Stanford Camp

There is a Golden Thread about this camp that has all the info you need and more. You can check it out by clicking here.

Move to the later pages for the more up to date info. I don't believe that Stanford releases that information but there is going to be plenty of colleges in attendance. I don't know of many who were disappointed by attending.

Also search in this thread on Stanford. I have it on a PDF from two years ago and will copy and paste it in here this afternoon when I get a chance.

If there are a few certain schools critical to the decision you can always email their coaches and ask directly.

Below are the 24 coached teams. I know there were an additional 10-15 schools are not on this list. Santa Clara and Menlo I know for sure where there. Not sure on the others. Ask them they will probably tell you.


DENISON
GEORGETOWN
STANFORD
NAVY
MICHIGAN
EASTERN MICHIGAN
BOSTON COLLEGE
WAKE FOREST
CORNELL
HARVARD
CRUSADERS
PENN
TRINITY
AUSTIN COLLEGE
CULVER-STOCKTON
CENTENARY
WESTMONT
ST JOSEPH
ARKANSAS
COLUMBI
DICKINSON
UC SANTA BARBARA
KANSAS
HOLY CROSS

Contacting the particular schools to check their plans for this summer is a good idea. I'm sure the list varies some each year.

In addition to BOF's list there would typically be a good showing from high academic D3s and some other Ivys. Many NESCAC schools are represented. Last summer I talked with Coach Beccaria from Haverford, and I'm pretty sure it was the Yale coach he was sitting next to. Neither of them was handling a team for the camp.

Note - Don't expect schools that Stanford thinks they'll have to go head-to-head with on high-end recruits to be there. Not saying there will be zero, but don't count on a list that includes most of UCLA, Vanderbilt, Duke, USC, Cal, UNC, Notre Dame, etc...

Quite frankly, I'd be surprised if Santa Clara was there 'officially' anyways. Anyone can pretty much stop by that wants too.

Agree with Justbaseball that you will not find other PAC-12 schools there. Santa Clara's field was used two years ago and was an official particpant.

Santa Clara is a fine school and with their new coaching will be a very competitive program. That said they are not Stanford. They are the single most unique program in college baseball and stand on their own IMO.

quote:

Originally posted by BOF:
Agree with Justbaseball that you will not find other PAC-12 schools there. Santa Clara's field was used two years ago and was an official particpant.

Santa Clara is a fine school and with their new coaching will be a very competitive program. That said they are not Stanford. They are the single most unique program in college baseball and stand on their own IMO.

Interesting stuff BOF. I agree completely that Santa Clara appears on the verge of being very good.

They used to be part of Stanford's camp...then they were not...interesting to hear they may be again?

quote:

They are the single most unique program in college baseball and stand on their own IMO.

That's an interesting comment. Not knowing anything more about Santa Clara than it's location and academic rep, could you expand. I'm very curious. Thanks.

Stanford in my opinion is the pinnacle of D1 baseball when you look at the combined academic and athletic expectations of their baseball athletes.

From a baseball standpoint they consistently play one of the most demanding schedules in the country. They play in one of the most demanding conferences and they expect to go to the College World Series each year and win it. Anything less is a disappointment for the program. They obviously don’t do it every year but this is the programs expectations.

Academically they are also at the pinnacle of college experiences. They are considered one of the top 5 Universities anywhere in the world. If you look at the roster of the kids going there they include math, sciences and engineering, and biology majors. You will not find one other D1 program in the country that has kids taking these types of majors in the numbers that they have. They expect kids to do well in class and they allow for kids to come and go based on their class schedules. No other D1 university that I found does things like they way they do it.

They expect many of their kids to get drafted after their Jr year, and they work their program such that they will come back and most will have their degree two years after they leave.

In my view they get the best 10 top academic/baseball athletes each year. So basically IMO there is Stanford and everyone else, and “the everyone else” are not even close



So if my son comes to me and says he has an offer from Santa Clara or Stanford there is not even a discussion. Stanford frankly is not concerned about Santa Clara taking one of their prospects.

I agree with much of what has been said here about Stanford as both a university and a baseball program. As a result, I don't think I could think any more highly of it as a place to study and play baseball. However, to suggest that the top 10 baseball-playing student athletes go to Stanford each year is to scale the heights of hyperbole.

quote:

Originally posted by Prepster:
I agree with much of what has been said here about Stanford as both a university and a baseball program. As a result, I don't think I could think any more highly of it as a place to study and play baseball. However, to suggest that the top 10 baseball-playing student athletes go to Stanford each year is to scale the heights of hyperbole.

...Buster Posey said 'no thanks' to Stanford...just to illustrate your point.

OK maybe I pushed the envelope a little, but I did say:

quote:

In my view they get the best 10 top academic/baseball athletes each year. So basically IMO there is Stanford and everyone else, and “the everyone else” are not even close

...Buster Posey said 'no thanks' to Stanford...just to illustrate your point.

But this really makes my point. If he was smarter he would have gone there and learned how to properly block the plate.

Not trying to be a smart a@@ but buster wouldn't have learned to avoid blocking the plate there because he was a ss / pitcher at that time. But I would have a hard time turning down an offer from Stanford. For the record, buster just wanted to be closer to home. Interesting hat he winds up in ca anyway.

Agree younggun. At Stanford, doubtful the life-changing switch to catcher woulda ever happened.

Serendipitous I would say!

(BTW, I spent a week riding taxis with Buster's mom and grandma in Taipei as he was deciding...and yes, being close to home was important to him at that time as I'm sure you would know ).

quote:

Not saying there will be zero, but don't count on a list that includes most of UCLA, Vanderbilt, Duke, USC, Cal, UNC, Notre Dame, etc...

This is very true. However, these schools might indeed have someone at the camp watching the games. They are not supposed to approach players at the camp, but they might be in the stands watching.

I know this because the Duke coach first saw my son at the Stanford Camp. He didn't talk to my son, but called him a few days later on July 1, and said he wasn't allowed to talk to him at the camp.

They list a couple of the camps as requiring an application. Is that a real screening process, or just part of what you are paying for...the thrill of being accepted?

I'm not saying it is part of what you pay for...I just don't know

I am not sure the application means much of anything other then they now have some additional info on your son. The only important item is likely the position he plays as I believe college camps are not allowed to pick and choose participants, including Stanford Camp. See the discussion at http://hsbaseballweb.com/eve/f...077070795#5077070795

Here is part of the reply I received from Coach Stotz, regarding the 2014 Future Stars application I sent for my son.

"
If you are in receipt of this email, I have received your Stanford
Future Stars Camp application. PLEASE READ THIS EMAIL VERY
CAREFULLY! Our camp is the one of the most popular, if not the most
popular camp in America. Because all of you are of recruiting age,
there are very specific regulations on the process I must use to
admit players to camp. EVERYONE must have the same opportunity for
getting in to camp. I cannot select who gets into camp. It cannot
be first come, first serve, because in the eyes of the NCAA I could
control who attends camp by simply mailing to the players I would
like to attend camp before I mail to the others. The NCAA will
determine for me when I can randomly select the players. Since we
are still getting many requests for camp applications, I don't
anticipate that to be until probably April 1. Please remember I
am just the messenger here, not the policy maker---"Don't shoot the
messenger"! I am as anxious as you are to get the process started.

My son went to a stanford camp before. My son found it to be very crowded and hard to get a good look. For a school like stanford they recruit you not the other way around. Thats why I wouldnt go to the camp thinking that your getting recruited by stanford.

Any thoughts on which camp, Stanford or Headfirst is better? My son is a good student 3.9 and takes honors classes, but we are not sure that he would have high enough academic credentials to earn merit aid at some of these top academic schools. We know that you have to have VERY impressive academics to earn merit aid at these schools, everybody at these schools are good students. He is going to take the ACT in April (early we know) so that we can start to get an idea of what types of schools we should begin to look at.

I don't know about either camp, but I know you are steering your son correctly in taking the SAT early. Our son took the SAT and ACT last year around May-June. He established a baseline, and it was apparent that the ACT was a better test for him to excel in. He took the ACT over again this past February, and was very pleased with his scores. Your son is taking it at a perfect time, as he will not be under any pressure.

Sorry-- 2014P-- I meant the ACT. Our son is a 2013, but he took both tests as a sophomre, same as your son. Have him take both and see what he's best at. We have 2 children: one had scores that were basically equivalent, while the son with better math and science skills scored better on the ACT.

quote:

Originally posted by 2014Prospect:
Any thoughts on which camp, Stanford or Headfirst is better? My son is a good student 3.9 and takes honors classes, but we are not sure that he would have high enough academic credentials to earn merit aid at some of these top academic schools. We know that you have to have VERY impressive academics to earn merit aid at these schools, everybody at these schools are good students. He is going to take the ACT in April (early we know) so that we can start to get an idea of what types of schools we should begin to look at.

Obviously you will compare both lists before deciding Stanford vs HF, to see which one is better in toerms of the academics adn baseball fit.

To your question about merit $ in general at D3s, you'll find many of those D3s don't offer any merit schollys, just need based aid. (For example, no merit aid at Ivies, at the Haverford/Swarthmore type schools, at NESCAC schools, etc.).

And you are correct, the 'elite' schools that do offer merit have a very high profile (ie, 4.2 +, top test scores).

However, if your son is currently a 3.9, and he is taking honors, you can assume he'll take more honors and some APs next year, and that will bump his GPA up even higher. The application is read based on '6th semester' transcripts so tell him to keep working hard in the classroom! There are many colleges offering Merit based aid to strong students like your son.

In another thread, Fenwaysouth recommended this book: The Financial Aid Handbook: Getting the Educataion You Want for the Price You Can Afford.It is an excellent guide for understanding the merit aid game and how to position your son for developing a college list with merit aid in mind.

One last thought on taking the ACT as a sophomore - chances are he will find some of the math to be well over his head at this point, since ACT goes up to a higher level of math. If he can take the PLAN (the pre ACT) instead it may be a better benchmark, but many high schools don't offer it. Whatever you here do, when he registers for tests as a 10th grader, don't send sophomore scores . (That might be an obvious point but worth making).

Good luck.

I would look at the schools at each event and then make a decision.

I will point out however that the Stanford camp is more than just a camp to be seen. It is a teaching event and your son will learn a lot of things about baseball, his place in the overall scheme of recruiting, about college life, and he will meet kids from all over the country. It will likely be the single event that he will remember long after he is in college.

Baseballmomandcep, My son took the PLAN test last year and it predicted an ACT in the range of 24-28. He is a very strong math/science student (taking an honors math class this year that is a combination of advanced algebra, trig., and pre-calc. with juniors and seniors and an honors science class and getting A's and B's)but not nearly as strong in English class (A's and B's but no honors). We are hoping to enroll him in an ACT prep class that will help him target his weaknesses and hopefully improve that score. What do you think about this approach? We chose the ACT over SAT because of the harder Math and Science. Although he is a good student, we are not yet sure that he will be considered strong enought to be recruited by a "high academic school." Any insight is appreciated.

BOF, Thank you for the information on the Stanford Camp. We have been unsure about attending this camp because it is expensive and we were not sure that the schools in attendence would be the best fit for my son for the reasons stated above. After reading your post, I think that we will attend the Stanford Camp. Thank you again for your insight.

Baseballmomandcep, sorry but I forgot to mention that our son took the PLAN test as a Freshman even though it is a sophomore test. That is just how they do it at his school.

I don’t know where you are coming from but you have a couple of options. 1 would be to send him on a plane, have them pick him up and do the camp on his own. It will be a maturing experience for him and they are good at handling kids like this. This is the lowest cost way. or 2. Make it a family vacation, mom/dad can hang out in Palo Alto while he is at the camp, you can go over and watch his games, and then head up to SF and spend a few days. In my son’s case his current school saw him there and we knew nothing about the school or program, so you never know.

quote:

Although he is a good student, we are not yet sure that he will be considered strong enought to be recruited by a "high academic school." Any insight is appreciated.

2014 - Based on what you have stated and my own experience with two college baseball sons (one played at Stanford), your son has the academics to 'put him in the picture' for high academic schools.

A lot will now depend on talent level and perhaps getting that ACT up just a little more (prep class should help). But if a high end school really wants him, they have a shot at getting him in.

JustBaseball, That is really encouraging news. Receiving a degree from a good school is our number one goal for our son. We realize that baseball will end and he will spend the rest of his life benifiting from the educational opportunities that he earned in college. So the best fit for our son is going to be a school where he can benifit from the education and play baseball.

quote:

Originally posted by 2014Prospect:
......... So the best fit for our son is going to be a school where he can benifit from the education and play baseball.

As an aside your son may find that playing baseball in college is more important to him then he realized while in high school. I thought the same as you and many others until my son wasn't playing and hating school. My son went to a very good UC and ended up transferring to a JC his academic junior year to play baseball. Academically the UC was a good fit, socially it was ok, athletically it didn't work.

My point: the right school isn't necessarly the school with the highest academics for some kids with a real desire to play, they also need to find a coach that sees him in their plans.

quote:

Originally posted by CollegeParentNoMore:
My point: the right school isn't necessarly the school with the highest academics for some kids with a real desire to play, they also need to find a coach that sees him in their plans.

+10!

quote:

Originally posted by 2014Prospect:
Baseballmomandcep, My son took the PLAN test last year and it predicted an ACT in the range of 24-28. He is a very strong math/science student (taking an honors math class this year that is a combination of advanced algebra, trig., and pre-calc. with juniors and seniors and an honors science class and getting A's and B's)but not nearly as strong in English class (A's and B's but no honors). We are hoping to enroll him in an ACT prep class that will help him target his weaknesses and hopefully improve that score. What do you think about this approach? We chose the ACT over SAT because of the harder Math and Science. Although he is a good student, we are not yet sure that he will be considered strong enought to be recruited by a "high academic school." Any insight is appreciated.

Let's PM, so we don't totally "hijack" this thread I'll shoot you a quick reply

My 2014 son went to the Stanford catching camp in Dec. The coaches recommended that he sign up for the All Star Camp for this summer. His evaluation was very good. He is also a strong academic student. We have heard so many good things about the summer camp.I know if he goes to the camp, he can not be talked to as he will only be a junior. What is the best way to stay in sights of some of the schools and coaches there?

Being from SoCal and being a good student, your son will have no problem getting on and remaining on the radar of many very good schools if he is a talented catcher.

My son has been asked to go to the summer camp. It is quite expensive, does anyone have any input about it?

sparky- you say "asked to go" in the previous post. I thought I read or understood something earlier that led me to believe that the process was "apply, and then be picked at random"....from what I have seen on this board if you have a chance to attend and your player has the academic skills and resume to attend the likes of the schools that will be there,..it is likely a sound investment. If you can elaborate on the "asked to go" statement, I'd like to learn more

quote:

Originally posted by sparky134:
My son has been asked to go to the summer camp. It is quite expensive, does anyone have any input about it?

Read this thread and the one in "Golden" and that should answer your questions.