How to get serious consideration...

I always get confused by this stuff.  Most DIII programs will be recruiting hard all spring.  This should be easy for a talented player if he an qualify academically.  In all the years I coached at the small college level I can't remember ever telling a potential good player that all our spots are full.

Also confused by the try out issue.  Doesn't pretty much every player actually try out.  I realize some don't need to, but if you are one of the better players at that college isn't that what they are looking for?  

Guess my question is, what exactly are you looking for?  Highest level program, best academically, location, cost, etc.?

Exactly! I should copy and paste the whole thing from that coach but won't. This whole D3 thing is just weird. They don't pay you to play. So you "commit" and they "commit" and then you change your mind and go somewhere else or just decide to not play period etc. You don't sign anything and neither do they, so what's to stop a kid from showing up and taking your "spot" away? Meanwhile, you are telling a kid who has already been accepted that you don't have "room".

I realize this guy really hasn't seen the kid play and that's the kid's fault for letting the trail go cold over this other school (and partially ours for not insisting and ponying up the money to fly him up for a weekend camp last fall while he was waiting to get denied by the other school), but my crystal ball is BROKEN...

Anyway, back to your statement that most D3s are recruiting hard all spring. That's what I would think too but I'm confused there because who are they recruiting as application deadlines have already passed (mostly)? Kid applied to FIFTEEN schools after getting shot down during ED and has heard back from 6 (all yes). Still waiting to hear from 9 still - some where he could play ball, some not. If he gets in a couple of those that I don't think he will, I'm going to come back here and tell everybody to stay away from ED applications at schools where that coach basically has no pull in admissions in spite of what they say. You NEED those fall semester grades - at least he did. But that's another topic.

Whats' he looking for? Highly rated academic school, location, merit money. Got all three. Still a chunk of change for me and the spouse so not real sure about things unless kiddo says he will attend even without baseball.

Worth, I think PGStaff is asking what kind of help you are looking for? Are you asking how your son can get more of a guarantee than a fall tryout? I don't think I would trust a D3 coach who would guarantee me a roster spot without seeing me play. and it sounds unlikely that anyone from these colleges will catch one of your son's HS games.

At this late date, the onus is almost entirely on the player. Your boy needs to study the teams where he's been accepted and decide if he thinks he can play at each. And remember, at CIF (or COF) he will be competing with the better hitters on the team, regardless of how their position is listed. He might also get a vibe from a team/coach. Are all the players >6', and your guy is 5'9"? Might be a warning sign.

At most D3s, the recruiting process doesn't mean much when it comes to making the team and/or playing time, especially when you leave ED out of the equation. Everyone shows up in the fall and starts from a level playing field. Could the coach have favorites who "committed" early? Possibly, but my money is on the guy who is better able to help the team win. Good luck.

Sorry I should clarify. Yes. He's looking for some acknowledgement that he'd be in the mix from anybody other than me or his mom. So the question is will a coach take the word of a scout or maybe some other coach (current or retired) who sees him play on a regular basis? Would game video help?

The school that denied entrance - coach told him they could have used his bat next year. So he's pretty confident with his bat. Size: at 6"1' 190, taller than 2/3 of the college team now and some of those bigger guys are POs.

HC at HS describes him using words like versatile (1B, 3B, DH), great work ethic, selfless attitude, counted on heavily as offensive and defensive contributor, excellent student, great teammate etc.

We have the good fortune of being able to watch this school's first few ballgames because they live stream them then we will see one in person in a couple of weeks. If any of the 3 of us think he'd have no shot, then we'll be honest about that. On the other hand, if it looks like after playing in one of the major hotbeds for travel baseball the last 7 years that he'd be a solid contributor to this team from day one, then he will have some choices to make.

I think he will go to school there no matter what. Just trying to make sure all his bases are covered and he STAYS there either way.

So it sounds like he's decided on one school but that coach hasn't really seen him play. If that's the case, I would definitely send game video, and also try to get the coach to a summer game, or even attend a summer camp. That would give the coach a better picture of his talent. Leaving everything to the fall tryout is risky. He could just have a bad week, be sick, or be nursing a minor injury.

I don't think recommendations will mean much unless this coach has a relationship with the person. 

Is the coach of your son's team a known credible source? If so, have the coach call on behalf of the player. If the team has a reputation chances are the coach does as well.

Worth it? posted:

...at this late date?

In a nutshell, kid committed to highly selective D3 school and didn't get in. That's the short version.

He has now been accepted to several other D3 schools who had interest in him early on (last August/September), but now seem to have committed all spots and best they can do is say "we hope you show up and try out, but can't guarantee you anything". That was also the short version.

Understanding that no coach is just gonna take OUR word for it (kid plays corners on a top 10 nationally ranked HS team), how or who does he get to advocate for him that would get a coach's attention? Pro scouts at our games following other kids for the June draft?

Help please?

Worth it,

The series of posts seem confusing, at least to me.

There does not seem to be a reference point of what created the interest for the coach who wanted your son (but the admissions office was the roadblock) and the several D3 schools which had an earlier interest last August/September.

What was the exposure which generated all the coaching interest?

Realizing that there can be pretty wide variation among the approaches of D3's, (ours played at a D3 and was a recruiting coordinator also)  it seems hard to provide much help if your son was seen last Summer by all these coaches, generated interest then, but now the interest is "lukewarm" or possibly less than that, from your posting. I guess I would ask if you and your son are "hearing the message" correctly as contrasted with  expecting the message to be "more?"  Another possibility is the schools involved are highly selective and the coaches may not be optimistic about admissions, at this point?

The (D3) school which our son attended and played for is very strong academically and on the field (currently ranked as high as 7th and finished 3rd nationally last year.)  The coaching staff must see a player.  When they like a  player, the player, and his parents, know it.  They don't guarantee anything, also.

As an illustration, BOF's son was recruited to the same school. He was seen at the Arizona Fall function and Stanford Camp.  If I remember right, he was not even contacted as a recruit until February of his senior year, when the D1 NLI and Ivy options were closing down.  When he was contacted and recruited from February to April, nothing was "guaranteed" but they knew he was wanted. Even as a top, but late recruit, he still had to battle like crazy for innings.

To be very pointed, what has me wondering is whether the "interest" last August/September was "over- estimated" or there is a current perspective of "expecting more" on your side. If the coaching staffs you are now speaking with all saw your son last Summer and had interest then, I would tend to think "admissions" could be the issue and nothing a HS coach or scout would say would mean too much. If those coaching staffs expressed such strong interest without seeing your son, that is a very different problem, for sure.

My son was recruited heavily by many of the D3s in the mid east region. Mostly Indiana, Pa., and Ohio. No coach offered any garantees, except the opportunity to compete in the fall, and following spring. 

I am wondering the same thing as somenof the other posters. It b was pretty clear that allbthese programs really wanted my son. But never was there any promises. All these coaches saw my son seberal times the summer before his senior year. Are you looking for promise, that he will be a contributor, from day one? The competition at many d3's just not allow for many freshman, being contributors right away. Or is it your player is not feeiling the love. 

Coaches and recruiters spend a lot of time putting a class together and usually have a pretty good idea what they have. If your son is not getting the attention he would like there may be a reason. 

infielddad posted:

Worth it? posted:

...at this late date?

In a nutshell, kid committed to highly selective D3 school and didn't get in. That's the short version.

He has now been accepted to several other D3 schools who had interest in him early on (last August/September), but now seem to have committed all spots and best they can do is say "we hope you show up and try out, but can't guarantee you anything". That was also the short version.

Understanding that no coach is just gonna take OUR word for it (kid plays corners on a top 10 nationally ranked HS team), how or who does he get to advocate for him that would get a coach's attention? Pro scouts at our games following other kids for the June draft?

Help please?

Worth it,

The series of posts seem confusing, at least to me.

There does not seem to be a reference point of what created the interest for the coach who wanted your son (but the admissions office was the roadblock) and the several D3 schools which had an earlier interest last August/September.

What was the exposure which generated all the coaching interest?

Realizing that there can be pretty wide variation among the approaches of D3's, (ours played at a D3 and was a recruiting coordinator also)  it seems hard to provide much help if your son was seen last Summer by all these coaches, generated interest then, but now the interest is "lukewarm" or possibly less than that, from your posting. I guess I would ask if you and your son are "hearing the message" correctly as contrasted with  expecting the message to be "more?"  Another possibility is the schools involved are highly selective and the coaches may not be optimistic about admissions, at this point?

The (D3) school which our son attended and played for is very strong academically and on the field (currently ranked as high as 7th and finished 3rd nationally last year.)  The coaching staff must see a player.  When they like a  player, the player, and his parents, know it.  They don't guarantee anything, also.

As an illustration, BOF's son was recruited to the same school. He was seen at the Arizona Fall function and Stanford Camp.  If I remember right, he was not even contacted as a recruit until February of his senior year, when the D1 NLI and Ivy options were closing down.  When he was contacted and recruited from February to April, nothing was "guaranteed" but they knew he was wanted. Even as a top, but late recruit, he still had to battle like crazy for innings.

To be very pointed, what has me wondering is whether the "interest" last August/September was "over- estimated" or there is a current perspective of "expecting more" on your side. If the coaching staffs you are now speaking with all saw your son last Summer and had interest then, I would tend to think "admissions" could be the issue and nothing a HS coach or scout would say would mean too much. If those coaching staffs expressed such strong interest without seeing your son, that is a very different problem, for sure.

 

Sorry for the confusion. I'll break it down using just 4 schools.

All 4 invited him to camps or for weekend visits after seeing him in a game, a showcase or another camp. They are all 6 to 12 hours from home. He chose to attend a camp A at the one 10 hours from home, loved it, did great and applied ED. Big mistake as then he never followed up with the other 3 and subsequently was denied admission at school A.

Then applied EA/RD to the other 3 (B, C and D) has been accepted at all 3 with anywhere from 20-32K in merit $ and then followed up with each coach "Remember me? I'm the kid you were recruiting that accidentally committed to another school and didn't get it in". I've now been accepted by your school and I'd like to re-open the talks".

OK. He didn't say it just like that, but you know. All 3 claiming they can make no promises. He didn't ask for promises, just opportunity.

So we are confused because we hear "D3s are recruiting now" but also hear " we already made all our commitments but when you come to visit campus shoot me a text and we can meet".  Two of them are waiting to see what their current recruit "yield" is from admissions. My kid is already accepted. They soudn very protective of the recruits that didn't apply to some other school first. I get that too - but ish happens. There is a good chance that if we'd had a bigger bucket of money and time and he had traveled to the other 3 schools in the fall without having applied ED to the first, things would be a lot different now. So my question is, how bad did he screw himself over?

I also don't think any of us expect an 18 year old to walk onto campus in August and blow all the 22-23 year old seniors off the field.

All of these teams are playing now so I suggest you go watch some of their games and see how your son fits against the competition. I would also suggest your son send an email and let the coaches know he is coming to watch. Then pick the school he feels the best about competing at as well as discussions with the coaches.  No matter where he goes he is going to have to compete for a spot, promised or not. He might have a problem at a top 10 program, but maybe not at another. Also D3's allow for kids to mature since they don't have roster limits. I know my son's program had kids who played on the JV team for a number of years before they broke into the line up and his team was a CWS team last year and is consistently at top 10 program.  Hard work and perseverance pays off, particularly at the D3 level.

Good luck, he actually has a lot of time to figure this out. 

Worth It,

This will all boil down to the talent level of your son.  Any DIII coach that is interested is going to look at your son this spring.  Especially if he has been accepted.  If they don't I would be surprised.

Remember that their are DIII programs that will gladly take any player they can get.  These programs might not interest you, but many of them are very good academically.  Cost is always a factor for most people.

Without knowing which colleges you are talking about, and how talented your son is, it's really hard to understand the situation you are in.  But if your son can play and contribute at whatever college, keep working at it and things will turn out.  I would think being a starter at a nationally ranked HS would be enough for many DIII coaches. I mean, often nationally ranked teams have a few, if not several, DI recruits.

PGStaff posted:

 I would think being a starter at a nationally ranked HS would be enough for many DIII coaches. I mean, often nationally ranked teams have a few, if not several, DI recruits.

D1 signees and pro prospects. Things get a little nuts around here. Any of our guys would be all county somewhere else. Unfortunately, each school can only nominate so many and the rest fly under the radar without the accolades. Shoot, we have guys who don't play until their senior year who end up as D1 signees at ACC and SEC schools.

He has managed 2 upcoming visits (one 12 hours away and one 6) on weekends where they play at home and we do not have a game or a practice scheduled on a Saturday. They know he's coming. I'll report back after the fact. I still just find it weird about their verbiage about their other "commitments" and "recruits".

People have to see your son play.  For better or worse HS baseball doesn't count much in the college game and FWIW I think the coaches get that right, most of the time.  Its hard, even in D3 to walk on cold.  Coaches learn to be skeptical.  

However, I know of an instance at my son's top 3 D3, where the coach asked my son to show a kid around who had been rejected at a top 10 D3 that had recruited him, but was strangely now accepted to son's top 3 school.  That kid eventually matriculated and became a nice college player.  

My advice is do what that kid did.  He took all his recruiting letters and offers of support from the school that rejected him and sent them to the coach of the school that accepted him.  He also told the coaches he might choose another school.  They had my son "put the full court press" on him.  It worked out well for all involved and the kid reported to fall and spring practice like any recruit.  The coach of son's school had called the coach of rejected school to verify.  I was told that the rejected school's coach was dumbfounded and frustrated that the kid had been rejected.  A) he loses a good player B) it damages the program's reputation.  It doesn't happen all that much but it happens none the less.  If the kid was really good enough for program A then he is likely good enough for program B.  But, not always.