Recruiting Underclassmen

Great advice as usual, PG. I think you touched on one of the reasons more colleges don't have a credibility problem with this issue... the affected kids and their families are too embarrassed to publicize it.

Boy, PG, this should be required reading for everyone on this site who has a rising player trying to be recruited.

While the NLI and one year scholarship provide  more protection for the player than the verbal, your point on winning and losing in college baseball needs to be emphasized, in my opinion.

Having an NLI in hand is not the end of the hard work, it is actually and truly the beginning of much harder work, with, depending on how we look at things, much more at stake for the player, team and coaches.

MidAtlanticDad,

A few years back, this site had a very powerful thread evolve when UNLV changed coaching staffs and every verbal, NLI and most returning players were shown the exit by the new coaching staff.

I would tend to doubt any of those recruited to fill the slots left vacant by the wholesale house cleaning cared too much about those impacted and affected.

UNLV just  a very few years later is  pretty darn good, reaching a regional this year with a good chance to have gone further had their #1 not needed TJ at that point(still a #1 pick in the MLB draft.) 

While it is not baseball, look at Louisville and Bobby Petrino. He is now, once again, a  "changed man" and a "hero." 

In my view, one could make a pretty compelling argument that the magic of "D1", winning and $$$$ is an awfully good deodorant for  too many programs and coaching staffs in the current scheme of recruiting in college athletics, no matter who might get hurt in the process and what mess is left behind.

I completely agree. Making the information public might not change anyone's decision making. No one thinks it will happen to them.

Good insight. My son was committed for 7 months to a D1 school and you're right, the liability is on the kid's side. Fortunately, he got better and ultimately decided to stay closer to home, decommitted and was fortunate enough to get another D1 offer a week later and he committed. I would like to think most coaches will stay with a kid if they offer them....but i know of a pitcher who got his 2 or 3 year (committted as a soph in HS) verbal commitment  pulled due to lack of ability to recover from a shoulder injury as he was unable to match his pre-injury velo numbers.  

Exactly Mid-Atlantic Dad. 

PG's story happened to my oldest son's travel teammate 4-5 years ago.  It is/was a top 10 program.   The family did not want it known that the college went back on their commitment.  As a matter of fact, they didn't want their name associated with the former program at all.  They quietly found a better situation for them just as the recruiting season was ending. 

It was a program that had previously contacted them but they had to say "no thanks" at the time he was committed.  Smartly, they did not burn any bridges and an opportunity became available. 

Great post PG, as always, you are correct and we should be thankful for your wisdom and willingness to share.  Recruiting is extrodinarily one-sided in favor of the schools.  Unfortunately, the early commit generally stops getting recruited by other schools, so other opportunities get lost because they are "committed."  Other opportunities that may have been better for everyone disappear and then the poor kid is left with no options and a pulled offer.  My son had an offer pulled with no warning and it was very, very difficult.  The only reason we didn't commit to the offer when it was made was that the head coach told us he thought he could come up with a little more, so we waited at his request, and stopped pursuing other similar opportunities from desirable schools.  In hindsight, we may have been better off as it gave us a window into the coach's character early on.  He has since committed elsewhere, but he had walked away from several overtures that he otherwise would not have. 

I know everyone wants to commit, and the timelines have moved up significantly in the past few years, but it's really risky for the kid, and the coach has almost no risk.  I wish there was a way to make it stop, but I can't think of what it would be.

I know several 2017s that have committed, I only think that one of them did the right thing. And even if he did there is still plenty of time for someone to get buyer's remorse. I think when the 2017 rankings come out a few of these kids will get a lot of action and make them wonder what if?

P.S.  Hey PG how soon on the 2017s?

I guess it is such a personal decision as when to accept an offer.  In my son's specific situation, he was initially offered by mid major in Sept. of junior year.  We specifically asked the head coach if there was a time limit on the offer.  He said no but he had to continue with his recruiting and if the spots filled up the offer would not be there.  I guess this is where you have to have a very good feel for the level of play your son is capable of.  I felt as if he had D1 potential at the SEC / ACC level based on his PG numbers and watching him play against other similar players that had already received offers from these type of schools.  Where there anxious moments?  Absolutely!  Did we do it the right way? I don't know.  All I can say is my son had his dream school and they continued to show interest throughout the winter and spring of his junior year.  They continued to tell him that they wanted to see him in the summer.  We waited patiently, all along knowing the one offer he had was hopefully still available.  We did a LOT of research into schools of interest.  I cannot tell you how valuable PG site is with college commitments listed, past and present.  I spent hours looking at how many scholarships a school typically took compared with the verbals offered in son's class.  I am not sure this is the correct way to go about the process, but it helped with my nervous energy.  Once WWBAs rolled around in July, son got the opportunity to pitch in front of his dream school and many others.  Multiple offers were made, and son went from a relative unknown to a very wanted commodity.  I do not say this to brag on my son, just trying to give others an idea of how our recruiting process went.  Yes, it was very stressful at times.  But, I truly believed the unbiased opinions of many baseball people that I trusted that had seen my son play.  They all told me they felt he was SEC / ACC material, though that really did not alleviate the worries because they were not the ones making the decision.  In the end, we put our faith in God and trusted that His plan would work out.  Yes, my kid busted his tail and I followed the advice given often on this board and got him on the best summer team in our area.  I will never be able to thank that organization enough for allowing my son the opportunities he was given, but I also will not take away from the accomplishments of my kid that he worked very hard at and shined when the bright lights were on him.  I certainly do not have the answer, but this is how our journey went.

Couldn't agree more.  There is a big difference between "what is right" and "what is right . . . now"!