Is this odd, unusual or typical?

They like him----does he like the school and program?

JB

My sons offer that he accepted came in May when they called and said they had the JUCO players they wanted and he was the freshman oufielder they wanted to bring in


Case closed

A bit more . . .

Unless your son has had the chance to attend some showcases, there are not many college coaches that have the time or the budget to attend high school games.

Good luck to your son!

quote:

there are not many college coaches that have the time or the budget to attend high school games.

Think that depends on the location and the HS program. My son's HS always had college coaches there.... including the spring.

I think that during son's senior summer two top 25 schools watched him on a regular basis. Other than that I am not aware of any others.

Some folks think because a top ranked school likes a player, everyone likes that player. All coaches and programs have different needs, your son may be able to fulfill what that particular coach is looking for.

All-
Thanks for the feedback!

Some additional info:
Yes, he has been to numerous showcases and high level tourneys, so "exposure", IMHO, is not a factor.

To answer TR's question, yes he does like the school and program.

Has he received an offer yet? No. However, based on recent conversations, we expect one by the end of this month from this school. But in my limited experience, an offer isn't an offer until you actually get the offer!

Grades and SAT scors are not an issue....unless he was interested in Ivy league schools, which he is not.

Again, thanks all for the feedback!!!!

Hey JB, I think we have spoken in the past, but not sure. Isn't your son in Georgia right now?

Anyway.....My comment/question....My 08' is also garnering "some" interest. My son and I have made a couple of calls to inquire about their knowledge of him. They all know who he is and all have seen him play either in a showcase or during a Legion / High School game. We talk for a little while about grades, what he wants to study, They tell him if he has anymore questions about their program he should call them directly and then the conversation ends. One school in particular is very high on my son's list. They are interested in him too, but have not made an offer. What is the best way to bring it up? Should we wait until they do? I've often wondered also how all the 08's that have already made verbals way before the "actual" contact date were able to approach this topic without bending the rules.

I will take the role of the naysayer here. While the interest shown is positive I feel there needs to be more. Has the coach or an assistant coach called him on the phone? If not that could mean the interest is not that strong. It seems to me that a text message is the easiest way to keep a player "on the hook". A coach (actually it is probably a student assistant) could have 50 players he sends the same text message to. Essentially all they have to do is push one button. My son had two major D-1's covering him up with phone calls, newspaper clippings, and mail outs. In mid summer it seemed as if the two colleges had disappeared from the face of the earth. I called both colleges and both were very non committal about offering. I'm sure they had other players they wanted more and were waiting for them to respond. As the "other" players became closer to committing, the interest in my son waned and eventually stopped. My suggestion is to pick up the phone and call the head coach and ask where they stand as far as the recruitment of your son. Continue the quest for a college and eventually things will fall into place. Options are to your benefit. The more the better.
Fungo

quote:

They are interested in him too, but have not made an offer. What is the best way to bring it up? Should we wait until they do?

As Fungo suggests, pick up the phone. I wouldn't be a pest, but I'd probably ask what they presently have in mind and listen carefully to the words between the words.

I don't agree with picking up the phone and if you do it shouldn't be WE, it should be your son.

Regardless of the interest shown, whether it is 10, 5, 1 or none, a player should go about his business getting seen and attending any necessary showcases.

Only a few players verbal early, the signing period is not until November and you should proceed with plans.

That's just my opinion, but I htink it is way too early to ask someone if a commitment is coming.

TPM - I think its a close call. But here is my thinking.

A few coaches called me (not son) at about this point to gauge our interest in them...sort of a "lets cut to the chase" call so the school can either move on or get serious. "We really like him but we don't want to waste our time so where do we stand?"

Given that, I don't see any problem with a similar call from a parent (or player...better yet as you suggest). "Coach, I'm not interested in being pushy, however my son (or I) is (am) very interested in your school...is there anything we can do to understand where the process stands?"

quote:

But in my limited experience, an offer isn't an offer until you actually get the offer!

A school that called my then HS son on July 1 and quickly became his top choice blurring the lines for any other school in his mind consistently told him week after week.... "we're going to put you together a really good package", "don't do anything else because we really want you", "your son can hit a baseball and we want him to hit here", "I need so and so before I can put the offer together"......

That coaching staff has sent been let go. I'm positive it's because they never came through with an offer for my son. Just joking of course.... just don't count on something until it's in writing.

Okay...yes TPM, I agree that son should make the calls....Of course some kids don't have a problem talking on the phone, but I know my son, and he gets very nervous when talking to coaches on the phone. Put a bat in his hands and tell him to go BP in front of 50 scouts watching him intently and that's not a problem. Speak to them and uh,,,,da,,yes sir, no sir, uh....well...I....(you get the picture). Well, you understand that this doesn't help me understand what the coach said or what my son may have said in any response to a direct question. All of the coaches I've called have said that it is entirely okay for me to have called them and infact we have found two that had tried to call my son on July 1st only to have gotten hung-up on several times. Turns out my son's phone was broken and needed to be replaced. He got his new phone yesterday and we started calling coaches today.

By the way, I think it is a good idea for the player to make the calls if they want to....That's not our case....

quote:

By the way, I think it is a good idea for the player to make the calls if they want to....That's not our case....

I do agree that the players should be the one talking. In our case, almost all coaches called my son... not me. Not sure what that might mean! The very first visit we went on, my son sat there like he had no brain cells! The process of communicating with coaches is like anything else in life for them.... takes practice to build that confidence and comfort level.

ARMY-
Yes we are at the WWBA right now.

Fungo-
more info for you. I agree that coaches can keep a player on the hook, if you will. My son spoke live with the recruiting coordinator on July 1 (as well as prior to 7/1, on my son's own initiative). He has taken an unofficial visit to this school. He has spoken live to the other Asst. coach as well. About the only thing we have NOT done is speak to/meet with the head coach. That could very well happen at a tourney we are playing in at the end of this month.

Yes, I know as this process gets closer to November or even later that they will be calling my son and not me. I've talked with my son about covering the basics with them and that if he has no interest in their school to be very respectful in letting them know that. I've also told him that if the subject should arise about what it would take for him to come to X's school then X needs to include me in the conversation.

TPM, if someone were to ask me if the parent or the player should be the primary communicator I would agree with you and say the player --- however I also would say the parents and the players should remain open minded about this. The recruitment of a player can be very frustrating and in many cases the situation warrants parental (or adult) involvement --- Of course that is just my opinion. Like you I have spent untold hours researching the recruiting process and attempted to understand the idiosyncrasies of what we jokingly call “the ride”. I had doubts (and still have doubts) that there are many emotionally involved 16/17 year old boys can totally understand the process and effectively culminate their recruitment into a fulfilling college baseball experience if things get complicated. There are some players that have all the pieces of the puzzle fall into place and need no help while others tend to get caught up in a very hectic recruiting mess. Of course you and I both know there is no exact science on how a player’s recruitment should unfold and there are NO guarantees no matter how effectively we dot our “I”s and cross our “T”s. On July 1st 2001 my son received 9 phone calls and the first call came at 6:30 AM. I realized right then that things could get hectic and I should be prepared to get involved. By the same token if he had NOT received ANY calls by mid August I would have been just as concerned and would have gotten involved at that point too. He has had coaches hang up on him – he has had coaches tell him if he attended any official visits they would not offer a scholarship and he had a coach tell him he had three days to accept their scholarship or it would dissapear. Like justbaseball said --- I think there are times a parent (or player) and coach need to “cut to the chase”.

PS: College coaches would much rather deal with players than with parents. Most say it is because they are looking for “mature” young men. That is a MYTH! They want good baseball players and they want to CONTROL the recruiting tempo. College baseball is a business and few teenagers are effective businessmen.

"They want good baseball players and they want to CONTROL the recruiting tempo. College baseball is a business and few teenagers are effective businessmen."

Yes, and the conversation with my son and his #1 choice today had to feel like shooting fish in a barrell for this coach. Whatever leverage we may have had prior to this phone call we lost when my son said he would "give" anything to play there......get my point!!!

Armyofone I understand. I like the "shooting fish in a barrel” analogy. The coach may have stuck ½ of his offer back into his pocket and used it to recruit another player to compete for your son's position.. Never know.

quote:

Originally posted by Fungo:
PS: College coaches would much rather deal with players than with parents. Most say it is because they are looking for “mature” young men. That is a MYTH! They want good baseball players and they want to CONTROL the recruiting tempo. College baseball is a business and few teenagers are effective businessmen.

Excellent point. And unless they are giving a full ride, I as the potential payer of the remaining debt should get to be involved in some fashion.

jbb...your son is a tremendous ball player and will have no problems in finding a home in the future...

I am recently new to this whole HSBBW site but have absolutely enjoyed reading the posts from everyone and have learned a lot. However, prior to our player's committment, knew nothing of this site. We're one of those lucky one's that were able to find the right fit and made an early verbal but it was pretty stressful leading up to that point.

We felt strongly that this was a decision that needed to be made by the player, thus, all the phone calls, texts, conversations we encouraged him to handle directly with every coach. We've even been told directly that coaches would much rather talk with the players than parents. However, prior to the final decision being made the parents should absolutely be involved and everything is on the table at that point.

I know for some this may be a difficult process. I know for us it was and like most families w/ teenagers you're lucky if you get more than a one word response sometimes from teens....but this is one of those moments where cutting the cord a bit, your kid may surprise you in how they handle themselves.

We sat ours down early and laid out the ground work, what should be said, what can be said, what should never be said, etc. and through all the phone conversations would remind him from time to time but in the end the best advice we gave him was to simply be himself...and if the question ever came up of how much it would take to get him there we always made sure that he replied.....this is a discussion that he needed to have with his parents, even when offers started to come in we used the same line so that the player never felt pressured to commit with out talking things over with us first.

Best of luck to everyone going through this process and remember, it's still very early for the Class of '08, no need to hit the panic button just yet.....things will continue to heat up as the summer comes to an end.

Ok, let me explain.
By all means parents should be involved and have a right to do so. They have a right to call and ask questions regarding the program and most coahces will encourage parents to call and do so. Many parents however, take on the role, very often, of the player, and I do not feel that is necessary.

Coaches know that players have a difficult time speaking with them until they feel comfortable. They speak to hundreds of recruits a year. They do not expect a player to verbally communicate well, that is why they ask them questions. Sometimes it becomes frustrating because your player will speak with a coach, get off the phone and not be willing to share the conversation most likely because it flew right by him. That is very typical and common. This is the courting stage, and this is what you should expect. The only time I ever spoke with a coach is when he called asking to speak with us or missed DK. The courting period belonged to him, not "us" or "we".

The original post was about a player that had been seen by coaches at games. What to make of it? Then some posts followed.

Armyofone post indicated that some schools are interested in son but have made no offer and what was the best way to bring it up. Some suggested calling, I disagreed.

It is July 12, 12 days into the recruting season. Parents need to be patient. Now if a coach continually calls and visits your son and the deadline is approaching for early signing and you feel your son deserves an offer from that school, abd you are a bit confused as to what is going on, by all means make a call.

It's a strange process. Recruits receive weekly phone calls and then suddenly the phone goes silent. Or they receive no phone calls and then suddenly their son is high on everyone's list. This is normal and happens to everyone. If you are waiting for that one offer that is high on your son's list, stop wondering when the offer is going to come, it may or may not, go about your recruiting business, do the best you can to get him seen by as many coaches during the summer as possible. Don't worry about the phone calls.

My son also told coaches he would play for nothing, but coaches are very smart, they know everyone expects an offer. For 08's and forward, for now it is 33% minimum or nothing.

JMO

JBbaseball and Armyofone:

Agree with Fungo and Tiger Paw Mom about recruiting and letting the player do the talking. Write down a few generic questions for him to ask on a pad in his room, and tell him to write notes so you will know what is going on, but do NOT do the talking for him. The coach will carry the conversation. Meanwhile your son will grow and you will be amazed.

JBbaseball - Multiple players are recruited at every position. Your son is getting the same text messaging and attention as numerous other players at his position. He is not the top choice now, otherwise the head coach would get involved. They are keeping him on the hook. Don't let your ego or your son's be hurt though. That is just the process. Your son could still end up going to school there and have a great experience.

My opinion is that you should broaden your search and contacts with letters to other schools, and not put all your eggs in one basket. As has been said on this board many times - this is a rollercoaster ride, and you never know where you will end up.

Armyofone - During our son's recruitment I just flat-out asked - "Our son is very interested in 'State U' - when could we expect an offer?" Each coach would respond as to the timing, money they had left or committed already, and offers they had out right then. That gave us an idea of where we stood. There was no resentment or shock at my question. Ultimately he got 4 offers. Each one was communicated directly to our son, NOT to me. Of course, we waited to ask the coach until after a pile of letters, text messages, college camps, scouting at showcases, unofficial visits, and junior days had accumulated so that it was clear our son was interested in the school and vice-versa. I wouldn't advise doing it after a few text messages or phone calls from an assistant coach. Remember, your player will be committed to this campus for 4 years. Have you visited the campus and walked around something other than the baseball field and facilities? Is this the right fit for him? As my mother says, "be careful what you wish for..."

Nice post j2h6, and we have done the same with ours. From now on.....

j2h6,
Good post. This is the way we approached it as well and the way I feel about the process. Coaches will make offers and EXPECT that your sons will discuss it with his parents first. Stop worrying that they are going to say the wrong things and give your kids the credit they deserve in this process.

JMO.

If college coaches based their selection on criteria on the ability to speak well, they'd recruit from high school drama programs! I think parents need to be involved to the extent that they guide their son and give advice but interject on a very limited basis with the college recruiter. This is your child and a good recruiter probably would be leery of a player who has not had good parental support. So they know they're getting a couple of parents with the package. Strong families make good players, too. The guy who recruited my son made the call during the school day because HE was so excited about the decision. He called my husband and let him know to make sure our son had his phone on in the car on the way to baseball practice. I don't know which was better..the several hours anticipation to see the look on his face or the actual look on his face.

We tend to forget that college coaches talk to HS kids all the time so they know full well what to expect---some kids handle kids better than others but good or bad it won't the young man if he is not the best on the phone---the coach is interested in him as a player not a telephone person or public speaker

I am with TPM--give the young men credit--they handle things better than we think they can

My son could tell you stories regarding the phone calls which would make you laugh ---his reactions to some of them were classic "all he did was tell me war stories and didnt even get into his baseball program, Cross him off the list"

Some good advice here, I would add that unofficial visits are also a very good way to determine the school's interest in the player and allowing you time to form an opinion about the school and the coaches. I would also attend the school’s camps or other activities they hold to bring in high school players.

We started visiting the programs we liked the most when my son was a freshman and sophomore. We would visit the college when the baseball team was practicing, playing fall games, in the spring when things were cranking up for the season and during the regular season as well. They usually offer tickets to your son during all sport seasons (football, basketball and baseball) but those are mostly for your son to observe the school during these events. But coaches will usually make themselves available during these visits to talk to you if you make the request. I felt the willingness of the coach to spend time with you was a good indication of their interest or not.

These types of visits to meet the coach must come at your request prior to July of the upcoming senior year except that the school can offer tickets to their sporting events.

We had several visits to two primary programs we were interested in and a couple of visits to programs that showed some early interest in my son. These visits (and attending their camps and or showcases conducted by the school) and interactions with the coaches, I believe, lead to two early offers for my son. While the phone makes it easier, there is nothing like observing direct feedback of the coaches from your questions. I also believe that these early visit also helped sort out which programs did not fit regardless of offer or not.

Coaches are smart, they ask recruits questions to get answers to see how the parents feel. For example, one coached ask son, "how do your parents feel about you going to school so far away". My sons answer must have triggered some concern. A phone call came later on to us, before the offer about him being so far away and how well he would be looked after and call anytime, etc.,etc.