forcast, HaverSon probably won't need those sunglasses.

Folks - I am new to the web-site, but have been reading it for several weeks and am very impressed by the depth of information and quality of discussion.

I am generally aware of the Head-First Showcase and its focus upon academically strong student/athletes. My question relates to the talent level of the players that attend these "academic" showcases. It has always been my view that any kid that plays collegiate baseball has strong skills. That said, are the majority of kids that attend these specific showcases high level D-1 players, or are the majority at a somewhat different level than that.

This may be a difficult question to answer and I am not attempting to be obnoxious. My kid is an excellent student at a top flight school. I am almost certain, however, he will not be a high level D-1 player. With that context I am just trying to get a sense of the talent level of the typical player that attends these showcases.

Thanks.

You will find a wide variety of "talent" at Headfirst. Some will end up being DI players, but not likely at LSU or Cal State Fullerton. Others will be role-players somewhere in D3.

More than 20x schools at this week's Richmond event are high-academic D1, but almost none of these teams ever crack the NCAA Top25.

For D1 schools, this is definitely an east coast event. Still, its a strong academic list from tip-to-bottom. (see below)

There are least 5x Ivys attending, and I suspect your son could find an appropriate fit among this group.

Allegheny College
Amherst College
Ave Maria
Arcadia
Babson
Bates
Berry College
Bowdoin
Brown
Bucknell
Case Western
Catholic University
Colby College
Columbia University
Cornell
Covenant College
Davidson
DeSales
Dickinson College
Duke
Emory
Fordham
Franklin & Marshall
George Mason
George Washington
Georgetown
Gettysburg
Grinnell College
Guilford
Hampden-Sydney
Harvard
Haverford
Hendrix
Hofstra
Holy Cross
Kenyon College
King College
Lafayette
Lawrence
Lehigh
Longwood
Macalester
Maryland
Mary Washington
Middlebury
M.I.T.
Moravian College
Muhlenberg
N.C. State
Navy
N.J.I.T (NJ Inst. Tech)
Oberlin College
Piedmont College
Princeton
Randolph-Macon College
Rhodes College
Richmond
Rochester
Rose-Hulman Institute
University of Scranton
Sewanee (Univ. of the South)
Skidmore
St. Joseph's
St. Mary’s
Swarthmore
Tufts
Trinity (TX)
Trinity College
U Penn
University of Virginia
Vassar
Villanova
Washington & Lee
Wesleyan
Wheaton College
William & Mary
Wofford
Yale

Haverdad - Yes I'm coming to this one as "Director of Transportation Services." We just arrived in Ruther Glen- RightyShortstop played two today at the Blue Chips Tourn. in Flemington NJ then the long drive here. Several coaches and kids were heading here from there. I will make sure he finds HaverSon over the two days. That might be tough with the coach turnout so big this week. Does anybody know where to eat in this town?

leftyshortstop - head south to Ashland. Its a college town, home of Randolph Macon. PM me if you want more specifics.

HaverDad,

My son is LHP that sits 85-86 and will be there this weekend. I will make sure he looks for him.

Forecast for the Weekend in Richmond ( i know the showcase is a bit north but close enough) is for 20% of Thunderstorms for both days...hopefully those sunglasses will be needed!

WOW - the level of talent here today and the amount of college coach participation at the event was unbelievable. I was an all-america in 1982 and I've never seen anything close to this in sports. Unbelievable. Very competitive atmosphere. In a good way. A fun tone is set by the staff. The kids know what's at stake. The coaches are greatful for the forum and the kids are greatful for the opportunity. 200 very dirty uniforms out there. RightyShortstop might have the dirtiest one. But thats not the point. Hats off to all the kids who put it all out there today.

quote:

200 very dirty uniforms out there.

sad to say, my wife won't let me get MY uniform dirty anymore.....and if I do, she makes me wash it. <s>

Haverdad, I just wanted to drop you a note that my son and I made a visit to meet with Coach Beccaria a few weeks ago.My son was very impressed with both Coach Beccaria and the school .Your kid is very fortunate to be able to be associated with a great school and baseball program.

BTW - HaverSon is still 6'5". Very nice young man - you should be proud.

quote:

Originally posted by leftyshortstop:
BTW - HaverSon is still 6'5". Very nice young man - you should be proud.

thanks for the mention...

It looks a like a fine day to be Director of Transportation Services!

Sunglasses may be in order after all.

When my 08 son played at this showcase he got so dirty we just threw his shirt away after two days. It rained and they kept throwing more loose dirt on the field. He was recruited by multiple schools from these two days and ended up signing with D1 Wofford College out of SC. Look for Wofford Coaches Dusty Blake and Anthony Dillenger this weekend.

HaverDad - thanks so much for the response. That was the type of information I was looking for.

HaverDad,

Even though my son ended up at Williams College, we both were very impressed with Coach Beccaria and his program. He is a class individual and runs a class program. It was the only other D3 program that had my son willing to leave Texas. Also, today was the first time that I realized that my son talked to HaverSon a few times last fall. Good luck to him in his coaching career. With the Haverford background, I'm sure he will go far.

quote:

Originally posted by Bliz:
HaverDad,

Even though my son ended up at Williams College, we both were very impressed with Coach Beccaria and his program. He is a class individual and runs a class program. It was the only other D3 program that had my son willing to leave Texas. Also, today was the first time that I realized that my son talked to HaverSon a few times last fall. Good luck to him in his coaching career. With the Haverford background, I'm sure he will go far.

Thanks for your good wishes. HaverSon's been preparing for this all of his life. I'm confident he will be successful.

So do you make it (waaaayy) up there....to Williams ? We have a good feel for that MA D3 baseball scene, HaverSon was recruited by and visited Amherst and a stud Amherst pitcher played with HaverSon on the Brussels Kanagoos.

I'm going to the Jupiter event.

quote:

Originally posted by MarlinsMS_35:
I'm going to the Jupiter event.

Thats a good sequence for an '11.

My nephew, a 2010 ss/rhp from Connecticut attended this event and was very impressed, as was my brother who was there with him. Even all the way out here in AZ, this event has an outstanding reputation and is fairly widely known.

quote:

Originally posted by HaverDad:

Thanks for your good wishes. HaverSon's been preparing for this all of his life. I'm confident he will be successful.

So do you make it (waaaayy) up there....to Williams ? We have a good feel for that MA D3 baseball scene, HaverSon was recruited by and visited Amherst and a stud Amherst pitcher played with HaverSon on the Brussels Kanagoos.

My son is an entering freshman and yes, he is heading, as you say, waaay up to Williams. Williams was his first choice and he was excited and honored to be admitted as a member of the Class of 2013. Although Haverford is a little more convenient, (I grew up in Delaware County and have many relatives there), my son really liked the Williams campus, students, educational opportunities and Coach Barrale. Coach Barrale, like Coach Beccaria, is a great guy and a straight shooter and the Ephs are always in the mix in the NESCAC West. The one thing that I was impressed with is that both Coach Barrale and Beccaria emphasized that academics come first. That was the message my son and my wife and I wanted to hear. Son is a football player too so he is about to strap on the gear in the next few weeks. I plan to get up there a few times this fall and I hope more in the spring. They have a two-week spring break that takes them to Arizona to open the season so I definitely plan to be there in March. Good luck to HaverSon.

re : Coach Barrale and Beccaria emphasized that academics come first.

Last spring the Centennial Conference baseball coaches had a pre-season press conference, taking questions submitted online.

My favorite question was "what do you look for in your players"? And all the coaches went through the usual; "I look for the best athletes" etc, until it was Coach Beccarria's turn.

His answer (paraphrasing here) was "First, I look for players with the 'academics' to get into Haverford." It was deadpan, matter of fact, not a bit of humor.

quote:

Originally posted by HaverDad:
re : Coach Barrale and Beccaria emphasized that academics come first.

Last spring the Centennial Conference baseball coaches had a pre-season press conference, taking questions submitted online.

My favorite question was "what do you look for in your players"? And all the coaches went through the usual; "I look for the best athletes" etc, until it was Coach Beccarria's turn.

His answer (paraphrasing here) was "First, I look for players with the 'academics' to get into Haverford." It was deadpan, matter of fact, not a bit of humor.

I love it. My son played in a collegiate wood bat league this summer. My wife commented that you did not hear too much from the other parents about academics. It was though most of them were sending their sons to get a baseball degree. I hope I see Coach Beccaria again someday. He, Coach Barrale and Coach Boretti from Columbia were my favorites. All three of them are young, enthusiastic and straight forward.