Something To Prepare Your Son For

seaver41,

This is a really great topic and post.

The gap from HS to college, HS baseball to college baseball, HS dependence to college independence, HS academics to college academics, HS life to college distractions is much more than many realize.  When one combines all of them for a college student athlete, what seemed so promising when that NLI arrives in November becomes an insurmountable mountain once college and college baseball begin.

For every inning of "glitter" when the season starts in February, there are countless hours of intensive conditioning, mental competition, hard work,and constant focus within an environment which pulls them every direction and  which challenges nearly every freshman. The period from August to February pulls just about every ounce of mental strength and determination for a college freshman who is now pretty much on the bottom, when only 6-8 weeks before he thought he was at the top.

I would also point out it is not just D1 even though it is much more apparent at that level.  The top D3 programs  can have a very rigorous strength and conditioning programs. When those are combined with demanding academics, it can be awfully challenging, especially when the amount of tutoring and educational support is not not as plentiful as at the D1 levels.

timely post,

my son is a 2015 LHP and would like to play at a DI, or so he thinks.  Classified as a tweener he has an offer to go to a consistant top 15 JC.  He will be in the best shape of his life according to pitching coach with 6am workouts in the fall until xmas and similar conditioning throughout the spring.  or He can go to a top 20 D2 where it may be the same scheduling as a JC, perhaps not quite as intense based on conversation.

I read somewhere that over 50% of the Fresh. D1 kids transfer after 1 year. I told my son on the drive home basically they own your a$$ son and you either accept the challenge academically as well as physically or you just won't make it.  For him he says he can accept the challenge and I will support him as long as it's HIS goals and not mine.

infielddad brings up a good point, in that there are intense D3 programs without D1 resources that are just as readily available.  It's a growing up process for the kids.  I was surprised by my son, I struggled to get him to do workouts, now he likes it, hangs out and has dinner with the other players and often other athletes who are in the dining hall after their workouts. Bottom line, he knew baseball would not have been fun if that was the be all and end all of college, chances are your son may want baseball to be a priority he just has to be prepared for it.  

It doesn't matter the college level your son is playing at, "the rigors" are just minimum acceptable  efforts.  As kids move up the ladder, there are fewer and fewer kids able to just show up for the game and make it happen.  Whether at a JC or top 10 D1 a player must be all in,  the  players not interested in working out etc won't last, unless they have freak talent....and/or pitchers that can hit 90+.

If you have to talk to your position player son about a commitment to getting better, the battle may already be over.

I think it is good to raise these issues but I don't think kids or parents will know how they truly feel until they experience things for themselves.  I don't think if you told seaver41's friend these things before he went to the D1 he would have changed his mind.  It was the experience that changed his mind.

Unless you are a very high scholarship guy who the coach has basically guaranteed playing time, it is a dogfight to ever see the field for most players.  A majority of college players never see the field.  Coaches are there not to be kids friends but in many cases get after them until they find a hand full of guys they have confidence in on game days.  There is lots of luck involved as well.  It's hard to get motivated for class and workouts when the coach is on your case every day.  This much I can say, for those kids lucky enough to play in college, it more than makes up for the sacrifice that went into it in many cases.  Unfortunately, some kids get weeded out before the payoff and in some cases it takes a couple of years of luck and sacrifice to get there.  I fully understand how some kids could come to the logical conclusion (based on experience) that there are other things they would rather do with their time. 

To both CollegeParentNoMore and ClevelandDad, I think there is truth in both resonses.  The players have to be all in but they have to know what that means.  Being an all in high schooler is not the same as being an all in top D1 which is more about maturity.  That is why I say start early in the high school process to have the boys figure it out.  This kid apparently was told he was going to get playing, and I saw the kid as he was in our HS division and he is a stud. At this point it appears to be a maturity issue so ClevelandDad may be right no matter what this may have happened any way.  However, there may be parents out there that can use the advice to make sure their son is as prepared as possible for the next step in his journey.

This is a great topic!  Thanks for posting!

In our view, the recruiting cycle now runs Sept. 1 into August of the following year.  We tend to reconstitute our teams through August tryouts, heading into fall play. 

Each year after the rosters have been solidified, we get a few things done to make sure we get off on the right foot.  One of those is to hold a "recruiting seminar" for players and parents.  Initially, this was to educate families about NCAA rules, dos and don'ts, and how to go about setting and achieving goals.  We still do that, but we now add a memorandum in which we lay out what a sample in-season week looks like for a typical D1 player, and what a typical calendar year looks like as well.

The point we're trying to get across is, the time for "keeping up with the Joneses" just to serve your pride in thinking you're as good as the next guy is over.  (Actually it never existed.)  While you do have to be good enough, being good enough is not enough. 

You need to know what it is you're pursuing and then you have to ask yourself, "Is this what I want for me, in my life, and out of my college years?" 

I know far too many players who've asked themselves that question a bit late in the game, even after they get on campus and find out they really don't enjoy baseball as a year-round job (as opposed to just as a game you play twice a week for three months in the spring).

Ah, the "Real World". I talk to my son all the time about enjoying his Sr. year in HS. Next year, the excitement of ACC baseball and all the rigors that come with it begin. I've told him, the coaches will be your Bosses and you will work for them.Oh yeah, you will have the most competition you have ever had in your life too.

Reminds me of that Cool Hand Luke quote

"This here is Boss Keene's ditch... it's got your dirt in it, what's your dirt doin' in Boss Keene's ditch?"

Just an outstanding post and great replies. I have nothing to add. I just wish high school kids would read this thread and grasp some of it. Almost none of them will, so sure they want to go to a "D1" and be a "D1" guy and blah blah.

This is a thread I will share with my son - a HS junior. Thank you for posting it, seaver41. It's already elicited great insights -- preposition-ending subject line or not!

A big plus one!

Our son got a big wake up call when he went to JuCo.  Over 50 at fall tryouts, early morning lifting, afternoon practice not to mention coping with school work, classes, etc.

He accepted the challenge, but I know it was touch and go for him at times.  In the end it prepared him for the next level (D2) where he is now.

No matter the level (Juco, NAIA, D1, D2, D3) it's going to be a challenge.  Not just at the D1 level.

Good post to bring up.  wonder if the kid in ? Is finding he has no time after baseball/classes to have a social life. Some kids like sports but really want to experience the fun parties, late nights, etc.   hard to do that when u need to get homework done because you have conditioning early or after class practice.

think my son is looking forward to living, breathing baseball. His HS is barely practicing and haven't started indoor conditioning yet. He tries to do workouts/hit on his own but misses the group practices. He's not into partying big or going out much in HS. Prefers sm group dates or just watching movies at home w girlfriend. 

No doubt it will be a scheduling challenge w keeping grades up, so that's why its import imo to have a passion for your sport, more then most HS kids have. 

Those going to college and working part time and not doing sports can experience that overwhelming feeling too. Freshman yr is tough. 

Lol, I currently have 7 players that I coached in HS that are playing D1 - NAIA and the one word that I hear from them every time I talk to one of them is tired.  In fact, I texted a player this morning whom is at a D3 and asked how things were going and he said, "Coach I am tired, it never ends." 

Let's drop the D1 from this conversation. Let's replace it with college baseball. If you think what is going to be required of you depends on the level you play you will be in for a real surprise. 

New friends

New freedoms

New surroundings

Higher academic expectations

Higher athletic expectations

A loss of connection to parents (yes believe it or not) friends, peers

Heightened pressure to succeed (both internally and externally)

Sleeping in a new surroundings

Not having your own room, bathroom, personal space

Different people around them

Food changes

Early workouts

Long practices

Challenging class schedules/Academic demands

Going from being one of the best in their sport to arguable one of the worst

Being away from their support system

The uncertainty of playing time/role on team

Lack of sleep

Time zone differences

Weather differences

Culture differences

Afraid to ask for help, even knowing where to go for help

You add all of these things up and it actually surprises me more kids don't have problems. Good coaches/schools/programs put in place support systems for incoming freshmen, but it is a huge shock to many kids, all of them have some anxiety, some have more difficulty adjusting than others. but when you see it up close you get a real appreciation for the effort and dedication these kids have.

This is a great topic that comes up from time to time, thanks for starting.

My opinion is that no one has any clue what is in store for them until they actually are there.  Its very important during the recruiting process that this is discussed. When we visited the programs son was interested in, we met with the training staff as well as the academic staff.   Its a good time for you and your son to ask questions and the questions should be very carefully planned and thought out.

Just for the record my son was without a doubt, a D1 prospect, talent and grades. 

His first semester at college was a disaster.  He had some issues adjusting and had to learn how to fit everything in and still enjoy the college experience.  After that semester a light bulb went off, and he made honor roll every semester there after and learned good time management and how to cope with the rigors as well. He hated the long work outs, today he couldn't survive without a gym close by to where ever he is.

This is my advice and always will be, D1 programs as well as top D2 ad D3 programs are not for everyone.  Its great to ber able to wear those school colors of your dream school, but wearing the colors and being able to adapt ans survive are totally different.  My advice also includes considering a strong JUCO program, its good for many players to do their maturing at that level.

Seaver41,

The first year (and semester) is always the hardest. It most likely will get better.  The intense fall conditioning workouts are replaced with games, 3-5 days a week, and most of the time is now spent on the field rather than in the gym.  Players are given a maintenance program to follow while in season and more than likely gym time will be more enjoyable.  He should stick with it until the spring semester is over. Maybe you could tell your friend to drop by for some advice.

One of the biggest decisions that is made with the least information.

Sure, before I bought my 1st house I'd never owned a house.  But I had lived in a house.  In fact, I bet I'd been in thousands of houses before buying one.  Those experiences helped my decision.

What experiences are helping kids make their college choice?

Rich

www.PlayInSchool.com

My son is a freshman at high academic D3.  From his first week on campus, he had lifts 3 days a week at 6:30am supervised by strength and conditioning coach. Practice 3 days a week and "optional" bp one day a week. And this was just "captains practices" as coach can't be with them in the fall. A little bumpy academically, but not horrible. And he's been very social. He has already said to me that baseball feels like a full time job. But he's loving it. Upperclassmen have been extremely helpful and supported the freshmen from the start. Overall, a big adjustment but he's holding it together well. 

Halloween of freshman year and "not up to the rigors".........Now I know why coaches lament the roster limits.

When these All County, State, American players get to school they quickly realize everybody on the team was All Something, nobody cares and is doesn't matter.

Just like when they get to pro ball and everybody was All Conference and nobody cares there, either.What matters is the next pitch, the next out, the next at bat. Getting prepared and being prepared is difference maker, getting the most out of your opportunity.

I saw a video last year of the fall work outs. It looked like military training, but that team was ranked No.1 much of he year and won 50+ regular season games. If it is too rigorous, then they will quickly find someone to take that spot. If it was easy, everybody would do it.

As a comparison my son is working now, his first professional job 40hr/week job after ending his baseball career last year with a college degree at Pac 12 school and two seasons of minor league ball. He said 40 hour week is easy and he actually has a second job on weekends. He still goes to the gym 5 days a week and still feels he has more free time than when playing.

The rigors of it all really prepared him for the work ethic it takes to start a career.

It isn't easy at any level as others have said.

I have invited the parents to the board.  There is great advice and harsh realities in all of the responses.  .  Thanks everyone. 

I agree with this.  My son plays for a top D2 program and has a very rigorous schedule as well.  It's not just D1 and D3.  I would imagine EVERY level is the same.  Every coach is a college coach and wants to win games and will take all the time they can to push their players to be the best they can be.  

I'll say this.  Your son had better LOVE the game of baseball to continue to play at the next level.  If he doesn't, he won't want to put the time and effort in to be out there on the field.  I'm not saying he has to love working out and running and conditioning and having a sore arm and being tired from too many hours.  But he needs to love being on the field and competing and hanging around his teammates enough to deal with the things that are hard to do in order to be there.  My son recently had an interaction to one of his old HS teammates that just went into his freshman year of college baseball.  His friend had made a comment about how much of a grind it is with school and baseball.  My son basically said - yeah it is, but it's all worth it when the season comes around.  

If your son can't see it that way, then he will struggle.  If your son still loves it, he will be fine.

When I was in law school, a key third-year course I took was taught by an expert adjunct professor (highly regarded local attorney) who was a senior partner with one of the nation's largest law firms.  He commented one day that while everyone was entitled to his/her own opinion, he was biased in favor of hiring former collegiate athletes, especially for litigation, because they came in already understanding how to prepare in some way every day for the long haul, how to compete, and how to win.

I was a former athlete myself at that time and I thought he was overstating things a bit.  I no longer feel that way.  He was totally correct.

College baseball is a full time job, with overtime, and oh yeah, you have to manage classes at the same time on top of just the baseball stuff.  And heaven help you if you get injured and have to add treatment/rehab to the schedule, because that just gets laid on top, nothing gets taken off to lighten the load.

The most successful athletes:

• Make it a point to eat right to keep their energy and fitness at high levels
• Avoid polluting their bodies with alcohol and drugs (the way most of their peers do on a regular basis)
• Keep to a regular schedule to assure proper rest and recovery
• Avoid excessive time wasters such as TV, video games and mindless activities like tooling around on FaceBook.

If you've ever been an employer, wouldn't you want to hire a person who came with those habits ingrained? 

Yes, yes and yes.

Yep, yep and yep.  My son has more time on hands after graduation than he knew what to do with himself.  However, it didn't take him long to figure that he had an extra 20+ hours to begin studying for the next phase in his career.  College baseball teaches you discipline and time management like nobody's business.

Seaver41,

While I understand different people have different comfort levels, I can understand why your friend is doing what he is doing.  Some people are risk adverse and others want to push the envelope.  Some seek the greatest college baseball competition possible while others seek the best possible education or the least financial burden.  It is all there for the taking but you absolutely have to know what you are signing up with the various college baseball levels, and you have to know yourself.  

I'm very familiar with one young man who committed/attended a top 5 D1 program.  As it turned out, he was extremely home sick his first semester.  He transferred to a local college near his home town, and sat out a year.  He was in the College World Series the next year, and he was drafted after his junior year.  You have to go where you are going to enjoy the sacrifice and committment because it is going to be an absolute grind.  For some that may require a change of address.   Best of luck to you and your friend.

Something similar has already happened in my small baseball circle this year. Kid worked hard, committed to a Top 20 DI before junior year, looked great in fall practice... but left school a few weeks ago. I don't know the circumstances, but it just reinforces to me how often the first school doesn't work out.

One thing I'm realizing is that I'm a 2014 dad and seeing this happen to another 2014 parent and just wanting to get dialog out there for '15,'16,'17 etc..that are thinking of playing in college at any level.  So it's great that so many of the parents of kids that have gone through this have jumped on and offered insight and experience.  Even so I can show my own son how it has helped those of yours after college in the 'real world'. Great stuff.  No one said the transition would be easy but they should realize that when it isn't easy that's ok, they'll get through, like a bad at bat or a bad inning of pitching.

Great topic and really hits home as my son is experiencing Freshman year and Fall Ball at a high Academic D1.  At first it was the rigors of the academics and thankfully he has that adressed after a slow start. Fall Ball was a swing of emotions and now upon reflection we can see the highs were too high and the lows were too low . The best thing about it is although he admits to being homesick at times he says there is no place he would rather be. As others have said they have to land in the right spot for them and really want it. Hopefully not misquoting Fenway but one of our takeaways from his earlier posts was go where you would be happy if baseball was taken away from you. My son took that to heart and it is a lot of work and we will see how much playing time he gets but he is happy and that is all we can ask for.

"....one of our takeaways from his earlier posts was go where you would be happy if baseball was taken away from you...."

Honestly, that would have been a problem for my son no matter where he went.

agreed 100%  he had to face it though elbow injury summer after Junior year hampered recruiting, very good student it made him think the unthinkable.It helped fuel his desire and he could not imagine not playing but I think it helped him decide on a fit for him. In the end it is the fit whether it is D1 or not.

Reading through all of these I cannot thank you all enough for the responses, some of which I will share with my son over the next day or 2 before he decides.

  I wonder how many of these kids that went off to D1, or whatever didn't have the luxury of being close to home so perhaps they could come home on a weekend a time or two if time allowed in the fall.  My kid will be 2 1/2 hours away from home and one thing this JC coach told us was in the fall when there were not weekend games mandatory workouts were only Mon thru Thurs. so he could leave after last class on Friday if he wanted. 

Funny thing, he's most likely headed south 2 1/2 hours away rather than another option that's 40 minutes away and as I think about this.............. how much council will mom & dad need after he is gone.

2014,

It is a good idea to load up on the harder classes in the fall and little easier during the season and travel.

As well see if he can find an online during the Spring. That really helps as well, or the class that is one night a week and on their off day.(usually Mondays)

A few things like this help. My son took summer online classes every summer. This made it so he could take one less class in the Spring. That was a huge help.

It was very hard for my son. We did things to help, and so did other parents. We went down there (6 hours away) almost every series or traveled. We would make runs to the store,make some meals or whatever to allow him to focus on baseball and school. This helped him finish in four years.

He didn't have a car the first two years and that made it hard at times.

It is a huge, huge  adjustment. It gets easier each year, but even still it is never a cake walk.

Not my intention to hijack this thread but I think that this raises another point about the value of playing multiple sports - especially football in relation in how to learn time management..

My son plays (played) football. They work out 4 days a week in summer from 6am to 10:30am. He would then go to baseball. The have several camps during summer that go 6 or 7 hours. During fall season - they lift every morning for 1.5 hours and then follow school with 3 to 3.5 hour practice. He is planning on attending an engineering college (applying to D3 mostly - 1 D2). He is in AP classes and is up late doing homework.

I know college and any sport is tough but I believe the rigors of football season have prepared him well. Can't speak for other programs or areas - but I know even the best baseball programs in our state do not work nearly as much as football programs. Not passing judgement - just pointing out a fact.

I don't know, I think you may be underestimating what some baseball players do to prepare to play at the next level. It goes Way beyond what the HS does. Most have personal trainers or go to workouts, lift, condition year around, hitting coaches, camps, showcases. Most take hard classes and have high GPA. The things you are talking about ,every kid on the roster at college has the same resume.

2014Prospect,

You bring up a great point.  Something I wish to expand upon.  This is not directed at you but to the entire board for the '16s, 17's and 18's

While the thread began as a wake up call for those considering D1 baseball, I see the academics as the flip side.  We've been conditioned to look at the baseball level, committment level and everything that comes with it.  But, I have to admit I know more people have a tougher time adjusting to the academic side of the equation.  Do recruits and parents truly understand the academic fit as well as they understand the athletic fit?

Freshmen year they haven't learned how to manage their course load yet because they are too busy struggling to get their head above water.  Heaven help them if they have an extremely demanding major.  They have to learn how to get their work done on their own, and there isn't much Mom & Dad can do.  This is the learning part, and they figure it out one way or another.

Which is why i am so glad the school my son will be attending is paying for summer school next summer before his freshman year to get 2 classes in with a chance to spot  up a few 4.0s and give him a headstart. He's a quick study so i hope he can get some pointers from the upper classmen and hit the ground running.

FWIW,

If you teach your players from an early age to be responsible, manage their time wisely, not  try to cruise (easy course load) through HS, learn how to handle an effective  work out/conditioning program (they dont have to spend all that unnecessary time in the gym), attend all practices and games in HS,  then they should be able to make the adjustments needed (have an easier time).

No offense to anyone, but IMO, the ones that usually back down from the more difficult programs later on havent learned responsibility to know BEFORE they head off to college.  Mom and Dad stop doing it all for your players, teach them how to handle their affairs responsibly and let them take control of their lives and this way they wont struggle later on.

JMO

I agree, plus unless the player is a real stud, most of these dual sport HS players burn out quicker once they get to college.