My son verbally committed to a D2 school. His "hits" on recruiting sites have really picked up since then.
Do coaches from other schools usually respect verbal commitments, or will they be targeting him because it is only a verbal. (No baseball scholarship, but a guaranteed roster spot)
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First of all, I would be very concerned with the 'guaranteed roster spot'. My son got burned in the worst way last year. Send me a pm if you want details. Second, I'm sure coaches respect the verbal but there are always some that could care less.
DII College... No Scholarship... Guaranteed Roster Spot... Verbal Early Commitment...
There is something confusing when combining those things.
An early commitment to a NO scholarship offer? Sorry, but that just doesn't make any sense. Maybe there is more to all of this, Is this his dream school?
Baseball is not football. While there are occasional exceptions, players tend to honor their commitments, and coaches tend to honor their offers. When a recruiter learns that a player is committed, he tends to head in a more promising direction.
Not sure if the "no scholarship" part is big deal or not. In these parts, many of the D2's are dirt cheap campuses of Cal State University system. And when I say cheap, I mean truly dirt cheap. A scholarship to one of these schools is almost guaranteed to be a piddling amount in the first place and will have very little likelihood of affecting anybody's financial calculations -- except in extreme cases.
That said, the coaches always have some scholarship money to dole out. And I suppose who they choose to give it to is some small measure of commitment to the player. So that might be a red flag.
Baseball is not football. While there are occasional exceptions. players tend to honor their commitments, and coaches tend to honor their offers. When a recruiter learns that a player is committed, he tends to head in a more promising direction.
This is my son's experience too...
Not sure if the "no scholarship" part is big deal or not. In these parts, many of the D2's are dirt cheap campuses of Cal State University system. And when I say cheap, I mean truly dirt cheap. A scholarship to one of these schools is almost guaranteed to be a piddling amount in the first place and will have very little likelihood of affecting anybody's financial calculations -- except in extreme cases.
That said, the coaches always have some scholarship money to dole out. And I suppose who they choose to give it to is some small measure of commitment to the player. So that might be a red flag.
I subscribe to the theory of "Go Where You Are Loved", and if there aren't any Benjamins, they don't love you very much...
Roster spots are not guaranteed. There are times scholarship athletes get cut from the team. What your son has is a guarantee to play fall ball freshman year.
This is very strange. I go with PG, an early commit with no scholarship commitment?
Is there such a thing?
RHPdadCA,
It is difficult to make a determination on your situation based on the information provided. There is no one size fits all situation in college baseball recruiting....zero. JMO.
If you understand the marketplace and your situation relative to it then you have something to go by. For example....does this include any academic money and is this school one of the few that offers your sons major? If so, this might be a great situation for him and the school knew it. Is money a huge issue with this decision or is it more baseball opportunity related? Otherwise I agree with others that there may be some redflags here. It has to be a two way street with the recruit and the school. Everybody has to get what they need & want for this to have a chance work out. Can you describe the situation a little more?
To answer your question directly...yes recruiting activity definetly picks up a little bit after you've committed (in my experience). Coaches that didn't know your son want to know who he is and coaches that were recruiting your son want to know why he committed to this school and how they lost a recruit.
Good luck!
I guess I was a bit too brief and left out some facts ... so to clarify:
Yes, he received a nice academic scholarship and it is not a public school, but also not a private with 50K in tuition ++ either. Their tuition is pretty reasonable compared to most privates. They are currently out of baseball money. Money is not the determining factor in the decision ... he wants a quality degree, good business program, and competitive baseball.
It is not quite his "dream school", but after seeing the campus, talking to players and coaches, etc., it was very high on his list. Strong business school, nice dorms, relaxed campus vibe that he liked, etc. On his "pros and cons" list, all the checks were on the positive side.
I've seen a couple of threads on 'guaranteed' roster spots, so we understand that there are risks here. I was able to speak to a former coach from the school, and the HC appears to be quite reputable.
My son and I discussed the fact that some of the D1 schools that he had been talking to still might come through with an offer. He understands that by committing he may have closed doors that will not open again. But he was so impressed with the school and program that he was comfortable in accepting the roster spot.
No doors are closed unless you close them!
One of our Area Code player was drafted and scholarship at USC. He was signed the day he "turned the classroom" door knob. He did not enter the classroom.
bob
RHPdadCA.
So, your son has a guaranteed roster spot to a school he'll receive academic money to a strong business school. It is high on his list and he felt comfortable verbally committing to this school. It sounds like both of you have done your due diligence and sounds like a good fit for him. Congrats! As with any committment there are always risks, and you understand those risks. I think you've got your bases covered.
As for the other D1 schools that have showed interest they will understand. From my perspective they had their opportunity to offer. There is a often coined phrase in my household ...."you snooze you lose". Maybe some did offer but it wasn't the right situation for you....I don't know the specifics. Can you expect someone to make a "run" at your son with more academic/athletic money to a better business school? I don't know. In my experience, we had a couple coaches (one in the same conference) stay in touch (via email) until my son was officially accepted ED by Admissions. As I said previously there is no one size fits all in college baseball recruiting.
Again, congrats on the verbal commitment and best of luck going forward!
RHPdadCA,
Is your son a senior? If so than I get it.
No athletic money means he is a walk on. And I guess that you all understand there are no guarantees.
That could mean that if another offer does come through, with athletic dollars he can accept without penalty.
Thanks, as always, for the good feedback.
Yes ... he is a senior. My son realizes that a non-scholarship athlete may or may not end up on the roster. There is certainly no written, notarized guarantee that is certified by the University's general counsel which ensures he will be on the team.
What I (sarcastically) mean by that is if he shows up and his velo is at 75, clearly he won't be on the team. But if he shows good command, stays upper 80s, and has good action on his slider, he should be fine.
There is a great community college program a mile from our house, and he is fine with that as an option if things don't work out.
RHPdadCA,
Thanks for clearing things up. It all makes more sense now.
Best of luck
Thank you too.
Best of luck!
