PG Academic Showcase

There are better ways to spend your money, IMO. HF and SB have a much better product when it comes to academic showcases.

It's a showcase, not a tournament.  It's mainly to post numbers for the PG profile.  I doubt there will be many (any?) college coaches recruiting at this event.  In my opinion this is certainly not a "must do", and probably more of a "why bother".

No-one that I can remember has (admitted to) attending the PG Academic on hsbbw.  If he's going to Headfirst, that will do the job.  PG definitely not a "must do".

@TerribleBPthrower posted:

There are better ways to spend your money, IMO. HF and SB have a much better product when it comes to academic showcases.

+1. I can't speak to SB, but definitely for HF. 

June 5-6 falls in the dead period which has not been rescinded. So there will be no coaches there.

‘22 attended it last year. Zero value other than getting updated metrics. Would recommend National Uncommitted later that month or a PBR for similar or better value and visibility.

Reading up on Academic Showcases.  Had penciled in the Alabama PG Academic Showcase this fall.  It so happens that it is held at eh same time as a regular showcase event (venues about 1/4 mile from each other).  My '24 is hoping to possibly play mid-major D1, but has excellent grades and very good prelim standardized test scores.  No PG showcase yet, therefore no PG metrics posted.

Trying to decide whether to sign up for Academic (which may have a very small audience) or the regular showcase (which sounds like it might not be that big of an audience either from earlier posts).  He had identified some mid-major D1's with very good programs in his field of interest.  They will likely be attending, but not sure they would even bother to go down the road to see just the Academic kids.

Have seen some Academic Showcase results where maybe half of the kids end up posting decent numbers and the other half are simply getting the showcase experience.  That said, the location is in our backyard so no expenses outside of the showcase itself.

Looking forward to everyone's thoughts.

I'd stick with a showcase/camp that publishes the list of coaches attending. We've had solid results from Showball and Headfirst. Does he know if the schools he's interested in attend PG showcases or any others?

@2017 Lefty Dad posted:

Reading up on Academic Showcases.  Had penciled in the Alabama PG Academic Showcase this fall.  It so happens that it is held at eh same time as a regular showcase event (venues about 1/4 mile from each other).  My '24 is hoping to possibly play mid-major D1, but has excellent grades and very good prelim standardized test scores.  No PG showcase yet, therefore no PG metrics posted.

Trying to decide whether to sign up for Academic (which may have a very small audience) or the regular showcase (which sounds like it might not be that big of an audience either from earlier posts).  He had identified some mid-major D1's with very good programs in his field of interest.  They will likely be attending, but not sure they would even bother to go down the road to see just the Academic kids.

Have seen some Academic Showcase results where maybe half of the kids end up posting decent numbers and the other half are simply getting the showcase experience.  That said, the location is in our backyard so no expenses outside of the showcase itself.

Looking forward to everyone's thoughts.

Do not forget D3's. Emory in your backyard is one I wished we had looked at sooner, which may be too close to home...but... lots of others that can provide high academic and very competitive baseball experience.

Agree with @TerribleBPthrower above. If academics are going to be a driver in your son's college baseball process there is probably not a better bang for your buck choice than a snowball/Headfirst. My son was coming off a significant hand injury but showcased anyway and had some pretty good conversations with a couple of target schools. Ended up committing to a school not on his radar that does not attend those 2 showcases (altho they could).

Does your son have verified metrics (from PBR or somewhere else) or will PG be his first? If they will be his first then it might be worth attending if it is indeed "in your backyard" to have something out there on one of the big 2. Do your best to have a pretty good idea that his metrics will be above average or better or it will be a waste from a marketing standpoint. Might be a great experience for him but in my opinion and experience metrics can get you on radar of schools he might be targeting when initiating contact with them.

Subject of email: Notmadeof$$$ Junior: 2024 OF, 6'1"/170, 6.62, 92 ev (33ACT/3.67gpa)

Then follow email with other data, teams played for, and video via youtube or whatever was you want to. Plenty of ideas here from old posts on what/how/when to do that stuff.

A couple of questions to consider as your son is weighing his options.   1) What are his professional goals, and what schools best provide a path to those goals  2) Who is "driving the bus"...academics or athletics....there can only be one.   The other metric is financial but lets make him ride shotgun for this particular discussion.

I understand these are not easy questions to answer, but it does get right to the point.  Something has to be the most important thing to your son whether it is D1, D2, D3, D79, JUCO, etc...   Once your son states what is of  primary importance then it becomes a lot easier to make choices on time, money and emotional investment.   My son sat on the fence for quite a while, and he had to turn down some really great schools (that honestly crushed my soul at the time) because when we started this journey he wasn't fully committed to that one goal.   Essentially, we had to restart our entire recruiting campaign (version 2.0) to go after new targets.   When he became crystal clear on his goals, then it all fell into place.   I strongly encourage you to have that conversation.

As always, JMO.

Thanks to all the replies.  While I do consider him to be mature, he still just turned 16 yrs old and probably only thinks he has a good idea of what field he wants to pursue.  He is stretching to get onto a mid-major, but he keeps working at it and don't think it is time to give up some of those dreams (he at least has targeted schools with very solid programs in his field).  No actual SAT scores yet, but I think academics (within reason as he puts it) will rule.  He also says he is no fan of the cold, so he has not really looked at a huge universe of HA schools.

The folks at PG just got in touch and were able to point out that both showcases are being held at the same facility, so we are going with the Academic one.  He has some metrics from one showcase, but this will get him the full scope and - fingers crossed - get him moving up the rankings somewhat. 

I was on this board extensively a few years back with older son and learned quite a bit.  I realize my 2024 needs to start expanding his target schools and getting in touch, but easier said than done.  Probably needs to spend more time visiting campuses than visiting ballfields.

Thanks again for all the good advice.

@used2lurk posted:

Do your best to have a pretty good idea that his metrics will be above average or better or it will be a waste from a marketing standpoint.

I agree; if your son does not NOW have the kind of metrics that would be of interest to D1 mid-major schools, then I would think seriously about why you want to pay $1000 to get less-than numbers posted online.  All it means is that you'll have to pay and do another one later.  Know the metrics before you sign up.  I assume you know this from your older son.

I posted above (last year) that no-one on this site has admitted to having attended a PG Academic Showcase.  So if you go, please do report back.

Headfirst and Showball are a different type of event - they don't publish metrics online (although they do give them to all the attending schools), but they provide a great forum to be seen and talked to by actual coaches.  If you have Ivy/HA D1 talents, go before junior year, if not, go before senior year and be seen by D3s.

@anotherparent posted:

I agree; if your son does not NOW have the kind of metrics that would be of interest to D1 mid-major schools, then I would think seriously about why you want to pay $1000 to get less-than numbers posted online.  All it means is that you'll have to pay and do another one later.  Know the metrics before you sign up.  I assume you know this from your older son.

...

Headfirst and Showball are a different type of event - they don't publish metrics online (although they do give them to all the attending schools), but they provide a great forum to be seen and talked to by actual coaches.  If you have Ivy/HA D1 talents, go before junior year, if not, go before senior year and be seen by D3s.

Agree with both of these, having just gone through HA recruiting with my '22 during the Covid era.  Top quote is spot-on; unless the metrics are where they already need to be, then you do NOT want them posted online for all to see.  Smart initial use of money is $150 bucks for a pocket radar and a stopwatch or $150 to attend the camp of a school that your son is not interested in attending, only to get private metrics and for the experience. 

Son agrees that if we had to do it all over again, then Headfirst is really the only camp/showcase necessary for HA recruiting.  Lots of communication and video help, but that is all free.

The showcase you’re looking at, if it’s the one I see as well, is during a quiet period. No D1 coaches are allowed to do in-person evaluations during that period.

What is your son's goal of doing the showcase? Is it to be seen by coaches or just to get metrics up on PG? As Senna pointed out, there won't be any D1 coaches there. Likely very few D3 coaches. Maybe some Juco, no idea how many are in that area.

Hard pass. '22 son targeted HAs but did ShowBall and my sense is that his destination school made the choice to offer right after it. HC was present at the workouts which I gather is a primary difference between SB and PG events. Son also did HF - both camps before his junior year.