The Clock and 2021s

So what happens if a D2 athlete transfers to D1? 

Assume 2019 high school grad.  Played 25 games spring 2020 (true freshman season.)  Allowed another season of eligibility, so lets call him a Corona Freshman when he plays the 2020-21 season. If he then wants to transfer to D1, he has to sit out a year, so 2021-22 is his year-of-residency season, and his actual 3rd year on the clock.  But he has 3 seasons of eligibility remaining.

By transferring D2 to D1, does he now get the extra year of participation, or would he still be limited to the original 5 year/10 semester clock?

In that situation, the athlete should be granted a 6th year to be able to play 4.  

@T_Thomas posted:

So what happens if a D2 athlete transfers to D1? 

Assume 2019 high school grad.  Played 25 games spring 2020 (true freshman season.)  Allowed another season of eligibility, so lets call him a Corona Freshman when he plays the 2020-21 season. If he then wants to transfer to D1, he has to sit out a year, so 2021-22 is his year-of-residency season, and his actual 3rd year on the clock.  But he has 3 seasons of eligibility remaining.

By transferring D2 to D1, does he now get the extra year of participation, or would he still be limited to the original 5 year/10 semester clock?

Why would a player who played 25 games in 2020 want to transfer and sit out a year? 

Also, do not assume that coaches will give any  player that extra year unless they have made an significant impact. 

@Rick at Informed Athlete posted:

In that situation, the athlete should be granted a 6th year to be able to play 4.  

Thanks, Rick.

@TPM posted:

Why would a player who played 25 games in 2020 want to transfer and sit out a year? 

Also, do not assume that coaches will give any  player that extra year unless they have made an significant impact. 

Purely hypothetical. Could be lots of reasons.

@T_Thomas posted:

Purely hypothetical. Could be lots of reasons.

Just wondering because that would be almost 2 seasons that the player has not played.

My 2021 who was headed D1 (kids in his travel organization were verbally committing in freshman year and he was right there with them skill/ability wise) had an injury that sidelined him sophomore year. He came back stronger than ever but had lost the recruiting momentum.  Then COVID hit and HS junior season shut down.  He was able to play some travel over the summer, but even those tournaments were always dicey given COVID. He did start to get "re" interest from D1s, but most were "we like you, but we're not sure what's going on bc of COVID" and thus summer was agony.  Along the way he had attracted a D3 RC who basically wouldn't leave him alone.  Turns out its a highly competitive baseball school (but not HA) that wasn't on my son's radar bc it was D3.  After visiting the school and meeting the HC (who continued to "show him the love") my son started coming around.  We also realized he could get great merit money.  It took a while longer, and some of his D1 buddies getting their offers cut or rescinded, but he finally decided to commit to the D3.  We had many talks about what it meant to pursue his dream vs the reality of having to make a living.  While it's not the path he thought he'd be taking, it seems like the right one given everything going on.  The clock ticking definitely contributed.

whoknew,

Welcome to the HSBBW and good for your son for being realistic.  There is no shame in continuing to play baseball and getting an education.

Tell him to work hard in the classroom as well as on the field, because you never know how things will work out!!

Whoknew,

Unless a kid is a top twenty draft pick pro prospect college baseball is about getting an education to set up the next forty years of his life and having a quality baseball experience.

A friend’s son played for a D3 national champion. The dog pile looked just as fun as the one in Omaha. Ten years later I guarantee the kid is out performing most former D1 baseball players professionally and financially on Wall Street.

Good luck to your son.

Just saw a local 2021 commit to a Big East school FWIW which was really nice to see. These coming years, more than ever, are going to be about filling specific roster holes with the absolute best players available whether that means a college grabbing a find at the end of October, OR asking a very good player who might have otherwise contributed to redshirt or take a gap year, OR bringing a kid on campus a semester early (I know two of these...one SEC and one ACC) to fill a role or to get them into your program as soon as possible. And before someone says it, the competition will be fierce for years. PTWoodson talked to his future HC and he said they had 15 arms that hit 95 during Fall scrimmages.

Iron sharpens iron.