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Need advice on how to keep son motivated. Learned a hard lesson last week. Been talking to JUCO coach since February every week. They had offered a partial scholarship -son got a full-ride offer from someone else and let this coach know. Coach asked him not to make any decision until he could come see him again. He came and saw him told him they were working on another offer. Son called him and they gave the money away to someone else. He feels like he was an idiot to wait and maybe now he's let everything else pass him by. He has good grades, high ACT and will be playing summer ball with a very good team. what should he do?
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He would live on campus. He didn't feel connection with the coach at the other school. The other school has already signed 9 other players from our area that he knows plus those he doesn't know about or who will be returning next year. Is he crazy to wait until this summer and see what happens? Every kid on his summer league team last year received some type of offer by the end of the season. In Tennessee, we have hope scholarship so he has already been awarded academic money. Not sure how I should advise him. If he wants to do both, baseball & academics, does he take what he's been offered or give up and hope another offer comes along?
Am I correct in assuming the " full ride " that's still on the table is from a Juco as well? I am also assuming your son is an 08'.

It has been my experience that in the midwest, most of the JUCO scholarship money is gone by the time summer rolls around.

quote:
Every kid on his summer league team last year received some type of offer by the end of the season


When is the end of the season? Were these kids already graduated seniors or to-be seniors who got offered early?

Does your son have a plan " B " if the hope of another offer doesnt come around?
Last edited by shortstopmom
If everything is a fit I say go where they fell in love with you first. Many kids wait for a better offer and it ends up backfiring on them.We have talked to many players and they all want to go to the top schools and all want to start and all want money,I think its hard to get it all.
If a school really comes after you, its a good fit, you like it,and it works academically and socially etc.I say go.And full rides? where is that happening anymore?
If I am understanding this correctly, that's the problem. There has been a good offer,..but not a good fit:
quote:
He didn't feel connection with the coach at the other school. The other school has already signed 9 other players from our area that he knows plus those he doesn't know about or who will be returning next year.



Should the player settle now or hope that something else ( which might be a better fit ), will come along later on this summer?

Plain and simple,....it is a gamble.
Unfortunately I am not familiar enough with how the JUCOS work in your area.

In our neck of the woods, there are commuter JUCOS
that can offer everything but fees. Fees run around $500 a year. When you are getting books and tuition paid for,....and can live at home,..that's pretty close to a full ride. Wink Some players tend to go in together on the rent & share an apartment, which of course is an added expense.

Other JUCOs that have dorms, can offer everything but room and board, which usually runs somewhere in the ballpark of approx. $3600 a year.
Last edited by shortstopmom
quote:
maybe now he's let everything else pass him by.


Has there been other interest? If so, is your son interested in any of them?

Many will say to go where they want you most! Smile

( Please excuse all of the questions. Just want to make sure I understand all of the facts before giving any advice or opinions. I have an 08 son and he has been going through the college recruiting process, too. )
Last edited by shortstopmom
Full rides are not unusual for JUCO's. I believe Division 1 JUCO's can give 24 full scholarships, which include tuition, room, board, and possibly books and fees also. A player on my son's high school team just received an 80% scholly from a JUCO with the promise of it being upped to 100% if he becomes a starter.
Several D3 schools contacted him in the beginning of the season - he wasn't very interested in them due to the size of the school. He' like to go somewhere that is a little larger than his high school. JUCO coach offered to pay for everything but the food he put in his mouth. (they have dorms and this would've included his academic money as well). The boys on his summer team last year that signed had graduated in May and were still waiting for an offer. These kids signed with wide spectrum of schools, JUCO, D1, D2, D3. Son is talented - coaches input not mine. Fast 60 yd 6.7, RH pitcher, clocked avg 88-89 (fastball, changeup, curve)utility player (pitches, OF, & IF), coaches dream because he leaves everything on the field no excuses. He's thinking that maybe he just needs to give up his dream that maybe there isn't a place for him. He trusted the other coach and feels let down.
We went though this exact thing. My son didnt like the small schools either. He wanted something with more of a college feel. Although he is going to a private school now but there are about 4,000 students where as some of the D3 and NAIA that looked at him had 1200,1500,2000, he feltthey were too small. He was good with the 4,000 . But he was going to go to a junior college. If hes not getting the looks he wants thats what might be the best for him. Thats what my son was going to do. a lot of the JCs are heavily recruited. And at the end of 2 years if nothing happens then he can just go on to get his degree.and go to a huge school just for the fun.He sounds like he has good skills.somtimes kids just get missed in the system. It only takes one coach to see him and like him. Keep moving forward.
Hey nothing wrong with going the JUCO route. My son plays at a mid level D1 and the two best position players on the team came in this season as JUCO transfers. One, a Catcher, has scouts watching him and he may just get drafted as he has a high throw-out percentage, is fast, and is tied for the conference lead in home runs.

Like it was said before, some kids fall through the cracks, develop late, or just haven't found the right environment to excel in. Plus, many times you can get more money by going the JUCO route and then if you get recruited by a 4 yr school they are usually looking for immediate help at that position and you generally have an edge over most incoming FR.
Last edited by Michael'sDad
quote:
Originally posted by mcphesh:
yes - it's still on the table. Didn't feel a good connection with the school which is why he didn't go with the better offer.


This seems to me to be a really key point. On this site, we preach "find the right fit, find the right fit, find the right fit!"

Your son is saying this isn't the right fit! Sounds like a boy who is pretty grounded for 17/18. I think its good that you are listening to him.

No matter how much money, if he won't be happy (and he seems to know that), he won't be happy. It isn't all about the money.

Help him to keep searching for the right place for him...such that if baseball were to fade away, he will still be a happy guy to be at that school. NOTE: See recent update by HeyBatter in the Golden Threads/"Got THE Call" thread.

(One thing caught my eye, 88-89 with 3 pitches IS D1 material...anything going on there?).

Good luck and let us know how it goes. BTW, you have the guru of all gurus living in your home town..."Fungo." Do you know him? He could give TREMENDOUS advice if you do. Wink
I am some what surprised by your sons attitude. He had better get used to being dissappointed. Things don't always go your way.
Good fit is an interesting phrase. How do you know what is a good fit ? In my opinion there are lots of good fits for any college athlete.
Its like dating. The girl on her best behaviour always seems perfect but not always the case. Most people say the education should be a good fit and that opens up a wide range of schools.
If a player doesn't "feel" it's right, no amount of scholarship can make that feeling go away.
Mine was offered everything but the kitchen sink at a D1 and he didn't "feel" it was right. He didn't connect with the pitching coach. Good choice, he is no longer there. Must have been something he "felt" that was not right.

There are still opportunities out there, the draft and exit interviews haven't taken place yet.

Your son can commit to JUCO and take another opportunity other than at a JUCO. JUCO is a great place to start out at, D1 schools often turn to JUCOs for good players.

Get seen this summer. Have him speak to his summer coach about helping him find a place to play where he feels it's right.

JMO.
justbaseball ...
quote:
No matter how much money, if he won't be happy (and he seems to know that), he won't be happy. It isn't all about the money.


Amen to that. After coming to this site and connecting with a lot of different folks, it has come to my attention that quite a few players thought it was the "right fit" and were wrong and were/are miserable. So if a player senses that things won't be right, how much better to face it now and go in a different direction than signing on for something they will come to regret.
quote:
I am some what surprised by your sons attitude.


Not me, great attitude with a lot of maturity IMO!

quote:
He had better get used to being dissappointed. Things don't always go your way.


I agree, but that has nothing to do with looking at the whole picture as best as you can with the information he has right now.

quote:
Good fit is an interesting phrase. How do you know what is a good fit ? In my opinion there are lots of good fits for any college athlete.


Very true! But a "bad fit," if obvious to the boy, is a good thing to recognize on his part.

If the boy doesn't feel right about it, that says a lot. Money isn't everything, not even the most important thing. I say he's doing a fine job given the information presented to us.
Last edited by justbaseball
I think that most people make uninformed informed sesicions.
When you talk about a 4 year BB program things change more often than not. Most college players I know have gone through coach changes and often that means player changes. What happened to the right fit then.
One friend had his coaches change 3 times in 5 years another saw a coach change and was told to look for 3 new roomates. That one was after his JR year. All three were released at exit.
I believe that the education should be the right fit and the BB a close second.
I know more guys who thought they had the right fit and didn't. The old transfer #s bear that out. The new rules were partly designed to stop transfers.

Not sure why you make the statement he is doing a fine job. His mother says she needs advice to keep him motivated. She may not like my response but I think he sounds inmature.
Last edited by BobbleheadDoll
BHD,
Did your son make a good decision? Was it based on a good feeling, money, education or the baseball program.

You must know a lot of players who might not have thought out their decision. know of only a few. Transfers, cuts, coaching changes is something that's part of college baseball. The ones who usually get that most likely shouldn't have been there in the first place, for whatever reason. That's why there should be lots of thought that goes into it.

An adult calling a young player immature on a website(especially since you don't know him)usually tells alot about a person. You don't seem to be a happy camper lately, don't take out your frustration on others.
On the particular point of the school he doesn't want to go too because it doesn't feel right, his mother is asking for advice, not him. And since when is asking for advice immature? WOW! We've got about 100% of immature hsbaseballweb posters in that case. Frown

Parents have a tendency to get caught up in scholarship $$ and getting the highest paying deal. There's something to be said for that, but in the long run if a school doesn't feel right to a kid, he should probably not go there.

I believe it is mature (based on the information provided) of that young man to recognize that and not get caught up in the offer amount. I say, with the little I know (and you too), BRAVO!

You certainly cannot be saying to pick a school based on a guess of what it ?might? be, coaching wise, 2-3 years from now. If anyone can do that, I'd like to talk to them about the stock market too.
Last edited by justbaseball
If saying he felt the boy was immature is a put down then I better move to another country--- do we not have freedom of speech any longer here in the USA--as I said above --it is apparently OK for TPM to put down others but it is not ok for others--I wonder why?


At least he says it on here not in PM's to others who are not the person involved--I much more prefer upfront and honest than sneaky and snakey
Last edited by TRhit
TR,

I do beleive as many that you sit in waiting all day, for an argument. It makes your day. I am not sure why you can call out others but don't like it when it's done to you. You need to REALLY sit back and think about this one.

I did not say anything different than JBB posted, but you do not have the GUTS to take him on, or Gotwood, or Fungo, or Infielddad, Dad04, BlueDog, etc, etc.

You prey on kids and moms. That's a cyber bully of the worst kind. You also hijacked this thread, again.

It's been indicated to you not to start an argument with me, everyone knows what follows. But you continue to show disrespect for what the owner of the site asks of you.

I guess you have nothing else better to do.

Done with you TR, your posts ONLY add to you looking foolish, you may not realize it, but it does.

I just said what I felt.
Last edited by TPM
quote:
Originally posted by BobbleheadDoll:
I don't know about TR but I take my nap when I read your posts.
You are way off base but thn I always questiond your ability to read and understand what you read.


You probably should "questiond" her/our ability to read and understand your posts. Its pretty tough to understand sentences like this:

quote:
I think that most people make uninformed informed sesicions.
JBb,
Ah don't pay them no attention, we all can read, I think everyone will get it.

One thing about Julie, she won't put up with ANYONE putting another websters son down, whatever was said, especially to a new websters.

Go enjoy your pitcher today, I am shortly off to do the same. Big Grin
Last edited by TPM
TPM as usual you try to insult my son.

I will answer your malicious question though. He loves his school, team and Charleston. He is 1 year away from graduation which I always thought was why you went to college.
His roomates and girl friend are fantastic and he is talking about taking his masters after this year in Charleston. A great decision as I have said before. He is staying in Charleston all summer and has an offer to P coach a nationally ranked elite BB team. Every year he gets a nice cheque from the Big South for academic s as well.
I may never get him to come home. As for BB he just got a nice increase in his BB money.
Last edited by BobbleheadDoll
quote:
Originally posted by BobbleheadDoll:
I knew you wouldn't understand that. It means you think you are informed when you are not.


And you are not informed of all of the above players circumstances, yet you formed an opinion and called a player immature.

Giveit a rest. I think you need a nap also.
TPM

I am so glad you feel so almighty powerful---you are so off base it is scary---let it go --you are one very insulting person, not only to me but others---

You can say what you want I am very comfortable in my skin much more so than I think you are as you continually grasp for approval

I stand up for a poster and his opinion and you go off half baked on me and my character---not very rational-- not very rational at all
quote:
Originally posted by TRhit:
TPM

Bobblehead offered his opinions---just like you always do and as others do---look at how he prefaced what he said about the immaturity---I think he did it in quite gentlemanly manner


And on behalf of the Ladies' Guild ...
Seems to me/us that that is all TPM was doing as well. But again, as so often you do, you attack her. This wasn't your 'battle' if there was one, (and neither is it mine), but you insist on sticking your nose into other people's debates and insulting/attacking people (some more than others) and so I am chosing to stick my nose into your insulting comment. I agree ... we ALL agree ... that we should be free to express our ideas/opinions/feelings on this site but as has been stated, not at the expense of a player, and intimating that the young man in question is immature is insulting to the player. Those are the feelings/opinions that are not intended for this site no matter what term you use to describe the comment.

And what one person chooses to share with another on a PM is their business, and if the recipient chooses to pass the content of a PM on to another poster ... well, guess that person's honor needs to be questioned as well. Your repeated comments about PM's from TPM to others are getting old and stale. Move on.
TPM let me give you another lesson in reading comprehension. My words were "sounds like he is immature"
That is not a definitive statement and is an opinion based on what the mother posted. I have reread her posts and soory it sounds like he is imature. She herself said he felt like an idiot and that he had let every thing pass him by. I certainly don't think he is an idiot but his reaction to a lost opportunity sounds immature to me. That is not a sin but he should understand that doors open and they close. My son had that happen to him with UNLV and he said "NEXT". Yes he wanted to go to Vegas but he had to move on.
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