IMG Academy, worth costs?

Lots of kids go to the top D1's without paying that kind of money.  Heck, you can get to the top schools by playing on top level travel teams that cost you $2500/summer

The question is - how many of those guys were studs who decided to go to IMG - and how many were made studs by IMG?

I'll take a stab at it...

 

Does sending your kid there "make" your kid a blue chipper?  Probably not?  Just like sending your kid to the most prestigious prep school doesn't guarantee they can break 1,000 on the SAT's.

 

I was just there a few weeks ago.  We filmed all of their HS & Post Grad guys (http://www.playinschool.com/img).

 

Here is what I saw...

- Incredible coaching staff... all former college coaches & pro players.

- Incredible facilities... resembles a minor league facility.

- Incredible support staff... strength & conditioning, trainer, academic counseling, recruiting support, etc.

- Incredible access to all bells & whistles... Under Armour, Gator Aid, Play In School (see how I just lumped us in w/ the big boys!)

- Incredible weather... Sarasota, FL!

 

They are on the field every day.  Post grads workout in the A.M. and do school in the PM.  HS guys are the opposite.  School is year round.  I suppose this is done to ensure proper instructional hours over 12 months and allow for heavy dose of athletics.

 

No matter how good or bad you are you cannot help but get better in this environment.  

 

Does every kid that attends commit to the SEC?  No.  But I doubt that is the goal of every kid/family. 

 

Talent wise, I was pleasantly surprised.  At whatever the price is ($50,000 to $70,000), I didn't really know what to expect.  The truth is that they have some blue chippers, a lot of really good players, and a few that are improving daily.

 

This is an ultra exclusive place as you could imagine from the price tag.  I think it falls into the category of "if you have to ask how much, you can't afford it".

 

But if you can afford it, what a tremendous experience.  It is essentially a boarding school with baseball everyday.  So you get all of the positives of a boarding school plus the added benefit of playing baseball every day of the year.  

 

So, to answer your initial question, would their guys headed to South Carolina, Virginia, etc ended up there without IMG?  Possibly, probably.  Would they have made the jump to being in the discussion as Top 5 round draft picks?  Who knows.  I'm guessing having the above mentions assets help.

 

Feel free to buzz me if you have any more specific questions.

 

You can see some of their fields here... www.PlayInSchool.com/IMG

 

Rich

PlayInSchool.com 

 

 

A handful of our EvoShield Canes kids go to IMG.  They received their scholarship offers to UVA and South Carolina prior to setting foot on the pristine campus of IMG.  Each one of them are very talented and should excel at the next level.  Why did they go?  Each one has their reasons but, in general, they wanted a quality education and the best chance to get better on the field.  Rather than sit in a PE or a Home Ec class (which serve a purpose for 80-90% of students), they take their core classes and get on the field or in the gym to work with world class coaches and trainers. They learn to live on their own and complete their work, on and off the field.  In talking to them, none of them regret their decision.

redbird,

 

Without mentioning names, do you know if they were paying full price to attend or were on scholarship of some sort?

 

Unless you were a sure fire top round pick, I just don't see a good return on the investment if you had to pay their standard rate.  A year at IMG would set you back more than 4 years at many schools.  For that investment, I don't even know that a Div I scholarship is a good enough return.

It's not difficult to figure out which one are EvoCanes.  hahahaha

 

In general, I know of several kids who are there with scholarship assistance.  Some Canes, some not.

Well that's true - just don't want to put their business out there...

 

If my son could swing a scholarship there he would certainly not turn it down.  He was quite enamored with some of the girls in the golf program that he met the last time he played there. 

Rob T - 

 

I'd go out on the limb and say most families are very happy with their ROI.

 

"Returns" do not always equal "dollars".

 

Think about it. 

 

If someone wanted "returns" from an investment in the form of "dollars" they probably would invest in the market or real estate or a business.  Not pay tuition.

 

Don't let it bother you too much.  IMG isn't for everybody.  But it certainly is special for the ones that are there.

 

Rich

PlayInSchool.com

That's fair.  It's a beautiful place, with a good program.  If I could afford it I would send my kid there.

 

I was keeping the OP in mind when replying.  The question seemed to be if it was worth going to IMG given the number of kids that went on to Div I schools from there. Then it asks if the players could have done so without IMG?

 

Framed that way it seems to be asking if the dollars spent were worth it for the chance at a Div I scholarship.  For that specific question I would say no.  The cost is more than what many college tuitions would be, so it's not a good ROI.

 

The intangibles may make it worth the price, but I was really just looking at it from the perspective of the OP.

 

Again, not questioning the quality of the program - I've seen for myself that it is good.

 

 

 

   

Some good posts so far, just one correction to PIS...it's in Bradenton not Sarasota...lol

 

Lefthook played a kid two summers ago who was offered a scholly to IMG for his SR year...big money scholly!  I think IMG does this to bolster the roster and to somewhat lay claim to "their" player signing with a big school or drafted.

2 kids that I know of from my son's travel organization will be transferring down there shortly. A 2016 and a 2017. Both recently committed to top 10 schools. From what I know, both received some type of scholarship.

So as was just stated, IMG will lay claim to that at NLI time.

Another related ?

the camps seem expensive. Are They worth the costs? will kids be seen by colleges or are you paying for training, coaching, experience?  Would it be better to go with good team to PG tourn?  For those who have been what % are "international" players? 

---

 

Sorry, I did not realize you were referring to the actual School....

 

[Go to the Doyle Academy at Tiger Town in Lakeland Florida. A lot of Pro Player instruction. Denny played a dozen years or so in the MLB as did his Brothers Brian and Blake. Blake is the current hitting instructor for Colorado Rockies, and the current Manager of the Rockies has been a Doyle Instructor for many years.

 

You will be impressed, and your kid will learn a lot, regardless of his current level of play.

 

I believe he has had about 20 Alumni play MLB.}

playball2011,

 

Pretty much every talented player that attends IMG also attends Perfect Game events.  And several top players that attend PG events end up attending IMG. It has been that way for quite some time now.

I've posted about IMG before, so you can look up my previous posts for further info. While I am not personally knowledgeable about their current baseball program, their model for elite tennis players is well known. The elite players were typically on full scholarships and essentially paid for by the other kids families hoping to turn their son or daughter into the next Sampras or Seles.

 

Also if you read my previous post/s about IMG, you will see two examples I've given of pitchers who attended, but their pitching coaches were not happy with the results once they returned.

Personally I'd rather take that type of money (if I had it) and invest in a good baseball trainer & pitching coach. Then you could take the left over money and go on a nice vacation.

If you have to ask how much it is, not only can you not afford it, your son is probably not good enough to justify sending there.

?

your comment adds nothing to a serious conversation. Move along please.

Really...? Wow.

We've had IMG players come play for our summer-team for more exposure... We've played IMG's top-teams... Beaten their top-teams pretty handley with kids who are obviously "not good enough to justify sending there" in both summer-team games and regular HS games... Other than that, they do have excellent coaching and top facilities... For 60K a year per student I would probably expect that though.

 

This is in no way meant to put-down IMG at all... Great program! 

I've posted numerous times on the pros and cons of IMG as I had two sons camp there and participate in the full time program over a couple years. Please search the topic for more details, but from my perspective, IMG is not worth the money. One man's opinion who's been there.

Watched an HBO Sports piece on IMG about five years ago. One couple sent their son for golf.They spent $300K and their son was not any closer to a partial scholly. IMG can probably help a student incrementally around the edges.The only scenario and IMG situation can help more than that is taking a very talented, but inexperienced player and advancing the player through "immersion" and constant reps and competition. However, nobody can polish a turd.

Haha. That last sentence is very funny but very true.