Power 5 schools and recruiting

Sounds all good to me.  Is there a question?  What is the "lol" at the end about?

justbaseball posted:

Sounds all good to me.  Is there a question?  What is the "lol" at the end about?

sorry , how long is the courting process for some of these schools if the kids is 8 hours away? the lol was 1 school asked if my son had any offers. 

I would say up to a year depending on the school and what they have on their list.

My 2018 got his first D1 offer and a couple of D2 in fall of 2016 but had mentally said he would commit around his 18th birthday, in September of 2017. Those coaches stayed in touch over the winter, just occasionally calling or emailing to check in.

Once his junior season started (we play summer ball) contact picked up. Some was initiated by son, who had a list of about 12 coaches that he texted IMMEDIATELY after each game with a basic update (this is an example of what he might send):

Hi, I pitched tonight vs. ??? Threw 72 pitches in 7 innings, struck out 8 and walked 1. My curve ball was really working well. One of my teammates had a home run to help us to a 6-5 win. It was a great team win. Hope things are good with you, hope to talk soon.

One coach came to Iowa from 16-hour drive away and spent a few weeks here going to a lot of games, including my son's. He called weekly. Not sure what they found to talk about, but they did.

The school son ended up choosing reached out his sophomore year and invited him to a camp, then we didn't hear much from them. But during his junior year, we saw the HC, PC and RC all at different games and he started getting an occasional text or letter from various coaches. They invited him to another camp this fall, and made an offer after he pitched two innings.

Most schools asked if he had offers. He usually answered honestly, including when they asked who had offered. Quite honestly, there were usually multiple college coaches at the games and they kind of felt like little reunions — I once mistook a covey of college coaches gossiping behind home plate for a bunch of dads from the other team.

Honestly, it is a mixed bag of process/outcomes.  Sometimes the process can go VERY quick, other times REALLY slow, and still other times teams can come out of nowhere.  It all depends on what THEIR needs are, and what THEIR time frame is.  They are the driver's of the bus, and trust me, that can be very maddening.  Don't get discouraged if they are slow to get back to you, or if you call, leave a message, and they don't get back to you.  These coaches are busy, and if they want you, they will find a way to get back to you.

As many have said on the boards previously, most of the time you'll know if they are recruiting you.  

In Ryan's experience, he was slow played by a lot of schools.  (They would check on him with coaches, text him, follow him, etc.)  However the schools that really wanted him didn't slow play a thing.  They came right after him.

Like ryno says - its just different in every case.

As for the ask about other offers, its not uncommon at all.  We always chose to tell them the answer they were seeking as well as any time frame associated with other offers.  Some didn't like it, cause they were wanting to go slower and hoping for no competition, but we always answered that question.

rynoattack posted:

Honestly, it is a mixed bag of process/outcomes.  Sometimes the process can go VERY quick, other times REALLY slow, and still other times teams can come out of nowhere.  It all depends on what THEIR needs are, and what THEIR time frame is.  They are the driver's of the bus, and trust me, that can be very maddening.  Don't get discouraged if they are slow to get back to you, or if you call, leave a message, and they don't get back to you.  These coaches are busy, and if they want you, they will find a way to get back to you.

As many have said on the boards previously, most of the time you'll know if they are recruiting you.  

In Ryan's experience, he was slow played by a lot of schools.  (They would check on him with coaches, text him, follow him, etc.)  However the schools that really wanted him didn't slow play a thing.  They came right after him.

This was how it went for my 2018. A lot of schools slow played him for a couple of years before offering, but the school he ended up with came in late, fast, and hard. Time from first contact to offer was a couple of weeks and they didn't play around with the offer. The minute they showed interest they were trying to get him on campus as soon as possible.

Your son is a 2019. He should be getting invites to come see the school and possible offers by this time, especially from power programs, if he is considered an A or B recruit. Possibly they have others in mind that haven't decided on committing.

JMO

My son just got this email This week from the power 5 school , I guess it’s a good  thing . 

We would love to have you come to @@@@@@ We do not currently have any camps going on because we are in the middle of our Fall practice. Let’s see if we can get you here on a weekend in November or December for a visit and couple it with a basketball game for you to go to.

C2019: I agree with your assessment, but if your son is interested, why wouldn't you have him call the coach who sent the email? Assuming your son is a 2019, coach can return the call. 

visit and see basketball game sounds like there could be an offer at end of wkd to me.   

gunner34 posted:

visit and see basketball game sounds like there could be an offer at end of wkd to me.   

we just set up the visit for Nov! will see what happens 

c2019 posted:

gunner34 posted:

visit and see basketball game sounds like there could be an offer at end of wkd to me.   

we just set up the visit for Nov! will see what happens 

Good luck!

RC told my son that on the visit that we would tour the facilities. they have a scrimmage that afternoon so we would watch practice then go the the Basketball game. just curios on what my son can and cant do ,what to expect?  for example can he swing a bat?  NOTE! we are new at this , when my daughter was being recruited for  D3 softball, the process was different and she was a Senior . I was telling my son just to be open minded and hear what they had to say. 

c2019 posted:

RC told my son that on the visit that we would tour the facilities. they have a scrimmage that afternoon so we would watch practice then go the the Basketball game. just curios on what my son can and cant do ,what to expect?  for example can he swing a bat?  NOTE! we are new at this , when my daughter was being recruited for  D3 softball, the process was different and she was a Senior . I was telling my son just to be open minded and hear what they had to say. 

He can't do anything except make a good impression.  He can't swing bats, throw, etc., so best to dress smartly, have some thoughtful questions ready and absorb as much as he can from the coaches, current players and what he sees on the campus.  Your family will be provided up to three tickets to the basketball game (NCAA limits), and ALL expenses, including any food, will be on you guys.

Son made several unofficials along his path.  Some had football games attached to them where we would attend a "tailgate".  In each case, we had to pay a fair market value for our portion of the tailgate (anywhere from $5 - $10 per person) and all this was logged as you'd sign in.

Unofficial visits are great opportunities to begin gauging how your son feels about the overall "vibe" of the campus, school, team and coaches.

 Oh, and whatever he does, don't walk around with a ball cap on backwards.  Went to one of my son's fall games the other week and there were three guys on an unofficial.  Guess which one looked like a tool . . .

Enjoy.

Your itinerary is very similar to one of sons' visit to a Big 10. Only son was able to attend Engineering classes on Friday with a current player & eat lunch in dining hall with more players & assistant coaches. This is where you catch the real campus vibe. First red flag, when they just pointed to the freshman dorm where players live & did not walk us thru. (Looked like a 1970's elementary school from the outside, may have changed now, our visit fall of 2013) Met with Head coach on Fri. afternoon. Sat am observed practice in the bubble with 3-4 other recruits & parents.  (Be cautious with talk around these parents~ we had one that kept hounding us & asking way too many questions of us, as if he saw us as competition). The basketball game was lots of fun. You sit in the recruit section & all the season ticket holders around you strike up conversation. Another opportunity to ask questions & get a feel for vibe of campus & community.  We were pulled from the game to have a 2 hour conversation with Head Coach. (I always pulled my chair back about 4-5" in the coaches office with these type of meetings, to keep focus on son & remind me to stay in the background!) Son did receive an offer @ end of meeting:  a preffered walk-on.  Son had researched the roster prior to the visit.  Son asked coach, "You have 7 guys just like me,  (RHP, >6'4" ) why do you want me?  Coach did not have a good answer. Sons' only communication had been with Pitching coach up to this point.  Remember PC is not the ultimate decision maker.  Son passed on this school, read between the lines.  Enjoy your visit, i would say dress in Khaki's & a collared polo & leave the baseball hat at home.  

Edited to add; Some may have different opinions on this; I asked the PC when he first picked us up & was driving to our appointment~ "So how many legacy kids does the team carry?"  PC choked on the coffee he was drinking & answered, 2-3!

Journey On posted:

Edited to add; Some may have different opinions on this; I asked the PC when he first picked us up & was driving to our appointment~ "So how many legacy kids does the team carry?"  PC choked on the coffee he was drinking & answered, 2-3!

Maybe a dumb question...What is a legacy kid?

Formal definition is a student at a college who has family ties to an alumni of that institution, with college admissions being in the field in which legacy preferences are most controversially used. (CNBC 9/8/17: Harvard incoming class 30% Legacy , The ND Observer 3/20/2015; Notre Dame incoming class 25% Legacy). Now let's weave sports into the mix, an alumni that donates > $XX,XXX ;  so kid can be "on the team".  It does exist.  I asked, only because my son is not a stud & these kids add more competition to the matrix, especially if considering a walk-on spot. On another note, Legacy can be great if looking for scholarship $$ at some colleges. My younger son received a $40,000 award @ my Alma Mater, totally unexpected & not attached to grades, declared major or family income.  Be sure to do your research everyone.

I'm familiar with legacy as it relates to regular admissions, but I had no idea this could tie into the sports recruiting equation...interesting.

Pretty sure it does Smitty - the more boxes that can be checked, the better.....

Plus a recruit should look out for legacies and sons of MLBers he might have to compete against to get on field. Guess who gets first shot regardless of talent unless you’re a top recruit.

When son was a freshman, 3 players were from alumni parents and one from a ML pitcher.

This is not uncommon. I do believe at many schools there are funds available for scholarships for children of alumni and if you play a sport, that's a plus for the coaches budget.