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Aug 10, 2016
686
63
Georgia
What? What do you mean not a fan? Sounds like he allowed it. That is strictly forbidden in every HS game I have attended for any team AND started with 14U TB teams.
The ones who usually do it are the ones who start every game. The number of times these girls look over at their parents during the game drives me crazy. And the way the parents are still coaching them. If you want to play college, your parents aren't going to be with you everywhere.
We send her off to the game - say good luck - come to watch - and don't talk to her again until we take her home.
 
May 27, 2013
2,353
113
Hopefully the players have emailed college coaches their schedule, as well as have sent introductory emailS. No DI schools are allowed to be at showcases now due to the dead period (pushed back now until 2021), so if any have been out and about they can get in BIG trouble. That doesn’t mean they won’t have people scouting for them, though.

D2’s and D3’s are allowed to be present now, so you might see them. If the team live-streams, have your daughter email the coaches of the schools she’s interested in the link. The D1 coaches might also watch via livestream.

I always tell our players to cast a wide net. Include all divisions in their initial contacts. There is plenty of time shorten that list!
 
Aug 10, 2016
686
63
Georgia
DD's TB coach had them all pick at least 2 from D1, D2, D3 and NAIA. It's tough starting out ;)
I'm always amazed at how many D1 schools there are though.
 
Apr 16, 2010
924
43
Alabama
DD's TB coach had them all pick at least 2 from D1, D2, D3 and NAIA. It's tough starting out ;)
I'm always amazed at how many D1 schools there are though.

Also look at JUCOS. They have always been a great option but now with all the eligibility craziness going on they are an even better option. DD has had a JUCO follow her since 8th grade. She had several DI's following her with all the camp invites and visits. When the JUCO invited her for a visit she had mixed feelings because she had another one of her top schools wanting to see her one last time before pulling the trigger. That changed after we were there for about 15 minutes. Two weeks later she committed.

Now Sunday she will sign to play for a team with 12 conference titles and 2 national championships that sent ten players to 4 year schools the last full season (2019). Her dorm room is bigger than anything the DI's had to offer. Their facilities are better than two the the DI's that were in her top 5 for years. The coaches are people I trust my DD's life with and I know after she is done there she will be able to handle life at a large school with no issues. All of that plus the fact I will be out only $5200 for two years of her college education. JUCO's in Alabama are not allowed to offer room and board since all do not have dorms.

Second piece of advice is make videos and create a YouTube channel and send the links to coaches. A decent skills video with out all the music and special effects and game highlights are perfect. We did a video of each showcase or a week of games during school ball. Honestly I think this got DD more attention than anything we did. This is even bigger with the current recruiting restrictions.
 
Dec 11, 2010
4,713
113
This will be necessarily harsh sounding because waaaaay to many parents think it doesn’t apply to them. They and their dd are somehow “special”. You are not. Get over it now. There are literally tens if not hundreds of serviceable players available for every open spot on every college team.

Do at least the following:

Stay away from the dugout.

Don't look at the dugout. Don’t look at her unless she is on the field. It doesn’t take a college coach to recognize when a parent and player are communicating during games. It is the reddest of red flags.

By now, dd should know that if she didn’t bring enough water, she will go without until the end of the game. This is a “sucks to be you” type deal.

She can not wave you over to get her a purple Gatorade and a pretzel. Ever. Those days should have been over long ago anyway.

College coaches do not want to talk to parents. They only want to know if they can stand you being around for four years and if you are going to cause them problem. Do not underestimate how serious I am about this.

Once a coach is interested in your dd, they want to know if they can stand being around your dd and if she is a good enough student to be eligible and not cause them problems.

If your daughter didn't send an intro email and a schedule to coaches, they are not watching her. She needs to send the schedule AS SOON AS SHE GETS IT. Coaches don’t randomly wander around the complex watching softball. They make a schedule of who they want to watch. They are crazy busy. It is a hard job I would not want. Put yourself in their position and try to understand it.

Phones remain in the bags at the park or at least at times when the team is together. The only exception might be a schedule change she needs to make a coach aware of.

Coaches aren’t looking for players that don’t ever fail. They are looking for players that can handle adversity.

Look at above. Make sure you emphasize to dd that coaches will look at her technique not her results. Take some pressure off her now.

Don’t let “being recruited” become the goal. Don’t go down that rabbit hole. Try to love the game more than ever and enjoy the time on the field instead. It may be coming to an end. Enjoy every second.

Hope this helps.
 
Last edited:
Apr 16, 2010
924
43
Alabama
Coaches aren’t looking for players that don’t ever fail. They are looking for players that can handle adversity.

Look at above. Make sure you emphasize to dd that coaches will look at her technique not her results. Take some pressure off her now.

This is a huge statement. This past weekend I had a coach watching one of our players. The first AB she got to see was a BB on 4 pitches. The coach told me "I love how she took the pitches. She was ready to hit and you could tell she was go, go, go, stop." She ended up watching almost two full games to see her and another kid.

My cousins DD played at a Top 10 program and won a WCWS. In TB she played for a great team that ended up with 14 or 15 DI players. Their first trip to Colorado as 14yo's drew tons of P5 coaches. The first time she stepped on the field there were at least 20 coaches watching them play one of the top Cali teams. Candrea, Murphy, Hutchins, and just about every big name coach was in the group. She proceeded to strike out and at 14 she was crushed inside thinking she blew her chance to ever play college ball. Her eventual HC actually mentioned that AB to her a couple of years later and told her that was the moment he started really watching her. She struck out but had a great swing and a solid AB. Biggest factor was how she handled herself after the K.
 
Mar 4, 2015
526
93
New England
College coaches are not coming to watch your kid unless she has been in communication (one way for the most part)with the coach.

This is the most informative bit of info on this thread, IMO. I'd treat a showcase as a learning experience but play it like any other tournament.

As for how to act, I'll go against the grain and say be yourself. Don't pretend. Let coaches see what they're really getting. Kids who throw their helmets after striking out are underrated, IMO. Shows they're competitive. That's a rare trait. Too many kids want to get a hit to please somebody else. I can coach you up on attitude and discipline, but apathy can't be fixed. And those who run hard off the field, or jog back to the dugout when they strike out, I guess there's something to be said for that. They're coachable and eager to please. But what I'd really like to see if some genuine evidence of competitiveness. But don't fake it. It's dishonest. (That's my morning mini-rant.)
 
Aug 10, 2016
686
63
Georgia
Sometimes I wonder if what DD's HS coach wants - because the players he always plays - have the worst attitude (IMO) when they don't get a hit. He is usually coaching 3B so he might not see the crying when they walk off the field. I get being upset but being a total jerk to your teammates is what drives me crazy. DD will always try to say something nice to them or give them a high five and they breeze past her.
Again just my opinion - we had a player who was struggling - most strikeouts on the team - after her at-bats (if she was DP) she'd take a bucket of balls and go hit in the cage. And always very supportive of every player. Maybe that's not what coaches want but that is type of person I would want to coach.

Also I do probably need to talk to DD about this - I think sometimes her quietness is mistaken for apathy. If she were to act like some of the others it would not be her at all.
 
Apr 20, 2018
4,581
113
SoCal
JOCOS:

" Her dorm room is bigger than anything the DI's had to offer. Their facilities are better than two the the DI's that were in her top 5 for years. The coaches are people I trust my DD's life with and I know after she is done there she will be able to handle life at a large school with no issues. "

Bingo, there it is. This statement would indicate that you had the opportunity to talk with the coaches. Good for you. The idea or belief that the coach is some unapproachable God is bullshit. If a coach was interested in my DD then he going to have to talk to me too. She is my DD. There is no magic birthday in which she is no longer my DD. I would much rather have my DD go to a school where I could say "people I trust my DD's life with" than A P5 school with a berating, tyrannical, old school jerk coach.
 

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