Recruiting Out of JUCO

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Aug 18, 2014
57
8
Hello everyone. My daughter, after having been recruited to a mid level D2, decided that the cost of attending an out of state school was more than she wanted to have on her balance sheet after graduation. As a result she is commuting to and playing for a D3 JUCO. They have a good team but the level of pitching she sees in most cases is not overwhelming. She had a good fall and led the team offensively in BA and several other categories. She plays SS.

My question is this: what are her options for transferring after her Sophomore year and how do we make it happen? Are there any camps for JUCO players? She started late in softball and is objectively getting better as she gets older. I would like for her to try to get on a team that works for her which probably means staying in state unless she could get some scholarship money. Her high school grades and SAT scores were average, not enough to warrant scholarship money but in college she is doing well so far academically.

Anyone who has been through this experience can you enlighten me as to what direction we should take? Thanks all.
 
Apr 16, 2010
924
43
Alabama
I am definitely not an expert so I can only tell you what I have been told. My DD has a Juco in her top five schools along with 4 mid major DI's. It is there because of the success of their program, financial reasons, and the offer a forensic science degree.

I have been told players transferring out of Juco's can still qualify for academic money. I was given an example fo a girl from our area that went Juco after HS because she didn't qualify for academic money at the DI schools that offered her. A year and a half later the academic money is there because she has performed well in the class room at the college level.

I have also seen several schools post camps where the ages for camp run through Juco sophmores. If you keep your eye out there should be opporunities to get her name out there. Fall games against other levels of competition help also.
 

sluggers

Super Moderator
Staff member
May 26, 2008
7,132
113
Dallas, Texas
My question is this: what are her options for transferring after her Sophomore year and how do we make it happen?

My DD played at a Juco and transferred to a D1 school. So, here is our experience:

The days of Pollyanna Plays Softball are over. It is 100% about "what can you do for me *NOW*" and "here is what I can do for you *NOW*." Your DD has to be able to contribute immediately, doing something the college coach needs. The new coach won't spend 10 minutes developing your DD. (In other words, she will be viewed just like the coach views her current players.)

Yes, that puts pressure on your DD to perform at the Juco. She has to be one of the top two or three kids on the team. She has to have the statistics to back it up. If your DD isn't devouring most Juco pitching, she has no business playing on a D1 or D2 team.

Don't be coy and wait for a coach to approach your DD. Your DD should be selling herself...sending out videos and trying to find a place where she can help the team.

Also, your DD has to do the contacting. The coach wants a responsible adult for a player. The coach wants someone who understands that the coach's job depends upon the player's performance.

What happened with my DD? She did quite well at Juco (like @riseball's DD). DD had contact other colleges, and had offers from a couple of D2 schools. Her Juco coaches helped her. The Kansas U coach saw my DD pitch, but decided on another player. However, the Kansas coach called up her friend at Ohio U. coach and said, "You better grab this kid." My DD looked at the offers, and liked the Ohio U best.
 
Aug 18, 2014
57
8
My DD played at a Juco and transferred to a D1 school. So, here is our experience:

The days of Pollyanna Plays Softball are over. It is 100% about "what can you do for me *NOW*" and "here is what I can do for you *NOW*." Your DD has to be able to contribute immediately, doing something the college coach needs. The new coach won't spend 10 minutes developing your DD. (In other words, she will be viewed just like the coach views her current players.)

Yes, that puts pressure on your DD to perform at the Juco. She has to be one of the top two or three kids on the team. She has to have the statistics to back it up. If your DD isn't devouring most Juco pitching, she has no business playing on a D1 or D2 team.

Don't be coy and wait for a coach to approach your DD. Your DD should be selling herself...sending out videos and trying to find a place where she can help the team.

Also, your DD has to do the contacting. The coach wants a responsible adult for a player. The coach wants someone who understands that the coach's job depends upon the player's performance.

What happened with my DD? She did quite well at Juco (like @riseball's DD). DD had contact other colleges, and had offers from a couple of D2 schools. Her Juco coaches helped her. The Kansas U coach saw my DD pitch, but decided on another player. However, the Kansas coach called up her friend at Ohio U. coach and said, "You better grab this kid." My DD looked at the offers, and liked the Ohio U best.
Thank you that is encouraging. She is hitting the JUCO pitching hard and played high level travel for two years. The pitching we saw in Colorado and such tournaments was probably better than what she sees now. She’s a power hitting 5’10 SS and was without a doubt the offensive leader of the team this fall but it was only 8 games so I will reserve judgement. The problem with getting her recruited was as I said she started late and by the time her talent caught up it was late in the game and we jumped on an offer before we realized the costs involved. The school was D2 and did not have much athletic money period and what they gave out went for pitching I expect. I’m fairly confident she will play the question is where and what level. I took a previous posters advice as well and we will look to get her in a camp that allows JUCO players. She also will be 18U eligible next summer but I know some of the sanctioning bodies don’t allow college players.

I’m gonna see how she plays this spring and go from there but want to thank everyone for their responses. I will keep you up to date.
 

Cannonball

Ex "Expert"
Feb 25, 2009
4,854
113
Our HS program has a great reputation for having girls to go local JUCOs and then having them go to either D-I or D-II schools. Most of the time, they went the JUCO route was/is financial concerns. This year will see some more of our girls going to D-II teams after their JUCO experience.
 

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