What to do now?

What elite team has he played for and who is he playing for this summer?

The range of talent of posters kids here ranges from stud prospect to lower level D3. From a recruiting standpoint the studs go first. Then the process filters down. Even the top ranked D3's wait to see if some of their prospects decide to play D1.

Make a genuine assessment of your son's ability. Ask others if it's accurate. Then pick ten schools and get in front of them as often as possible whether it's showcases or camps. Make sure they know your son is in attendance and his passion for attending that college. There will be opportunities through the end of the year (December). I've seen kids get offers after a solid senior year.

The game hasn't ended with lack of phone calls on July 1. The game is just beginning. Consider July 1 the starters gun to the race to the right fit.

You should be saving money for college anyway. Chances are he's only going to get 25% if he gets anything at all.

Thanks for the help. He is playing for the Diamond Devils and last year for the Cyclones. He has emailed his top schools and we were trying to decide if its worth the 400.00 to go to those camps this fall. Also is it wrong to hint to a coach that because of academics that he would consider being a preferred walk-on or is that something we should keep to ourself?

At this point let the coaches show interest before talking about preferred walk on. It is only early july and most kids have not been approached by colleges yet. Don't give away the Ranch or seem panicked. Asking about preferred walkon status shows a coach you are not confident of ability to play so let them bring that up. Relax take a breath and enjoy the experience as what will be will be.

Welcome to the HSBBW.
You failed to include one minor important detail, what's his GPA?
You mentioned that he has emailed HIS top schools but realistically are they at the level he has been evaluated for?

RJM brings up a good point, you should be saving all along for college, baseball may not even cover 1/4 of what is needed.

GPA is 3.8 and SAT 1120 ACT 24. The schools have been smaller schools.

quote:

The game hasn't ended with lack of phone calls on July 1. The game is just beginning. Consider July 1 the starters gun to the race to the right fit.

Nicely put, RJM. I have a good friend that I'm going to send this to.

If he is playing for the Diamond Devils he will get picked up, don't worry about it. Have fun, enjoy the fall, soak up the spring, and it'll work out. My 08 son started at a GA JUCO we had to talk him out of quitting, was a gnats hair from being out of ball, last year was a mid-week starter at a GA D1. Talk to John (I think that's the DD's guys name) and tell him ya'll are getting worried about next year and I'm sure he'll say the same thing. Boy does his best, has a good attitude, he'll get picked up.

If your son might be interested in playing at a HBCU, let me know.

Just got back from PG 17u event and son's team played a Diamond Devils Blue team in the Semi-Finals. Based on the # of coaches in attendance, if he is on that team, he got a lot of exposure!

Things will usually heat up in the fall, especially with the smaller schools. Diamond Prospects will probably have an unsigned senior showcase in Sept./Oct. Send him to that. If he would consider a JC, SMC will have an unsigned senior showcase in Dec./Jan. Not sure if Rivals does or not.

Realistically, if he has not received interest from the big D-1's by now he may never hear from them. Most of them already have their 2011 classes complete, unless a kid has a breakout season. But there are still lots of other good schools in SC.

As far as the cost is concerned, I don't know many people who have ever gotten the money they spent on Diamond Devils back in scholarship money. It just doesn't happen. BUT, they're your best option as far as exposure, if you can afford it.

Keep plugging, it's still early.

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Originally posted by South Carolina Mom:
My son is class 2011. He is an OF for the HS team but can play INF also. We have spent the better part of 3 years playing and traveling the Southeast on several elite summer/fall teams. We have emailed schools, been to showcases, and have not had ANY interest from a school. We are at the point that we are wondering if we should let him play HS season and save our $ for college tuition. We are not sure what to do at this point. Any suggestions? He is 5'11 175lbs...Great arm, 7.0 60, but only hits for average. HELP!

If he played for the Cyclones last year Nick must think he is a prospect. I realize Nick is out of the picture, but if you can track him down he would probably be of more help than Rhodes in terms of assessing the situation.

I wouldn't hint about the academic part yet. Schools will ask about his academics, and if they're interested and have no money they will propose that option. But if YOU suggested it they may try to get you to go that route, even if they DO have money left.

quote:

Originally posted by South Carolina Mom:
Thanks for the help. He is playing for the Diamond Devils and last year for the Cyclones. He has emailed his top schools and we were trying to decide if its worth the 400.00 to go to those camps this fall. Also is it wrong to hint to a coach that because of academics that he would consider being a preferred walk-on or is that something we should keep to ourself?

Here is my take on it FWIW. The recruiting for 2011 is ongoing now through the fall and even into early winter. Right now schools are looking at tier one pitchers and are closely following them. Once they these get these players committed then they will be looking at up the middle players and tier two pitchers. There are lots of events going on right now and most schools are out on the road looking at players. So I have to disagree with MTH, the D1 recruiting season is in full bloom right now and not anywhere near being completed. I do agree with him that the major D1’s will be first and then on down the line.

To be frank your son is average, based on your posting, he is clearly not a D1 candidate, but so what. He should be able to play at lots of schools. It will be important for you to identify his likely targets and get in touch with those programs. Fall will be a heavy time period for the high academic and lower division schools. D1’s will be filling in the holes then. For his profile I think it would be unreasonable to expect more than 25% or a walk on status regardless. I would certainly be looking at smaller Midwest schools.

I say this all the time but try to look at the profile of kids at positions in college and see where he fits. He does not have blazing speed so CF does not fit, he is not a masher so a corner OF spot is not a target, so maybe second base is his profile position. For him a clear area for him to improve on is his speed and maybe he could fit a CF as schools look for OBP and speed for someone with his profile. It is really important for you to know where you think he fits he can have an intelligent discussion with a coach about their needs and how he can fill it. Good luck!

BOF: you hit it on the head. We do not have unreasonable expectations for top D1 schools. He actually prefers smaller schools which would be a better fit for him. You were also right about 2nd base probably being a better fit for him. He doesn't get the chance to show his skills at 2nd very often as the H.S. and travel coach seem to place him in the OF. He is working with a trainer on his speed right now so hopefully that will improve. He is wanting to go to SC schools due to the lottery money and being close to family/girlfriend. His top choice would be to go to Winthrop University but is open to other schools. He will be participateing in the Diamond Prospects fall showcase as well as a DP fall league this Sept. We will also pick and choose area school camps this fall and winter and see where this takes him.

Again, thanks to all for the help and encouragement.