Likelihood of getting recruited by Major D1?

Coach JV said:

She get lots of looks because she is 6'4". Perhaps the interview draws the flag hmmm

My advice-don't get involved in niece's affairs, in the long run it may affect family dynamics

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Agree +1. I didn't see anything about the niece and what she wants. Other plausible reasons are she isn't showing a strong interest in the schools and/or is raising red flags about her desire to play.

I also advise being very cautious about getting involved. If you do, make sure you know what the niece really wants first so you can advocate on her behalf. Her TB coach probably knows why the college coaches are moving on.

A lot has been posted about the parents and they certainly raise red flags. Beyond their direct involvement with some schools, most coaches do their homework on the parents and monitor them while watching games.

So what do her academics look like? Is she concerned about getting a good education?

Nothing wrong with going to a quality D1 mid-major state school where she gets to play and gets a good education, as a 2018 pitching prospect I would not expect P5 D1s to be knocking on my door in 2017.

riseball said:

FWIW - I find it interesting that some think the P5 football designation is somehow relevant in softball.

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I see your point, but with the exception of a few like ULL or Hofstra, teams with a legit shot at the WCWS are from the power 5. So they are more competitive from a softball perspective, as well as football.

riseball said:

FWIW - I find it interesting that some think the P5 football designation is somehow relevant in softball.

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It's relative in regards to the educational and softball resources and other amenities. It means squat in regards to their play in the field.

let it be fun said:

There is so much more to being a P5 D1 athlete than just playing time. I think our travel ball culture of 11 player rosters has given parents and players an expectation of playing time. There is nothing promised. A better girl might get recruited next year and you can go from playing to sitting very quickly. Does a player want to see if they can stack up against the very best players and teams or do they want to play a lot at a lower level? That is each player's decision. Expectation management is key. Go to the SEC school and give it a shot and then transfer if you are not happy. That is what I would suggest. Committing to play college ball is a not a 4 year prison sentence if you are not happy...

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Exactly!!!

6'4", throws hard, plays on a team that is going to get looks, had lots of talks with high D1, no offers....

It can be many things, but here goes the list:

- Parents are putting up big red flags
- Parents are doing all the recruiting work, not the kid. Or no one is really doing any recruiting work
- No love for the college or the college coaches. People forget this is a two-way street - the coaches have to know you want to be there. If you act like it is going to be a huge privilege for the college to have your kid come play for you that is going to be a major turn off.
- Conversations with coaches revolve around what they can do for the kid, not what the kid can do for the college softball program and the college.
- Conversation with coaches involve demands like "looking to get assurances that she will start as a freshman" - and most big programs really don't have that available (except for maybe the 1 or 2 special talents each year - hell Barnhill was the 3rd starter at Florida last season)
- Research into college is 'Is big time program we saw on TV". Can't name the city or state the program is in unless it is in the name of the school.
- Girl can't express what she is looking to academically at the school (or softball wise either)
- Coaches get the feeling that the family believe their college program is 'below' their daughter
- Grades... girl can't qualify academically for the school or big concerns she wont remain eligible
- Girl doesn't really want it (so is intentionally blowing talks/etc)
- Parents keep answering for the kid - even if the coach is talking directly to the kid at a tournament
- Girls doesn't put in the effort/work ethic is not equal to what is required at big schools. Getting by on talent alone
- Dugout demeanor or behavior/interaction with teammates
- Blaming others when she gets beaten
- Kid is totally out of shape... and there is no reason to think she will get in shape.
- She really isn't that good... being 6'4" gets attention, but look closer and.... and that would mean she is ignoring all the schools that are a better fit for her
- Parents are under the delusion the program is responsible for getting her recruited - and they are not. The team is just another tool you use to help get recruited
- Also if she is an issue, when the colleges DO talk to her coaches they are probably not getting the best vibe from the coaches. (I had one of those - D1 talent softball, D1 team cancer...she didn't last long - but what do you say when coaches come to you and ask about her beyond her skill set. Hated those conversations - I had to basically avoid answering it, and you could just see the coaches could absolutely tell)
- Combination of all the above

In the end, college coaches have to deal with a lot of problems with players they don't know about until they get to campus... they don't need to be bringing in a problem they already identified to add to that.

Adding one: off-field behavior. You would not believe how many girls get crossed off the list of players a team are considering because of something the coach overheard in the stands or at the concession stand.

riseball said:

FWIW - I find it interesting that some think the P5 football designation is somehow relevant in softball.

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You're right, but branding is such a powerful tool. Big school coaches use "P5"/"Power 5" so casually in conversation that it's really become a thing among TB coaches and parents. Bigtime football brings in the bigtime money that upgrades all the athletic facilities that are so attractive to recruits and their families.

And if you look at just the numbers, while many schools may be in contention in any given year or group of years, the fact of the matter is that there have only been 2 NCAA Champions - Fresno St. and Cal State Fullerton - from outside the major conferences. And only 5 of the runners-up have been from outside the P5. So, that's 7 out of 70 finalists. When the coach of a last-place team tells a 16-year-old phenom that she's going to have a chance to compete for a National Championship by the time she a junior, that coach's words do carry some weight if that is a factor that means a lot to that player.

Coach JV said:

My advice-don't get involved in niece's affairs, in the long run it may affect family dynamics

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Thanks Coach JV. This has been most painful to watch. Since dd is going through the same thing (d3 vs d1), my mom's begged me to speak with my lil' sis. (Even an 80 year old woman sees the error in my sis' ways). I've tried but it's fallen on deaf ears. My sis and her dh are very much about appearances - right car, right address, right hs, right friends... you get it. Now, it's all about the right college, big stadium, lights, fans and all. (Honest, she told me that!) I was starting to think that maybe I was the insane one ... standing in the way of her dd's dreams.

She did explain that dd's dream is to play professionally one day but failing that, to make Team USA and play in Japan in 2020. Maybe that's why the drive for a major "big-time" d1.

FP26 said:

Depends on the parents.... Personally, this isn't for me. But I know one family that moved their DD from a team on which she was the #1 pitcher to a team that plays her a few innings per weekend, and never in the circle. Their DD was happy with the original team and didn't want to move. But the parents insisted so that she could win medals... The parents are loving every minute of it based on the amount of facebook posts they make. But their DD has confided in me that softball is no longer fun for her. Dad's dream was a D1 scholly from the time she was 8 years old. Now for her, she only continues to play so that her parents don't get mad at her.

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That's so sad that she does it for her parents and not herself.

My good friend's dd pitched at a P5 D1 and graduated 5+ years ago. She hasn't picked up a ball since (Mom says that she was turned off by how much ball she played in college). She chose D1 because that's what she wanted, not because of her parents. She graduated and has been waitressing since. Her mom says that she did have a ball (sorry for the pun) in college though!

Momo'sDad said:

You're right, but branding is such a powerful tool. Big school coaches use "P5"/"Power 5" so casually in conversation that it's really become a thing among TB coaches and parents. Bigtime football brings in the bigtime money that upgrades all the athletic facilities that are so attractive to recruits and their families.

And if you look at just the numbers, while many schools may be in contention in any given year or group of years, the fact of the matter is that there have only been 2 NCAA Champions - Fresno St. and Cal State Fullerton - from outside the major conferences. And only 5 of the runners-up have been from outside the P5. So, that's 7 out of 70 finalists. When the coach of a last-place team tells a 16-year-old phenom that she's going to have a chance to compete for a National Championship by the time she a junior, that coach's words do carry some weight if that is a factor that means a lot to that player.

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Very true, but if you look at all of the P5 schools some do not have softball programs and many will never make it to a regional, much less the WCWS. Success and income from the football program certainly does not translate to success on the softball field. But I guess some folks are enamored with playing softball for a school with a storied football program.