Let's say there are a couple of D1 schools that one would be willing to redshirt at their first year if given an opportunity to join the team. Is this something you mention to the recruiting coordinator when reaching out to them? Or is this something you never mention and just hope you can get an offer to be a part of the team?
Replies sorted oldest to newest
In my opinion you might as well tell them you'd be happy with a PWO offer.
I honestly don't know if this is something that families mention. Personally I wouldn't (or rather I would not have let my kids do this).
But, if you're willing to do this, why not just ask about taking a gap year and then attending? During the year your son would be at the school red-shirting he has limited his options while coaches are still out recruiting and trying to field the best team.
It's not your son's decision to redshirt its the coaches. But that does not mean it's not discussed beforehand.
I wouldn't go there during recruiting.
@nycdad posted:I honestly don't know if this is something that families mention. Personally I wouldn't (or rather I would not have let my kids do this).
But, if you're willing to do this, why not just ask about taking a gap year and then attending? During the year your son would be at the school red-shirting he has limited his options while coaches are still out recruiting and trying to field the best team.
Well I was thinking in a red shirt situation the coaches would have control over the player's development. In a gap year situation the player would either need to find a program to train with or train on their own.
My husband red shirted (different sport). He was able to train with the team, he just didn't travel/compete. Is this still how it is and for baseball? Or are there more limitations that I'm missing?
@Momball11 posted:My husband red shirted (different sport). He was able to train with the team, he just didn't travel/compete. Is this still how it is and for baseball? Or are there more limitations that I'm missing?
Yes it is but not for everyone and most coaches save the redshirt for injuries.
If you are one of the 35 (or whatever the roster limit is) but you don't get in any games, you get a redshirt at the end of the year. If the coach has a plan that that is what he's going to do with you, he could tell you up front. Before the pandemic rule changes, I heard of some players that were told that, didn't end well.
The other factor is scholarship:
- if you have an athletic scholarship, you are a counter for the roster limit and practice with the team; if you don't get into a game, you don't use a year of eligibility, i.e. you have been redshirted.
- not all roster counters have athletic scholarships. However, if you are brought in without an athletic scholarship and then not put on the roster, they might call it "redshirting" but you can't practice with the team.
In the current situation, a coach can bring in transfers from jucos and from other 4-year schools. Why would he plan to deliberately redshirt a freshman? Either he thinks he can use you now, or he doesn't. Why would a coach look for future potential, when he can find current skilled players in the transfer portal? He can help them develop, too.
In other words, why would you say to a college coach that you know you will not be good enough to play for him right away?
I like all these angles to think about. Thank you to those that have shared your thoughts. I've also posed this question to some friend coaches and they've shared some thoughts too. A common thing they've shared is the challenge in recruiting. Some programs recruit talented 13-15yo, but that age is based on projection and sometimes what they projected ends up bring wrong. Or they tap into the transfer portal/juco, but that can also be risky too as the transfer portal is also where players that didn't pan out sometimes go. It's like measureables....some players have eye catching numbers at showcases, but in reality they don't perform as well in game situations. Sometimes there's a late bloomer high schooler stud, but scholarship funds are already promised to others. They hope that a walk-on offer and words will be lucrative enough to get that stud. Sometimes they unexpectedly lose a player to the draft or to the transfer portal. Roster sizes are large enough that they do specifically recruit players that are not quite developed, but project to be after some time.
@Momball11 posted:I like all these angles to think about. Thank you to those that have shared your thoughts. I've also posed this question to some friend coaches and they've shared some thoughts too. A common thing they've shared is the challenge in recruiting. Some programs recruit talented 13-15yo, but that age is based on projection and sometimes what they projected ends up bring wrong. Or they tap into the transfer portal/juco, but that can also be risky too as the transfer portal is also where players that didn't pan out sometimes go. It's like measureables....some players have eye catching numbers at showcases, but in reality they don't perform as well in game situations. Sometimes there's a late bloomer high schooler stud, but scholarship funds are already promised to others. They hope that a walk-on offer and words will be lucrative enough to get that stud. Sometimes they unexpectedly lose a player to the draft or to the transfer portal. Roster sizes are large enough that they do specifically recruit players that are not quite developed, but project to be after some time.
The following youtube might be of interest to you
Definitely have watched that video and all the others. It's tough when you're searching for a school based on academic fit, when it seems like all your peers are focusing on baseball.
@Momball11 posted:Definitely have watched that video and all the others. It's tough when you're searching for a school based on academic fit, when it seems like all your peers are focusing on baseball.
If your son wants a better academic fit, maybe D3 would be a better option.
@Momball11 posted:Well I was thinking in a red shirt situation the coaches would have control over the player's development.
Development is the key word. It seems that most programs these days don't invest in "development." Instead, the focus is on finding players that can help the coach win "right now" so that the coach doesn't lose their job.
@Momball11 posted:Definitely have watched that video and all the others. It's tough when you're searching for a school based on academic fit, when it seems like all your peers are focusing on baseball.
Momball11,
I'm not sure what your son's experience has been to date. Instead of chasing baseball opportunities and trying to shoehorn the academics.....why not chase the academic fits that have baseball opportunities. It took us a while to figure this out, but my son had far more coaches recruiting him because of academic fit rather than baseball fit (and he was a pretty good baseball player) when you target academically focused schools. When we realized this, we started a second wave of recruiting that was vastly more productive and gave my son many more options that he was interested in. Forget about his peers because they are chasing their fit. Define your son's fit (academic) and go after those schools.
JMO.
@TPM posted:If your son wants a better academic fit, maybe D3 would be a better option.
To OP: Just remember that if you decide D3 might fit better, realize that red shirting at D3 (different from D1 and D2) means not practicing with the team once the season starts. so kind of hard to get in coach led development.
@fenwaysouth thank you for the advice. Definitely prioritizing academics over baseball. I'm a former educator that has taught thousands of high schoolers. I've observed that grades basically come down to three factors: intellect, effort, and rigor.
High intellect in an easy course doesn't require much effort for a good grade. Low intellect in a tough course would require hardwork for a good grade. Ideally the level of rigor shouldn't be beyond the student's combined intellect/effort abilities and it should still provide growth opportunities.
My son has been tested to have a slightly below average IQ. He primarily takes the regular level courses, with a few "honors" courses in areas that will challenge him within his capabilities. He has a 504 qualifying disability that provides him with accommodations. He has always struggled to perform well on standardized tests, which is why colleges offering test optional applications are wonderful. He has worked very hard to have a 3.8GPA.
So he's not overlooking schools because they are maybe D3 for baseball. He's truly looking for a school that will provide him with the right level of academic rigor, provide academic support/accommodations for his disability, have programs he'd be interested in studying that would lead to a solid career, and also not run him into the ground with debt. He's narrowed his list down significantly based on these considerations, and that is why he'd be willing to redshirt in order to have an opportunity to be apart of the baseball team. So he is indeed chasing the academic fit programs that have baseball too.
Wow
