the truth

Again it is all relative to the coach and how he handles things

the calls will become infrequent until they stop.

just like dating...

You must be pro-active in the entire process.

A coach saw my son at a showcase and told him he felt like he would be a good fit for his program. After several e-mails and one phone call, coach invited son to come to their next game (an away game close to our home). The meet and greet went well (I think) and this was followed with a few more e-mails and phone calls from Asst. Coach, asking for summer schedule, talking up the College and inviting son to come to campus for a visit. Then, nothing for 2-3 months. Son's calls went unanswered, e-mails were not returned. We just assumed the coach got his 1st choice, and no longer felt son was needed. Then out of the blue, the same Asst. Coach called 2 times in 1 day, leaving messages about how impressed they are with my son and really looking forward to hearing from him. My son was working out and didn't return call until he got home that evening, followed by 2 more the next day. He also sent a couple of e-mails, just to make sure the messages were getting thru. It's been well over a month, and still no response. Luckily, Son has moved on and found what he feels is his ideal fit. The Asst. Coach at this program met son at one of his summer tournaments and followed that with a phone call about every 2 weeks. Head Coach invited family for a visit, and followed our visit with several e-mails. Son was later able to spend a weekend with the team on campus and in the dorms. Our family went up to watch a double header one weekend and my son knew thats where he wanted to be. Even after son told them he was coming, the Asst. Coach still calls or text 2 or 3 times a month.

Cannons22 -

I think a lot of it depends on how each coach deals with the recruiting process. Some are very active, some are not. Some coaches tend to lean heavily on their assistant coaches, and some tend to be more actively involved in the recruiting process.

From my experiences you/your son will know in his heart where he wants to be, and where he feels he belongs. As you mentioned, this current school has continued to stay in touch with him, and that's a great sign.

I wish him the best of luck in this exciting time! It only happens once, so do not forget to enjoy it!

Best,

I agree 100%. At the time, the silence was very confusing/frustrating. We now feel it has really worked out in my sons favor. He loves the campus, academics, baseball program and social atmosphere where he has chosen to attend school. Both the Head Coach and Asst. Coach communicated to son that while they feel he has the ability to be a contributor on the team, they guaranteed nothing but the opportunity to compete for playing time.

I know these college coaches face dead periods, quite periods, etc. where they can't return calls even if they wanted. I also know they can get just plain busy with coaching, recruiting, parenting, etc.

But I also tend to think that some coaches are just plain lousy time managers and organizers. Many recruits probably fall through the cracks because of this.

The big programs can just sit back and wait for the good recruits to knock on their door. That is why the blow some prospects off, they have a very limited supply of spots to go around and probably 10 good recruits for every position. They don't need you, you need them.

Silence can be a good thing. Sometimes the calls can be even more confusing and frustrating than silence.

My son got a call from one head coach before he had even seen him play. After he saw son in a showcase, he called weekly for a couple of months. Seemed like a sure thing. Offer in the works, right? Wrong!

Another school my son was interested in was cordial in emails and in person, but never let on they were interested. Then one day, out of the blue, the call came -- and they were ready to make a deal. They had scouted son at 9 games and a 2-day camp and eventually knew without a doubt that they were interested, but they didn't want to mislead us until they were sure. We respected them for their silence.

quote:

Originally posted by Pop Up Hitter dad:
The big programs can just sit back and wait for the good recruits to knock on their door.

If that is true, not sure why a certain coach I know works harder than most of his peers.

First of all, most programs are knocking on the same recruits doors. Most programs are looking for the right "fit" for their program, as well as your player looking for his right "fit".

Got to understand where your player falls, is he an A, B or C recruit, then you might understand the long periods between phone calls.

RJM, I think the S.O.P. is for the phone calls and other communications to just stop but there are exceptions. Understand too that players don't really "drop off the radar" as some indicate. They simply become part of the "clutter" and not a defined "target". If a coach were to inform players they were no longer being recruited you can bet they would continually regret saying that because their needs change frequently. By the same token players have to be careful about calling coaches and informing them they are more interested in "another" college because their #1 college's interest could cease overnight --- that's the nature of the beast. Players and coaches normally stay in the recruiting race as long as they have "needs".
TPM mentions the A, B, and C players. She's spot on but it's complicated to explain the process of ABC. (she has done this before). Each are recruited differently and their classification can change at any time. An A player at one college may be a B player at another and B may become and A player at the same college if their A player signs at another school or decides to go pro.
I also agree with TPM that the larger programs work as hard (if not harder) plus they have much more resources $$$ available plus their reputation allows them to compete and win most recruiting battles against smaller programs. Yes many players approach successful programs because of their reputation but it's a program's aggressive recruiting that nets them their better players. It's business on both sides.
Fungo