recently contacted

Tooster:

I would not worry about not hearing for 3 days. I'd suggest you son email the coach sometime next week and confirm his interest.

Has he been accepted at the D2? Has he been accepted at the D3's? a coach that is interested enough may be able to still get him in after the application deadline but it's not a sure thing. Are your son's academics strong?

He has applied to a large amount of schools mostly d3 but has not been accepted at any yet, mostly due to lack of complete applications. He is still waiting for 2nd term grades and his teacher recommendation letter. His grades are around 2.9, sat are 1170 verbal and math. He also has never tried out for the HS team although he plans to this spring

quote:

Originally posted by Tooster:
He also has never tried out for the HS team although he plans to this spring

Hello and welcome to the forum. You will find a wealth of knowledge here.

I am sure there must be a reason, but why has your son never tried out for his HS team? Did he this year as I imagine tryouts are soon even for northern teams?

Late bloomer would be an understatement if he has never played in high school? Most D111's are potentially interested in any Tom, Dick, or Harry that could potentially pay between 40 to 50,000 a year so don't get too excited.

quote:

Originally posted by Mark B:
Late bloomer would be an understatement if he has never played in high school? Most D111's are potentially interested in any Tom, Dick, or Harry that could potentially pay between 40 to 50,000 a year so don't get too excited.

Wow, thats a hell of a statement.

Mark B...

In addition to being incredibly insensitive, that statement is, simply, untrue. I think the coaches in the NESCAC, for instance, would strongly disagree. In addition to outstanding baseball, these schools offer an outstanding education. Of course, they are not alone. There are many, many outstanding DIII baseball programs that are only interested in very good baseball players, men of character, and outstanding students. Oh, and the financial packages can be very good. The beauty is, when "Tom, Dick, or Harry" graduate from these fine institutions, they can write complete sentences.

Do your homework.

You don't have to play on a " traditional " school team to get the attention of a college . A lot of D-2 and NAIA , and d-3 , JUCO have not signed all their 2011's yet . Saying that , it is late in the game , especially if you are not playing this spring . Personally , I would have your son contact all the colleges that spoke with him at the showcase . You can workout/ practice with NAIA and JUCO programs . They can then offer you right then . We home schooled until this year . My son got his attention at workouts and showcases . Not too many coaches came to our baseball games . I don't have all the answers , most people on this vent , have way more experience than I do with all this . I just know that we contacted coaches direct , and actually practiced w the teams during the spring last two years . I believe that is your best option at this point . One of our players last year ( SR ). Went to the workouts with my son , he was offered while there . They did not know anything about him , until he worked out with them .You never get the question that you don't ask , answered . Good Luck .

My son is going to try out for the HS team this spring as a SR. I believe there were a number of reasons why my son did not try out. He has always played hockey year round and I believe he considered himself more of a hockey player then a baseball player. After trying out (twice) for the HS hockey team and not making it he probably did not have as much confidence in himself or faith in the tryout system.
That being said he now displays loads of confidence and has been working dilligently toward his goal for the last 6 months. He has also had some Jouco interest and that may be the route he takes.

quote:
Originally posted by Mark B:
Late bloomer would be an understatement if he has never played in high school? Most D111's are potentially interested in any Tom, Dick, or Harry that could potentially pay between 40 to 50,000 a year so don't get too excited.

I am fairly new to this Web site and I have learned a load of information, surfing through
the different subjects posted here by so many knowledgable folks(and some less). With a daughter already attending a private institution .I have absolutely no intentions of going that cost route again. I give my son all the credit in the world for attending these showcases (without HS experience)and not only performing as well as many of the so called HS experienced players but actually getting noticed and contacted by a D2 program. Perhaps Mark B. could have noted that acheivment as well and perhaps "latebloomer" may be an understatement. How else would you refer to a player that has an epiphany late in the summer before his SR year and decides he wants to play college ball.

quote:

Originally posted by Mark B:
Late bloomer would be an understatement if he has never played in high school? Most D111's are potentially interested in any Tom, Dick, or Harry that could potentially pay between 40 to 50,000 a year so don't get too excited.

I, quite possibly, could not disagree more with your statement. When you make a blanket statement like that you come across as ignorant. How do you come off as lumping all D3 schools into that statement!?!

Nothing could be further from the truth!

Mark B , maybe you were just having a " Bad Day " because that statement was ignorant and frankly mean spirited .

Yes, it's a rather broad statement, but there is definitely some truth to it. I've said it, too. Some schools need warm bodies. It's up to you to figure out whether they want your kid as a 'cornerstone' or a 'filler'.

There are schools at every level of the sport (D1, D2, D3, NAIA, JUCO) who do not take things seriously. This site is designed for serious ballplayers.

I assume anyone who is serious and has done a modicum of research can figure out which schools are serious about their baseball/academics and which ones are not.

Blanket derogatory statements do not serve anyone well here imho. We need more constructive input than that.

quote:

Originally posted by BB13:
Mark B...

In addition to being incredibly insensitive, that statement is, simply, untrue. I think the coaches in the NESCAC, for instance, would strongly disagree. In addition to outstanding baseball, these schools offer an outstanding education. Of course, they are not alone. There are many, many outstanding DIII baseball programs that are only interested in very good baseball players, men of character, and outstanding students. Oh, and the financial packages can be very good. The beauty is, when "Tom, Dick, or Harry" graduate from these fine institutions, they can write complete sentences.

Do your homework.

Touche'

Frankly, his grades are a little low(SAT's). He probably hasn't heard back because they are hesitant about his ability to handle a more rigorous academic load (from HS to College) and more stressful athletic load. Or they could be busy with the Spring season starting up. Regardless, JUCO may be a very good route for him as he adjusts to the incredible balancing act of an athlete.

The truth is, D3's are different in different regions. In some areas, the D3 schools leave a little something to be desired academically, but in New England, D3 does not mean poor academics. Aren't Tufts, Babson and WPI D3 schools? Each of these have an average GPA for incoming HS students of at least 3.7!

Also, some D3's have a reputation of over-recruiting with the more cynical of us thinking it's to fill an enrollment quota. But again, it's not fair to paint all D3's this way.

[quote]Frankly, his grades are a little low(SAT's).[Originally posted by leftysidearm]

Actually he visited with at least 5 northeast state and private colleges and coaches that were all D3 programs and they all said his grades and Sat scores were more then acceptable.

I also wanted to note that he has since been contacted by the D2 program and has been invited to
visit and watch practice.

Great news! Hope the visit goes well.

Thanks Twotex

Mark B, perhaps said it too bluntly. But yes, D3's, like d1's, D2's, and NAIA's all recruit fillers. Don't fool yourself on that one Mark B. Every level does it as schools generally make $2 for every $1 dollar they spend on athletics.

All levels do it. It's up to you to figure out who is serious about having him play, and who needs warm bodies to shag balls and play against the starters. D3's more that others have no cap on their recruiting #'s so some schools are notorious for using sports to recruit students. They recruit their starters, and then attract potential students with promises of being on the team. Which they will, they'll just never play.

quote:

Originally posted by nopunchiejudys:
You don't have to play on a " traditional " school team to get the attention of a college . A lot of D-2 and NAIA , and d-3 , JUCO have not signed all their 2011's yet . Saying that , it is late in the game , especially if you are not playing this spring . Personally , I would have your son contact all the colleges that spoke with him at the showcase . You can workout/ practice with NAIA and JUCO programs . They can then offer you right then . We home schooled until this year . My son got his attention at workouts and showcases . Not too many coaches came to our baseball games . I don't have all the answers , most people on this vent , have way more experience than I do with all this . I just know that we contacted coaches direct , and actually practiced w the teams during the spring last two years . I believe that is your best option at this point . One of our players last year ( SR ). Went to the workouts with my son , he was offered while there . They did not know anything about him , until he worked out with them .You never get the question that you don't ask , answered . Good Luck .

Not under NCAA rules can you practice with college teams. This was changed about 3 years ago. You can go in and do a workout to see if they are interested. Just to let all know.

Pony ?? Do JUCO and NAIA live by the same rules as D -1, 2 and 3 ? Clearing House ? Etc... I know that you can get a GED and get accepted at a JUCO ? Clearing House only has D-1 and D-2 listed . I don't know the answer , but players do workout with JUCO and NAIA programs . So I'm " assuming " that they have different rules ? If the are under the same rules , I would like to change the meaning of my post , to state that we went to a " WORKOUT " .

nopunchiejudys,
I think your post was fine.

Pony,
D1 and D3 don't allow prospective student athletes to tryout, workout, or practice with the team. D2 does allow one 2 hour session (13.11.2.1)

quote:

Originally posted by 3FingeredGlove:
nopunchiejudys,
I think your post was fine.

Pony,
D1 and D3 don't allow prospective student athletes to tryout, workout, or practice with the team. D2 does allow one 2 hour session (13.11.2.1)

I was trying to say that but was in a hurry. Thanks for fixing it. Most people don't know and I was trying to say no to practice but workout/tryout ok as to them seeing if they want you where you do drills but not with their team.
On the D2 part some states college rules are added to the NCAA as well to say no with practice. (This is under insurance at the college thing as it was explained to me this past year by a Alabama college coach). Not sure about the rest of the States or if he really knew as well.

quote:

Originally posted by Tooster:
I also wanted to note that he has since been contacted by the D2 program and has been invited to
visit and watch practice.

That's great Tooster! Hope that goes well. I'm sure your guy is not alone in that hockey / baseball conundrum. Glad he had the confidence to get back in the old ball game !

visit update: We Visited with the asstistant coach, He described the program and there interest in my son. During that time there was some Q and A. We then toured the athletic facilities. We had lunch with the assistant coach and were supposed to tour the campus with a player(we missed connection with the player and the assistant coach showed us the campus). We then visited with the head coach had some more Q and A.(most of our questions were already answered by AC). Basically they are inviting my son to camp in the fall with an opportunity to earn a roster spot.(no scholarship money yet as it has already been commited). They would like to have him back for an overnite in spring, they would also like to see some video of HS season(if he makes team) and HS schedule to possibly attend a game.It was termed as an unofficial visit.

Tooster:

The first thing I’d say is that some of the things most of us think we know about college recruiting don’t apply to left handed pitchers, particularly those above 6’.

Without any disrespect to all of the hard working kids out there playing and succeeding academically at schools around the country, many programs would be willing to take a look at a big left handed pitcher with a fresh arm. His grades and SATs are good enough to give him some options. It seems to me from the little we know of your son as a baseball player, a college staff might be able to project him as a contributor down the road.

I’m still interested in where he’s applied, as most if not all schools have closed their applications. Has the D2 helped him apply? Lastly, I’d suggest you consider all factors as the D2 might not be a better situation then the D3’s, NAIA or JUCO options.

I wish you luck, please let us know how things progress with your son’s HS season and recruitment.

At the present time I would rather not mention any of the schools that are interested. In the beginning of the process we decided to apply to a large number of schools mostly mass state d3 programs. So if there is interest there, he will already have applied to those schools. The three schools that are interested in him 1 d2 1 d3 1 jouco(and he in them becuase there was another d3 program that contacted him)have rolling admissions or later deadlines.
Thanks for the well wishes 3rdgen

Tooster,

Check your private messages.

Many colleges have exception deadlines when recruiting athletes. My son also a 2011 is still uncommitted and in talks with a few schools, options are still available.
I would get your FAFSA paperwork completed thou.
Good Luck to your son Tooster.