university recruitment

Go to any given school's website. typically they will have an admissions section and list their freshman "profile". this will tell you the average/mean/median SAT scores and gpa.

At USC for example the 2003-2004 profile was a an average gpa of 3.99 and the middle 50% range for SAT was 1270-1420. Texas average SAT in 2004 for incoming Freshman was 1230.

then you can figure that a recruited athlete will be "admitable" with SAT/gpa that is in the ballpark of the freshman profile. Obviously every school differs in their policies and how far you can "stray" from the typical freshman profile as a recruited athlete.

Gringas - Heybatter is right in saying that most athletes need to be in the "ballpark" academically and the "stray" factor can be based on a lot of other variables...sport played, ability, support for the specific program by administration - and again, this does vary from school to school.

If you find yourself in the position of being recruited by schools like the ones you have mentioned, the coach will tell you where you stand...if you can't be admitted he might not waste your time and his in the recruiting process....but I have also run into a few situations where it seemed the athlete was ok, but at the 11th hour the coach said "sorry, admissions said no" - it might have been true, but it could also have been the coach going with another player and pulling his support with admissions from the first player....I think most coaches are pretty up front though and what I speak of is a "maybe this could happen, but not likely.."

hope this helps...

In many instances the coach has nothing to say regarding admission to the school--in others the coach can "pull his card" so to speak

It all comes down to getting that "fuzzy" feeling when you speak with the coach.

Keep in mind one other thing--if you do get in and your academics are below the norm at the school you still have to keep the grades up to saty in the school-- make sure you are not biting off more than you can chew-- there is nothing worse than playing ball with the stress of struggling to stay eligible. Baseball and college are meant to be fun not a chore

Think hard about it !!!

Ricky - When I was applying to colleges, there was no "average" GPA. Each school's GPA, class standing, and ACT/SAT score requirements are different.
Also, schools take into account circumstances when admitting students. For example, my ACT score exceeded the requirement for the college I wanted to go to, however, by their standards, I also needed to be in the upper 50% of my high school graduating class, which I was not. After I was accepted, my guidance counselor informed me that my high school was among the best in the state and that because over 25% of my graduating class had GPAs over 3.5, they knew that my class standing was NOT a true judge of my academic potential.
Like HeyBatter said, you can check the requirements on the school's website.

My 2 cents for what it is worth.
Good advice as far as checking out the school's requirements. This should be done in the early HS years, if you have a particular school (or schools) you are interested in.
There are "stray" factors. For example some state schools reguire different language requirements, out of state students may have exceptions made in placeof that. Also some admissions will waive the SAT/ACT requirments if the student has a high GPA or is in the top 10% of the class.
Then there is always the "stay" factor to consider. Can one maintain the average GPA by just having minimum reguirements.
At my son's school maintaining a 3.0 undergraduate GPA is preferred by the coaching staff.
Lots of things are considered.

Maybe the only thing as disapointing to a player, (or M & D) than getting cut, might be losing the big academic scholarship that pays a big chunk of the college bill, and being forced to take (more) loans, or change schools. It happens. Keep the grades up. Stay within your game academicly.

Good advice. Finding the "right fit" means you need to consider every aspect of your son's college choice. Ask some of these questions: How is their baseball program? Do they need your position? What do the coaches tell you about your chances of playing 1st year/2nd year? What do the current players think of they're coaching staff? How are the academics? What is the size of the campus/avg. class? Is the academic standard (GPA/SAT) at a level you can handle as a full-time athlete? Is this a college you'd like to attend regardless of baseball? Is the location/distance from home where you want to be for 4 years? It is a very individual decision and the answers will differ greatly with each player. Many times looking for "the biggest baseball school" will not be the right choice for your son. Just take a look at the colleges on the latest draft list. Players are coming from all types of programs, so consider all aspects of college life when you make your choice.

We heard from Stanford in January or so. That was flattering, but pretty much completely out of the question academically and financially. It's really great advice to have your child get fully familiar with all aspects of the school.

I worked in the Career Center at our local high school for 8 years, advising students and their parents on college selection. No matter how many times you share with families that you need to get the process started early, it really seems to be too much to comprehend for most kids.

I wonder how I would have handled all the decisions that go along with being a college athlete, had it been an option when I was in H.S.