NCAA Baseball Recruiting Question

The NCAA does not prevent the school from stacking the baseball scholarship on top of the waiver.  What the coach isn't telling you is that IF the school provided a baseball scholarship as well as the tuition waiver, the total combined value of both would need to count against the team's 11.7 scholarship limit. 

If you have additional questions, you can contact me directly at rick@informedathlete.com. 

we were told that he has the option of taking the bordering in-state waiver of $11,000 or can select a 25% baseball scholarship which amounts to about $8000.  they suggested the $11,000 because its more and the NCAA doesn't allow them to give both with stacking the $8000 on top.  I am just wanting to find out if they are being upfront with us.  I am all about integrity and honesty.  

Some universities have a policy that they don't allow stacking because they want to disburse scholarships and waivers to as many students as possible, but it's not because the NCAA doesn't allow it.

Out of curiosity, if your son is a HS sophomore ("My son will be a junior.") and you're only receiving what would be either 25% (baseball scholly) or 30% (waiver)...how serious is your family about taking this offer?

It just seems way too early to settle for an amount that low.

he plays at a junior college and will be a junior next year.  i just don't like being told what i want to hear or that the rules they are following is set by ncaa and they are only saying that because they don't want to give baseball money.  i want honesty and integrity.  don't like getting the run around.  

Okay, that explains that.

Rick is the definite expert on this.  Sounds like you may want to have another talk with the coach to clarify what he said/meant.  Either that, or you're sure of what you heard (about him claiming the NCAA won't let him stack) and maybe this coach/program doesn't meet your honesty and integrity standard.

Your call either way.  Good luck to you and your son.

Perhaps he can be asked to show you the (nonexistent) NCAA prohibition against offering both. Don't hold your breath until he produces it.

He should have simply told you that his school or his program has a policy against it. Whatever the source, it's simply a mechanism for stretching available resources as far as possible.

If his program isn't fully funded, it would help him compete against fully-funded competitors.

Stacking if underfunded counts differently in two situations. If the program is underfunded (<11.7), then stacking seems permissible up to the 11.7 factor. If the athlete is "unrecruited" in the eyes of the NCAA - no funds paid by baseball to tour, meet coaches,etc. and the player applies with the pool of students, his academic award, if aligned with the incoming students (SAT-ACT-GPA,) would NOT count against the baseball program. He becomes a "guaranteed walk-on." Yes, some horror stories regarding what's "guaranteed," and parents are placing their sons' first year of eligibility in the hands of others. But if the coaches are reputable, have integrity and can be trusted, they'd love a player getting academic monies, and saving theirs for others. If in year #2 the academic money is still offered (for frosh it's typically a four year gift if grades are kept up) AND the player now gets baseball money, it's my understanding the two income (I assume tuition waivers are equivalent to academic grants/monies) sources are stacked against the 11.7 pool. Perhaps Rick can clarify. 

36, you are correct in the scenario that you've described.  Keep in mind though that the original question was related to a waiver of out-of-state tuition costs simply because the prospect lives in a neighboring state.  That's not treated the same as an academic scholarship that is based on GPA or test score.   

Thanks for clarifying that. I didn't think that my son's was stacked but then again, I could have been mistaken. This greatly clears up the issue.

Be careful with the 'non-athletic' money.  The waiver is a good deal but receiving athletic money guarantees a roster spot.  Their are some shady head coaches out there.  I can speak from experience.  Hopefully you are dealing with a head coach with integrity.  Good Luck and I hope all goes well.  

We talked with the coach again and he told me that due to my son having a 2.8 and not a 3.0 at his judo that the NCAA won't allow to stack with baseball money.  Does that make sense?

That's all it guarantees.  Money is money.  In the end, if you are on an athletic scholarship, it counts against the official roster whether you are on the field or cut in the fall.  Yes, that happens. 

Catoosa, that information doesn't change the answers I gave earlier.  The NCAA allows stacking.  The coach or his AD just doesn't want to do it because all the money would count against the 11.7 team scholarship limit. 

Also, the GPA that the coach is referring to only applies to an academic scholarship granted by a Division I program to a transfer student.  It would not impact the "bordering state" tuition waiver.

The more you tell us about this coach, the more I like Prepster's suggestion of asking the coach to show you the rule and explain it.

I could be wrong, but my understanding is that coaches not only have a certain number of scholarships to give, but also a certain budget.  So, let's say the COA of an in-state student is $15,000 and the COA for an out-of-state student is $30,000.  Even fully funded, the coaches budget may be anywhere between $175,500 (all in-state) and $330,000 (all out-of-state) for baseball scholarships.  If a coach has come close to his budget, but still has remaining scholarship spots, he may not be able to give an out-of-state player baseball money if the out-of-state waiver you are talking about applies to his baseball budget, but he could give that scholarship spot to an in-state student because it will cost him much less.

Like I said, correct me if I'm wrong, but I thought I'd heard that at some point.

That is some great information.  I want to believe that this coach is a man of integrity.  I have known him for sometime.  I want to think the good of someone.  But, I also know that many of these guys are trying to sell their product for as cheap as they can.  

bballman,you are basically correct.  The one thing I would clarify is that the coach's $ budget is not what is important for NCAA rules - the key is that they can't exceed the 11.7.  The $ budget can be important to the Athletic Director and the President or CFO of the university, but the 11.7 is the important number that the NCAA is concerned about.

Thanks Rick, you certainly know MUCH more than me.  I was just trying to point out a scenario where the coach is sometimes hogtied by more than one set of conditions.  NCAA rules are one of them.  The budgetary constraints of his baseball program may be another.  In-state/out-of-state mix and the costs associated with that may be included in that budgetary constraint.  

That may not even apply to the OP, but it I think it is a consideration that players and coaches need to be cognizant of.